What Will a High Quality Science Education Achieve?

This week Everything Dinosaur team members participated in a North West Science Alliance meeting.  It took place at the magnificent Preston iSTEM Centre at Preston’s College (Lancashire, northern England).  The ISTEM (innovation in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths), Centre is a fantastic £13 million facility that provides educational opportunities for some 600 students.  A diverse range of courses are offered from traditional “A” levels to qualifications in electrical engineering, laboratory practice, dental nursing and creative and digital media.

Everything Dinosaur and STEM

The great thing about the iSTEM Centre is that it is not just a shiny, well-appointed, new building.  It is a bespoke learning environment that provides students with real work experiences.  It manages to bridge the student world with that of the world of work.   Many local employers have grasped the Centre’s ethos of delivering top class training and forged meaningful, long-term relationships with the course providers.

We praise all those involved in this important undertaking.

What Does the English Science Curriculum Contribute?

At the meeting, as we listened to the speakers, our thoughts turned to Everything Dinosaur’s own work in schools and later, in the office, we asked the question what does the new English science curriculum hope to contribute?

How to Forge the Next Generation of Scientists?

Developing the next generation of scientists.

Picture credit: Lego

Hopefully, by providing a high quality, challenging science education for children, a science education that is broad-based and led by motivated and enthusiastic teaching staff we shall be able to:

• Encourage pupils to understand how science can be used to explain what is happening as well as helping to solve problems
• Promote a fascination and respect for the natural world
• Equip children with life-long learning skills
• Inspire pupils to ask challenging questions and to work scientifically

When working with classes delivering dinosaur and fossil themed workshops we try to inspire and motivate the next generation of scientists.  With tactile, kinaesthetic lessons we aim to help children develop their scientific knowledge as well as to develop an understanding of scientific concepts.

Helping Students to Gain an Insight into Scientific Working

Helping to inspire the next generation (Neanderthal skull modelling).

Gaining Confidence/Developing Knowledge

At Everything Dinosaur we tailor our workshops to meet the learning needs of the class and we take care to ensure that what we deliver compliments the teaching scheme of work.  Our aim is to develop scientific understanding and to give students an appreciation of the scientific method.

For further information on Everything Dinosaur’s work and ethics: About Everything Dinosaur.

Applying and Using the Skills of a Scientist

When working with a class or a group of students, our qualified teaching team aim to develop good scientific practice and encourage the use of scientific terms accurately as well as encouraging participants to observe, assess the evidence and hypothesise.  We want to promote an ethos of gathering and recording evidence, making evaluations, analysing trends and drawing appropriate conclusions.

In our own small way, Everything Dinosaur is making a positive contribution to science teaching.

Visit Everything Dinosaur’s website: Everything Dinosaur.