The National Curriculum Review - Submission of Evidence - Summary - Practical Work in School Science

Sep 5, 2026

Submission of evidence to the National Curriculum review (14 April 2011) arguing that practical work in school science has eroded since the introduction of the National Curriculum. The submission refocuses the review on lab practical skills, high employer and higher-education expectations, and meaningful involvement of HE and industry. It recommends clearer laboratory-skill statements by Key Stage, improved time and space for wider practical activities, assessment objectives aligned to GCSE practical requirements, and a trial timetable for Key Stage 4 changes before public examinations.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages10

Reading Time25 min

AccessFree to download

Summary

Purpose and focus

Why practical work matters

Recommendations and actions

Context and supporting organizations

Introduction

Curriculum stability vs practical-skill expectations

Concerns from industry and higher education

14 APRIL 2011 THE NATIONAL CURRICULUM REVIEW SUBMISSION OF EVIDENCE SUMMARY 1 The National Curriculum review will receive many detailed submissions regarding what biology, physics and chemistry subject content should feature in the new Science curriculum and at which Key Stage. Gatsby considers such decisions regarding content are best informed by subject specialist organisations such as the science professional bodies within SCORE 1, and as such we do not address them in our response. 2 Instead we focus this response on one key issue: practical work in school science. Since the introduction of the National Curriculum there has been a steady erosion of the teaching of practical skills. This is a cause of significant concern to industry and higher education institutions. Reversing this trend would also increase the engagement of young people in science and lead to greater participation in science post-16. 3 The National Curriculum review is an opportunity to re-examine the role of practical work. In particular, the review must ensure that the Science Curriculum sets high expectations of attainment in the laboratory skills that employers and higher education value. To this end, we recommend that:- − The National Curriculum review team should provide an impact assessment to show explicitly how any changes to the National Curriculum for Science will support and actively encourage better practical work in schools. − The review must ensure that the National Curriculum allows sufficient time and space for teachers to undertake a much wider range of practical activities with their students than is currently the case. − The Science National Curriculum should state explicitly the laboratory skills that students are expected to develop at each Key Stage. If the Programme(s) of Study for Science identify separate requirements for biology, chemistry and physics it will be essential that each of these include explicit statements relating to laboratory skills. − The review must consider how the requirements of the National Curriculum regarding practical work at Key Stage 4 can be translated into assessment objectives across the range of science GCSEs. It is unacceptable that the assessment of laboratory skills has been reduced to the point where a GCSE student who is unable to, for example, use a microscope or heat measured volumes of liquid without breaking test tubes is still able to achieve maximum marks for their practical work as long as they can write about how they should have done it. − The review should involve higher education and employers in a much more meaningful way than has been the case in previous National Curriculum reviews. Included within these discussions should be a focus on ensuring that employer and HE requirements for laboratory skills are met, something we believe has been wholly absent from previous reviews. − The review should set out a timetable of work to show how any changes at Key Stage 4 can be trialled and evaluated before they are included in public examinations. 1 The SCORE partnership comprises the ASE, Institute of Physics, Royal Society, Royal Society of Chemistry and Society of Biology. It receives core funding from Gatsby and the DFE. ABOUT GATSBY 4 Gatsby is a Trust set up in 1967 by David Sainsbury (now Lord Sainsbury of Turville) to realise his charitable objectives. We focus our support on a limited number of areas: − Plant science research − Neuroscience research − Science and engineering education − Economic development in Africa − Public policy research and advice − The Arts INTRODUCTION 5 The subject content – the concepts and ideas – that appears in the Science National Curriculum is relatively uncontentious and has remained reasonably stable over time. This situation is not unique to England: the similarities in the content of different countries’ curricula are much more notable than the differences. 6 However, the National Curriculum expectati

FAQs

What central issue does this submission focus on?

The submission focuses on one key issue: practical work in school science, arguing that lab practical skills have steadily declined since the National Curriculum was introduced.

Why does the submission consider practical work important beyond schools?

It links school practical skills to the needs of apprentices, technicians, scientists, and engineers in industry, and to higher education expectations for students entering university.

What changes to the National Curriculum does the submission recommend?

It recommends an impact assessment, more time and space for practical activities, explicit laboratory skills by Key Stage (including within biology, chemistry, and physics), assessment objectives that better reflect practical work, and involvement of higher education and employers.

Sep 5, 2026

Uploaded by Jordan Avery