Challenging Science

The introduction of national testing at Key Stages 2 and 3 in England has shifted the emphasis in classrooms away from developing pupils' understanding of the subject to presenting science as a body of knowledge that has to be remembered to answer test questions. This is leading to a decline in pupils' enthusiasm for science in primary schools. Jenny Mant and Helen Wilson of Oxford Brookes University and David Coates from Hull University have studied the effect of introducing more challenging, practical and interactive lessons on the achievements of 11-year olds.¹