ASE 2027 Annual Conference

There continues to be a physics teacher recruit and retention crisis across the nations of the UK.  
There is little point in governments investing heavily in teacher recruitment if qualified teachers then leave the profession in large numbers.

With this in mind, Mark Whalley and Stuart Farmer have conducted research in both England and Scotland into identifying the reasons why physics teachers have recently left the profession. In this session, these reasons will be explored and comparisons made between the situations in Scotland and England, which factors are in common and which are different in the two nations where there has been an increasing divergence in educational policy in the last two decades. How do factors such as accountability and performativity, administrative workload, pupil behaviour, relationships with colleagues, and career progression routes impact on teacher wellbeing and their decisions to stay or leave teaching?

This collaborative session invites teachers and leaders to reflect on practical science models that are realistic, workable and educationally valuable. It will explore how practical assessment and practical learning can be designed in ways that support classroom delivery, gather meaningful feedback and balance ambition with the operational realities schools face.

Participants will also explore what makes practical science both educationally valuable and operationally manageable; to surface the barriers schools face in delivering practical science well; and to discuss models that could improve consistency, feasibility and learner experience. Participants will leave with a set of practical design considerations, examples of alternative delivery models and prompts for reviewing practical science in their own context.

Biology teaching, from global biomes to the regulation of metabolism, has the power to inspire students about the natural world. Since the publication of The Economics of Biodiversity: The Dasgupta Review (2021) and the National Security Assessment on global ecosystems (2026) there is a strong argument for biology teaching having a duty to inspire students and play a role in creating a society fit for the challenges humanity faces.

This session will explore what we can do as members of the biology education community to instil a lifelong love of life in our students. Themes will include inter-relationships between topics, the wonder of biology, scientific thinking skills, and connection to the biology around us.

You will leave with ideas that you can use when planning lessons, developing teaching resources, organising schemes of work, or when influencing the national curriculum and exam specifications.

Session Outcomes:
•Apply at least one new idea to their own lesson planning, resource development or curriculum influence.
•Identify ways to bring wonder, curiosity and real world relevance into everyday lessons or resources.
•Explain why inspiring biology teaching matters for students and society.

Please feel free to attend the sponsored tea/coffee available for Biology educators available after this session on Learning Hub Level 2 foyer outside of rooms 231.

Aims: This session aims to share research findings and new professional development resources for purposeful practical work to support inclusion in primary science. We will consider examples of adaptive teaching and how practical work can be used to enable children to sense that science is ‘for them’ and is accessible to their needs.

The purposeful use of practical work in primary science provides a range of opportunities for inclusive practice. Drawing on research from the Nuffield and Comino Foundation funded practical work project (2023-26), this session will consider how purposeful practical work can be used most effectively to support all learners. With examples from across the four nations of the UK, we will discuss adaptive teaching and the importance of essential experiences to support disadvantaged learners. We will use the outcomes of the research projects and the examples from a range of schools to stimulate discussion and reflection on the nature of inclusive practical work in primary science. Links will be made across research projects such as SEERIH’s ‘Shining a light on inclusive science’ and the Teacher Assessment in Primary Science (TAPS) projects, to show how key messages align across the primary science community.

Outcomes: Attendees will develop an awareness of the research base for practical work in primary science and become familiar with the proposed pedagogy model. By discussing examples selected from the professional development materials, they will reflect on practice in their own context.

Background: The Nuffield Foundation funded research project (2023-25) considered practical work from a primary perspective, proposing a pedagogy model to support practice. With support from the Comino Foundation, the project follow-on (2025-26) involved visits to 30 teachers in 20 schools across the four nations of the UK. The new bank of professional development videos model adaptive teaching and purposeful use of practical work in primary science.

Oracy is set to have a renewed emphasis in the revised National Curriculum, but what is the opportunity for oracy in the science classroom? In this keynote, Amy Gaunt will explore what it means to learn to and through talk in science, supporting students to develop their disciplinary knowledge and understanding while also learning to speak, listen and communicate like scientists.

Through discussion and practical activities, delegates will experience oracy in action and consider the opportunities for creating authentic and meaningful contexts for talk across their own science classrooms and departments.

If your focus is teaching or supporting biology lessons, come along for a networking session with complimentary tea/coffee and a muffin, to discuss how Miss Estruch Teach & Tell can support your practice!

We'd love to talk about physics education and how we can help you, your school or your MAT - and we've got treats. Join the IOP team to tell us what's going well and what you think we should be doing to support the profession.

The aim of this session is to demonstrate novel techniques for teaching Primary and Secondary students about inheritance, in the context of Forensic Science and real life applications to solving crimes.

The workshop is based on research being conducted by scientists at the Earlham Institute. One of the problems faced by forensic scientists is accurately analysing data which contains DNA from more than one person.

For example, if someone has been stabbed, there will be epithelial/blood cells from the suspect on the knife. However, if a victim has bled, these cells will be outnumbered by cells from the victim. This makes analysis difficult. Researchers are using a cell sorting machine to collect individual cells from the evidence. The students will have a go at this and compare the results, to existing analysis techniques.

The workshop starts with the crime - “Murder at the Boutique Hotel” (Secondary), “Pizza Thief at the Boutique Hotel” (Primary). Initially, they must think about where the evidence will be at the crime scene. We talk about cells, organs, and organ systems and where cells are in the body. We think about where the suspect will have touched as they move through the hotel, “Every contact leaves a trace”. I have a Lego model of the Hotel and crime scene. Students must add crime markers to indicate where we are most likely to find DNA evidence.

I demonstrate how DNA is extracted from the samples. I show the students the cell sorting machine the scientists use, then they use my mini cell sorters, to manually separate blood and epithelial cells. The suspect epithelial cells they collect glow in UV light. The students place these in their dark rooms to see how many epithelial cells are from the suspect. We then move on to the analysis.

The students are shown a DNA profile. I explain to them how the DNA profile is generated. To understand it they learn about microsatellites, which have different repeat numbers. We use a simple demonstration of a sentence, “The Cat Sat on the Mat,” to show this. I then demonstrate why for each part of the DNA on the DNA profile there are two numbers. One is inherited from Mum, the other from Dad. I use baubles and limbo poles to explain this! This is the section that teachers will really love. It is a great visual way of getting children to see exactly how genetic information is inherited.

Another set of poles is used to demonstrate what happens currently when we analyse a mixed DNA profile (DNA from two people). We talk about homozygote and heterozygotes, and how we use this information to analyse the data.
Students compare their data, with data from the Research Scientists new technique. The students can see how this new technique could revolutionise analysis of mixed DNA profiles! We identify which student is the murderer/thief and they are arrested.

The outcome is that teachers will have a tool box of practical demonstrations they can use to teach students about inheritance in way that they can understand, engage with and understand the importance of what they are learning in application to real life science.

This session will explore how AI is influencing trainee and early career teachers beyond practical use, focusing on professional identity development in a changing educational landscape.

You will hear findings from research into how trainee teachers are currently using AI to support planning, learning, reflection, and professional practice, alongside key themes around confidence, dependency, authenticity, and perceptions of expertise.

The session will then examine how AI may shape identity development during the transition from training into independent practice, raising questions around autonomy, judgement, professional voice, and the evolving role of the teacher.

The final part of the lecture will introduce the next phase of research focusing on ECTs, exploring identity development in the early years of teaching and launching a wider survey to gather insight into lived experiences of AI use in practice.



Outcomes:
Following this session, participants will hopefully be able to:

* Recognise key patterns in how trainee teachers engage with AI.
* Critically consider how AI may shape professional identity and autonomy.
* Reflect on implications for teacher education, mentoring, and induction.
* Identify emerging challenges around authenticity, confidence, and dependency.
* Engage with research-informed discussion around AI and identity development.
* Consider how AI use may influence teachers beyond efficiency and workload.

This session is grounded in research conducted at the University of Warwick exploring how trainee teachers are engaging with AI and how this intersects with their developing professional identity. As AI becomes increasingly embedded in educational practice, it raises important questions not only about workload and efficiency, but about how emerging teachers construct confidence, autonomy, expertise, and authenticity.

The project has explored how trainee teachers use AI for planning, idea generation, academic support, and reflective practice, alongside wider considerations around ethics, professional boundaries, and dependency. This work has led to a broader interest in how AI may continue to shape identity formation beyond initial teacher training. What the research has shown is that trainees are using AI, and the project is investigating what this means for both ITE and schools going forward.

The next phase of this research expands to newly practising teachers, examining how Early Career Teachers navigate AI use while developing identity, confidence, and professional agency in their early years of practice and we hope to promote this phase at the ASE Conference.

This professional registration lunch (by invitation only) is for those Honorary ASE members and member-science teachers and technicians who have gained professional registration or Chartership: CSciTeach, RSci or RSciTech, all of whom are invited to join Lynn Ladbrook, the ASE's CEO along with the Chair Trio for the Association.

New Honorary members will also be announced. Honorary Membership is the ASE's highest honour and is awarded to those individuals that have made outstanding contributions to the work of the ASE in at least two of the following areas:
National affairs of the Association
Regional affairs of the Association
Science education in general (at a national or international level)

Observing a practical science lesson is very different from observing a standard lesson, yet most science leads and senior leaders receive little or no training in how to do it well.

This interactive session introduces a structured framework developed by CLEAPSS Primary to help you focus on what really matters when observing practical science. Using video clips from a real lesson and guided discussion, you will explore key focus areas including purpose, lesson practicalities, adaptive teaching, and purposeful feedback, each supported by prompts to help you make confident, considered judgements.

By the end of the session, you will leave with a practical tool you can use straight away to observe lessons, structure your thinking, and provide feedback that makes a real difference to science teaching in your school.
Ideal for: science leads, senior leader with responsibility for science and consultants who support schools to improve science.

By the end of this session, delegates will be able to:
• Describe how observing a practical science lesson differs from most others
• Use a structured framework to focus your observations on what matters most in practical science
• Apply a set of guided prompts to make confident, concise judgements across all aspects of a practical lesson
• Recognise what high-quality practical science looks like across key domains, including purpose, lesson practicalities, adaptive teaching, and purposeful feedback
• Provide clear, evidence-informed feedback that supports teacher development and improves outcomes for pupils

CLEAPSS exists to support effective practical work in schools. Our experience working with schools nationwide means we are uniquely placed to know what makes a strong practical science lesson. Generic lesson observation training leaves many leaders, even experienced ones, ill-equipped to evaluate the learning that a practical lesson brings, or to make meaningful recommendations for improvement. CLEAPSS’ wealth of experience in this area has been distilled into a simple, accessible resource that helps practitioners focus on what really matters.

The CAR and Shadow CAR reports both highlighted the importance of teaching not just about the causes and impacts of global warming, but also the solutions. Climate change solutions cover both mitigation (reducing the amount of warming) and adaptation to the impacts of the warming. Teaching about solutions links well to green careers, demonstrates the relevance of core curriculum science to real-world issues and can reduce climate anxiety.

In this talk, we will explore a wide range of technological and nature-based solutions to climate change which have clear links to 11-16 biology, chemistry and physics. In particular, we will promote a synoptic teaching approach - climate change is a multi-disciplinary problem that requires a multi-disciplinary approach to both learning and solutions. Systems thinking is key, as the climate system spans school science topics and disciplines, and can be enabled through an awareness of topic sequencing.

We will explore a broad range of solutions, including but not limited to Direct Air Capture, enhanced chemical weathering, the carbon cycle impacts of protecting sea-otters, whales and elephants,  using physics to cool urban areas, as well as exploring why air conditioning is a maladaptation to climate change and tree planting may be a panacea.

This workshop draws on our experience of co-writing the primary science curriculum, teacher guides, pupil books and designing teacher training in the Kingdom of Tonga, a Pacific island nation with a rich culture that is vulnerable to climate change.  

In this workshop we will also draw on the expertise of the science educators in Tonga, whose voices will be included by video recording. The work was funded by The World Bank as part of  larger collaboration between Tonga’s Ministry for Education and Training and The Curriculum Foundation.

In this engaging workshop combining activity and dialogue we will:
> Explain the internationally used 5E framework for active learning and how it is supported by educational neuroscience
> Explore alternatives to screen-led teaching and how we can support oracy - developing scientific vocabulary and dialogue
> Expand perspectives by sharing what we have learned about curriculum design and pedagogy through co–designing primary science curriculum and pedagogy for the Kingdom of Tonga: a Pacific island nation with a culture of humility, humour and ‘talanoa’ (dialogue).
> Invite the audience to reflect on how these insights might inform their own teaching.

Participants will leave the session with:
> A framework for progressive planning
> Ideas for developing oracy
> An enriched view of science education in a global world
> Questions about the potential for pupil books as an alternative to screens

Kendra is best known for researching primary science education, currently drawing together educational neuroscience with research in science education and dialogic talk. Philippa is a highly regarded writer of science learning and teaching materials, with considerable experience of leading change internationally. Both are experienced at leading teacher professional development.

2026 saw issues of equity, diversity and inclusion thrust violently into the academic and educational spotlight. EDI has been the subject of intense, polarised and painful debate across national and international media, with events that have shaken the academic world to devastating effect.
This presidential address explores the motive of what it means to talk/ speak about equity within science education. It engages with a range of discursive challenges relating to equity issues, spanning resistance to equity through the accusation that “you can’t say anything these days”, to the practical dilemmas that STEM educators may encounter, such as not knowing ‘what you can or can’t say’, through to issues of ‘voice’ and injustice and whose voices are valued, recognised or marginalised and excluded within STEM learning spaces.
The presentation concludes with some possibilities for supporting greater equity, justice and inclusion in and through science education and how educators might speak more justly and productively about equity issues.

Our dedicated Chair Trio invite you to drop-in to the “Chair-Chat” sessions on one of the days of Annual Conference 2027. The Chair is a vital role to the ASE, and the elected Chair provides an authoritative voice for the thousands of members that the ASE supports, along with those working within the wider science education community. Those elected remain part of our Chair Trio for 3 years.

Got a question? Ever wondered about what goes on behind the scenes? Ever thought about getting involved in Committee activities? Are you wanting to know more about Professional Registration or writing an article in one of the ASE journals? First time attending our flagship Conference?

If this is your first ASE Conference, then please come along and say Hello.

We look forward to hearing your questions and will endeavour to answer them or point you in a selection of possible right directions!

ASE Teacher Developers' supports those whose roles include:

> The design, coordination and facilitation of professional development , mentoring and coaching, whether in school, schools groups or external
> Subject and departmental leadership

If this is you, come along to the "Meet the ASE Teacher Developers Committee" during Thursday afternoon tea break of Annual Conference 2027. We'll share upcoming activities led by the committee and talk about the ways you can get involved. We are keen to hear your views about how the ASE Teacher Developers group can support you and your colleagues.

We look forward to listening to your questions and will endeavour to answer them!

The recent curriculum review recognised the importance of good quality purposeful practical science. In this workshop we will share the journeys of some of the schools on our Keeping Science Practical project - hear from the schools how they consistently improved practical provision in their own schools (and the impacts of these changes).

CASTME Awards:  CASTME’s mission is to raise the general level of STEM education in commonwealth countries and beyond. They support and promote education at all levels, working in partnership with schools, colleges, civil society organisations and industry across the world. Their awards scheme recognises innovation, awareness raising, and sustainability across science education.