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Workplace Science Challenge |
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School: Kelvin Hall School,
Hull |
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Fellow: David Mansfield |
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Email: d.mansfield41@virgin.net |
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Project Aim: |
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My project aim was originally to develop
a 14 to 16 science enriched work related learning
curriculum. The rapidity at which I have managed
to develop this project means I have now extended
the age range from 11 to 16. The project plan
though has been modified. |
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The original idea was to liaise with PhD
students and develop science investigations
as part of a work experience programme in
local industries, which could have been CREST
Award accredited by the British Association.
On visiting local industries and liaising
with their scientists, I soon realised that
this would be an unrealistic or unsustainable
prospect. Besides complexities of Health and
Safety issues associated with students below
16 years of age working in science laboratories,
there were also issues of demands on time
and manageability with the number of personnel
that would be involved. Instead I have developed
much shorter workplace science investigations
that can be delivered through the course of
everyday science lessons. This approach has
more impact, in terms of increasing the number
of students experiencing these workplace science
tasters, rather than limiting the more complex
workplace science investigations to a few
interested individuals. |
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So, what have I done so far?
I first used my established links with the
education business link organisation to arrange
visits to industries representative of the
six key areas, identified by the regional
development agency, that are showing the best
sustained economic growth in the Humber and
sub-region. These visits provided details
of science experiments carried out everyday
in local industries. I then identified, from
the local labour market information, skill
shortages common to the six key areas of chemicals,
bioscience, agriculture and food, ports and
logistics, digital industry and advanced manufacturing
and engineering. The skill shortages were
interestingly generic rather than specific
to science i.e. leadership, problem solving,
communication, business awareness, writing
skills, calculations, use of ICT and teamwork.
Using the details of science experiments I
obtained from my visits to local industries,
I developed workplace science investigations
for the classroom that promoted the use of
these shortage skills. By then matching these
investigations to the Key Stage 3 and 4 science
curricula, I eliminated the issue of time
as these investigations can be delivered through
the course of everyday science teaching. I
have provided a workplace context to science
lessons that will improve teachers’
knowledge of practical science in work related
contexts and raise student awareness of the
work carried out in industry. |
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The science investigations have recently
been packaged as an online science competition
called the ‘Workplace Science Challenge’,
www.wsc.org.uk.
This serves to raise students’ interest,
motivation and consequent attainment in science
through competition and widen the development
of work related science lessons in other schools. |
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I have received a lot of interest
in the competition since its launch and the
publication of an article in the Times Educational
Supplement. The Web-site received over 300
hits in its first week. This interest though
has not yet resulted in many registrants for
the competition, despite being advertised
via glossy coloured fliers in all secondary
schools in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire,
North and North East Lincolnshire. |
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My next step is to re-advertise
‘Workplace Science Challenge’
to generate more registrants for the competition
and then in the future to extend the competition
beyond the Humber region. The success of this
project now depends on the number of schools
registering and participating in the competition
so an evaluation of the outcomes will be based
on this data. |
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