The Sciences

The Science Faculty Philosophy

The Faculty is committed to the view that pupils should receive a broad and balanced science education, delivered by subject specialists, so that they can be prepared as confident citizens in a technological world, able to take or develop an informed interest in scientific matters.  The courses taught are appropriate for those who will end their study at GCSE as well as laying a secure foundation for those who will continue their studies.  Accordingly, at GCSE pupils are prepared for either core & additional or all three separate sciences, with the latter course being recommended for those seeking to continue with science in the Sixth Form.  It is important that students are required to gain certain minimum qualifications before embarking upon Sixth Form courses if they are not to be given a misleading expectation of success.

Science education should be stimulating and enjoyable, enabling pupils to recognise the usefulness and limitations of scientific method and appreciate its applicability in other disciplines and in everyday life; furthermore an awareness that the applications of science may be both beneficial and detrimental to the individual, the community and the environment is promoted as is the recognition that the study and practice of science are co-operative and cumulative activities, subject to social, economic, technological, ethical and cultural activities and limitations.

The Faculty's aim is to provide the highest possible quality of learning, motivating the pupils by its quality of teaching.  Hence pupils are set by ability to facilitate the tailoring of the teaching to their individual needs.  They are taught the separate sciences by three different teachers concurrently.  An important part of the teacher / pupil interaction is the regular marking of pupils' written work, enabling the teacher to monitor progress and the pupils to have the benefit of constructive criticism.  Prep is regarded as an integral part of the process, reinforcing and developing the work done in the laboratory.  Science lessons are as far as possible practical based, fostering curiosity and imaginative, critical and logical thinking, developing manipulative skills, encouraging good habits for health and safety, and stimulating an interest in and an awareness of the surroundings as well as leading to the acquisition of knowledge.  The lessons should be enjoyable, challenging yet accessible!

Obviously the examination grades achieved determine the public perceptions of the standards reached by pupils and of the success of the Faculty, so clearly the examination syllabus dictates what must be taught.  Our programmes of study fully cover but are not restricted by the confines of the examination syllabus! 

GCSE courses

All GCSE Sciences follow the AQA specifications.
The national GCSE science curriculum consists of Core Science as a single GCSE with Additional Science as a second GCSE OR the three separate science GCSEs.  Both Core Science and Additional Science incorporate a balance of biology, chemistry and physics topics and are distinct GCSEs, graded independently.  The three separate sciences involve covering the components that feature in both Core & Additional Science plus extension material.

Core Science	Biology 1		Chemistry 1		Physics 1	coursework
Additional Science	Biology 2		Chemistry 2		Physics 2	coursework
Extension material	Biology 3		Chemistry 3		Physics 3
	coursework		coursework		coursework

Compared to previous courses, a greater emphasis is placed upon a knowledge and understanding of how science works in the world at large as well as in the laboratory.  The Core Science content aims at providing general scientific literacy, equipping pupils to question and engage in debate on the evidence used in decision-making, with Additional Science providing more substantial content to prepare for post-16 study of the sciences.

Examination Structure & Coursework

Each science GCSE is assessed 75% externally and 25% internally.  The external assessment takes the following form:

• Core Science -2 * 30 minute objective (multiple choice type) tests for each of the three sciences;
• Additional Science - A 45 minute written paper (short answer questions) for each of the three sciences;
• Separate Sciences - A second 45 minute written paper on the extension material for each science.

For each GCSE the internally assessment, (or “coursework”), consists of “investigative skills assignments” (ISAs) and a “practical skills assessment” (PSA).  Each ISA involves an externally set 45 minute test based upon laboratory practical work and taken during a normal timetabled lesson under exam conditions.  In a preparatory lesson pupils design a results table before carrying out practical work and tabulating their results.  They then use their own data in the written test, which questions them about the practical and on the results, (provided by the Exam Board), of a similar experiment.  The answers are marked at the College and the scripts, including tables and data, are kept for moderation by the Exam Board.  A number of ISAs are tackled throughout the course and the best mark obtained in the relevant context is submitted for each Science GCSE.

The PSA is a mark given for the general practical and safety skills shown during the course and is common across the three sciences.  The two components of the centre-assessed work are weighted 85% ISA and 15% PSA.

Teaching Route

In year 9, a common course is followed, which begins with consolidation to ensure that all pupils have a sure foundation, regardless of their background, and then the Core material is started. For years 10 & 11, most pupils follow a standard course leading to Core & Additional Science GCSEs. The more scientifically able can, as part of their option choices, devote more time to the three sciences to prepare for the three separate science GCSEs. In either case the Core Science syllabus and a significant portion of the Additional Science are completed in Y10. The pupils are entered for the Core Science objective tests during the year, two in November, two in March and the final pair in June, so that pupils will effectively have one science GCSE under their belt by the end of Y10. However, we do not “cash in” the GCSE then. Amongst other reasons, this leaves open the option to re-sit perhaps one or more of the objective tests to improve the overall grade; any re-sits are taken at the end of Y11, (strange though this might sound to traditionalists, such is accepted practice with AS & A level modules!)

In Y11, those following the extra science route sit the Additional Science written papers in January and the Extension papers, (depending upon their performance in the Additional papers), in the summer. Whilst encouraging our pupils to stretch themselves, our entry policy is always to endeavour to balance quantity and quality for each child; in the long run it is generally better to acquire fewer GCSEs that are of high grade than more that are of modest standard.

High grades in both Core & Additional Science GCSEs should provide a sound basis for study of all the sciences in the lower sixth, although obviously those who have managed the three separate science GCSEs will be at an advantage since, not only will they have a deeper science background, they will also have already proved themselves to be stronger scientifically.

Course Structure

Unit	Summary of subject content
How Science Works This permeates all the GCSE science courses	The thinking behind the doing (reliability of evidence) Fundamental ideas (variables) Observation as a stimulus to investigation Designing an investigation Making measurements Presenting data Using data to draw conclusions Societal aspects of scientific evidence Limitations of scientific evidence
Core Science              (the divisions a & b denote the content of the two objective tests)
Biology 1a	How do human bodies respond to changes inside them and to their environment? What can we do to keep our bodies healthy? How do we use/abuse medical and recreational drugs? What causes infectious diseases and how can our bodies defend against them?
Biology 1b	What determines where particular species live and how many of them there are? Why are individuals of the same species different from each other?  What new methods do we have for producing plants and animals we prefer? Why have some species of plants and animals died out?  How do new species of plants and animals develop? How do humans affect the environment?
Chemistry 1a	How do rocks provide building materials? How do rocks provide metals and how are metals used? How do we get fuels from crude oil?
Chemistry 1b	How are polymers and ethanol made from oil? How can plant oils be used? What are the changes in the Earth and its atmosphere?
Physics 1a	How is heat (thermal energy) transferred and what factors affect the rate at which heat is transferred? What is meant by the efficient use of energy? Why are electrical devices so useful? How should we generate the electricity we need?
Physics 1b	What are the hazards and uses of the waves that form the electromagnetic spectrum? What are the uses and dangers of emissions from radioactive substances? What do we know about the origins of the Universe and how it continues to change?
Additional Science
Biology 2	What are animals and plants built from? How do dissolved substances enter and leave cells? How do plants obtain the food they need to live and grow? What happens to energy and biomass at each stage in a food chain? What happens to the waste material produced by plants and animals? What are enzymes and some of their functions?
Chemistry 2	How do sub-atomic particles help us understand the structure of substances? How do structures influence the properties and uses of substances? How much can we make and how much do we need to use? How can we control the rates of chemical reactions? Do chemical reactions always release energy? How can we use ions in solution?
Physics 2	How can we describe the way things move? How do we make things speed up or slow down? What happens to movement energy when things change speed? What is momentum? What is static electricity, how can it be used and what is the connexion between static electricity and electric currents? What does the current in a circuit depend on? What is mains electricity and how can it be used safely? Why do we need to know the power of electrical appliances? What happens to radioactive substances when they decay? What are nuclear fission and nuclear fusion?
Extension Science
Biology 3	How do dissolved substances enter and leave plants and animals? How are dissolved substances transported around the body? How does exercise affect the exchanges taking place within the body? How do exchanges in the kidney help us maintain the internal environment in mammals and how has biology helped us to treat kidney diseases? How are microorganisms used to make food and drink? What other useful substances can we make using microorganisms? How can we be sure we are using microorganisms safely?
Chemistry 3	How was the periodic table developed and how can it help us understand the reactions of elements? What are strong and weak acids and alkalis? How can we find the amounts of acids and alkalis in solutions? What is in the water we drink? How much energy is involved in chemical reactions? How do we identify and analyze substances?
Physics 3	How do forces have a turning affect? What keeps bodies moving in a circle? What provides the centripetal force for planets and satellites? What do mirrors and lenses do to light? What is sound? What is ultrasound and how can it be used? How can electricity be used to make things move? How do generators work? How do transformers work? What is the life history of stars?