Why do we teach science?

Telling someone an answer is not always the best way to learn. Hands-on experience often proves to be a much more valuable tool to aid understanding for all children. Science at The Alice Smith School focuses on building on students’ practical experiences and the courses are based around practical work wherever possible.

Students study science to help them understand the natural world around them and to get to grips with both the technology they already use in everyday life and with technology they will later encounter in their workplace.

There are 4 main strands in current science education:

• Life processes and living things (Biology)
• Materials and properties (Chemistry)
• Physical processes (Physics)
• How science works – the scientific method of testing a theory and trying to provide evidence to support or refute it.

All our students from age 11 to 16 follow all of these strands.

Staffing

Key Stage 3

Students are set for Science in Years 7, 8 and 9. We currently have 2 extension top sets, 3 parallel middle sets and one support set in each year. Classes average 20 students with 7 periods of Science per 2 weeks. (1 period = 60 mins). In Years 7 and 8 each class studies 3 Science topics a term with their Science teacher. The scheme of work covered is a condensed version of the English national curriculum. During Years 7 and 8, students will meet nearly all areas of the key stage 3 Science programme of study. During Year 9, students finish the National Curriculum, and then follow a course that expands on each of the areas met in Years 7 and 8. All students new to the school during Key Stage 3 have the opportunity to re-visit each topic of work briefly. Extension work gives an opportunity for students to study additional material to enhance their understanding of the key ideas covered in Key Stage 3.

After the N.C exams in May, Year 9 students take part in a Science Fair, as well as completing preparation work for their IGCSE Exam.

Key Stage 4

In 2008, our first set of students will sit the Edexcel IGSE exams for Double Award and Triple Award Science. These courses are more academically challenging than the U.K. GCSE courses on offer and should better prepare students for the challenge of A Levels. Much of the old separate science course is included within the Double Award Course.

Classes are set as per Key Stage 3 with a total of 9 hours of science over 2 weeks. Specialist subject teachers deliver each science subject and students take a written practical exam to be taken in addition to the main subject exams.

A Level

We currently run one group of Biology, Chemistry and Physics AS and A2 courses, working towards the Edexcel Syllabus A exams. Class sizes are typically about 10-12 students. Each subject is allocated about 5 hours a week.

Facilities & Resources

We have 10 large air-conditioned laboratories; two dedicated to each of the individual disciplines of Biology, Chemistry and Physics, and 4 general science laboratories. Two technicians, who operate from central preparation rooms, support the Faculty. Each teacher has access to shared office facilities within the Faculty. The faculty has the normal audio - visual facilities and one lab is set up with 8 networked computers for data-logging, internet research and class work. All labs have LCD projectors linked to networked computers

The Physics lab - no windows, so that optics work can be done easily	GCSEPhysics
GCSE Chemistry	A level Chemistry
GCSE Biology	Colourful Chemistry from the A level course
ICTused to collect data in an experiment	'New hair styles' in physics

Homework tip:

If you need help with science homework or just have an interesting question, post it on our ‘science answers’ blog at: www.klassscience.blogspot.com
An answer will be provided soon by our team of senior science students.

Science links page

General
Gondar Science Design
Discovery Channel
Science World
Skoool.com - a great site for all sorts of science topics
Active Science - Another user friendly animated resource site

Revision
BBC Revision Help - This page is part of the BBC site but it is specially for students studying GCSE's. There is revision information, question forums, advice from examiners - A very useful site for Year 11.
8886.com - A top coursework help website
S-cool - GCSE and A Level revision
GCSE.com
KLASS extranet - You will need a password!

Biology
Virtual Frog Dissection
Online Biology Textbook
Cells Alive!
Biotopics
Chad Evans Biology notes and question

Chemistry
CHEMystery - An interactive online chemistry text book for both GCSE and A Level.
Royal Society of Chemistry
Rod Beavon's Chemistry Pages
Chemguide
Creative Chemistry

Physics
Hubble Space Telescope Photos - Heritage Project site showing pictures taken by the Space telescope.
Fizzics Fizzle - An interactive online physics text book for both GCSE and A Level.
Orrey - An Astronomy resource site
The Physics Classroom
Sounds Amazing