ASE 2027 Annual Conference

The aim of this session is to report on early findings from a current research study that takes forward recommendations from the PCAG report (Primary Science Teaching Advisory Group, 2023). The study extends the work into testing the Framework within primary schools, in particular junior classes (7-11 year olds). The overarching purpose has been to explore the shifts in teachers’ planning and practice required to interpret and implement a curriculum aligned to the Framework.

Findings draw on professional reflections from primary science subject leaders and align to evidence from the State of the Nations in Primary Science Learning Report (ImpactEd, 2025). What has emerged stimulates and informs policy makers, practitioners and senior leaders to question and consider the levers and challenges in designing a curriculum for the future. The session informs on how teachers perceive, interpret and apply policy recommendations into day-to-day classroom settings. This falls at a time where England awaits the outcomes of the Curriculum & Assessment Review (DfE, 2024) and when other nations in the UK are reviewing the purpose and nature of primary science education.

Expected outcomes of the session will be that participants are increasingly aware of the real world experiences and challenges that influence primary science classroom practice. This will especially focus on the different ways in which schools manage curriculum implementation across different settings. They will have:

* a greater awareness of the real world experiences and challenges that influence primary science classroom practice.
* reflected on the differences in science learning emerging across different school settings.
* considered their readiness to offer primary science teachers support and guidance ahead of or when new curricula guidance is published.

Participants will be invited to explore an emerging solution: online, on-demand professional development for teachers. Drawing on experience of working with schools and delivering primary science CPD across a range of settings and contexts, we will examine how on-demand PD can support improvements in teacher confidence and subject knowledge, critically evaluate the strengths and limitations of digital professional development. Participants will be invited to reflect on the limitations that are experienced within their own settings.

The session will position on-demand CPD not as a replacement for all professional learning, but as a pragmatic, forward-thinking response to current system challenges; offering a way to broaden participation and improve consistency in primary science teaching, while encouraging participants to discuss how these approaches align with their own contexts.

Session format:
•Explore and briefly discuss key findings from the State of Primary Science 2025 report related to CPD access and teacher development
•Discuss on-demand CPD in primary science, examining design principles that promote engagement, retention and classroom impact
•Critically evaluate the strengths and limitations of online approaches, including issues of motivation, accountability and depth of learning
•Share and reflect on examples of how on-demand CPD might support improvements in subject knowledge, pedagogy and confidence

Intended outcomes:
•Interpret key CPD-related findings from State of Primary Science 2025
•Evaluate how on-demand CPD can support teacher confidence and subject knowledge
•Critically assess strengths and limitations of digital professional development
•Identify practical approaches for implementing or advocating scalable CPD solutions.

This session explores how inclusive pedagogies can support all learners, including those with SEND, to participate meaningfully in thinking scientifically. Bringing together expertise from higher education, primary initial teacher education, and specialist SEND practice, the presenters examine how scientific thinking can be made accessible without reducing challenge or disciplinary authenticity.

The session aims to critically examine how processes associated with thinking scientifically (observing, predicting, questioning, testing ideas, interpreting evidence, and communicating explanations) are experienced by diverse learners across educational contexts. Drawing on examples from primary ITE and specialist SEND settings, the session will explore pedagogical approaches that enable participation in scientific enquiry through multimodal communication, adapted practical work, scaffolding, and collaborative learning. This session will consider how inclusive approaches can broaden participation in scientific thinking while maintaining intellectual rigour and curiosity.

Intended outcomes for participants include:
• developing a deeper understanding of inclusive science pedagogy;
• identifying practical strategies to support diverse learners in thinking scientifically;
• critically reflecting on barriers to participation
• considering how scientific enquiry can be adapted while preserving authentic engagement with scientific ideas.

The session is underpinned by research in inclusive pedagogy and science education, including work relating to Universal Design for Learning, participation in scientific enquiry, and dialogic and multimodal approaches to learning. It also draws on the presenters’ professional practice and experience across teacher education and specialist SEND contexts.

In this engaging, hands-on session, participants will explore how a simple machine can transform drawings in surprising ways. They will begin by discovering what a pantograph is and how it has been used throughout history — from copying drawings before photocopiers to its role in modern machines.
Participants will then build their own working pantograph using simple classroom materials. Once assembled, they'll experiment with enlarging and shrinking drawings, seeing their designs change size. Along the way, they'll explore how pantographs are connected to levers and linkages, and how these ideas are used in real engineering. This session combines creativity with practical problem-solving and is designed to be accessible, fun, and easy to replicate in your own classroom.

Outcomes - by the end of the session, participants will be able to:
> Deliver a structured pantograph lesson within a primary classroom setting
> Explain and model the link between pantographs and levers using simple language
> Construct and troubleshoot a basic pantograph design
> Anticipate and address common pupil misconceptions and challenges
> Adapt the activity for different abilities and classroom contexts
> Facilitate pupil reflection and evaluation within a STEM-focused lesson
> Curriculum Links (UK KS2)
> Science (Year 5): Forces – understanding mechanisms including levers, pulleys, and gears
> Design & Technology: Design, make, and evaluate functional products; develop technical knowledge of mechanical systems
> Art & Design: Develop drawing techniques and scale images
> History (optional link): Study of inventions and technological development over time

What does an ambitious science education look like from primary through to secondary? This session will explore how we can keep expectations high for all pupils, prioritise depth before pace, and use rich texts, images, examples and questions to provoke curiosity and build secure knowledge.

Mary Myatt will consider what happens when we move beyond coverage and activity and give pupils the intellectual substance and time they need to think, make connections and encounter the power of the discipline. The session will also explore how assessment can support, rather than distort, this ambition.

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!

This interactive workshop explores the impact of project-based learning in science education, including through the lens of the CREST Awards, a nationally recognised framework for student-led STEM project work. Drawing on research evidence and programme evaluation, as well as the stories and experiences of teachers and young people- the session will examine how structured project work can enhance student engagement, attainment, and the development of wider scientific skills.

The session begins by situating project-based learning within the broader evidence base- which will be based on a report by Jennifer De Witt, including research demonstrating improvements in outcomes when students engage in inquiry-driven projects.

Participants will then explore CREST as a case study of effective implementation. CREST provides a flexible, student-led approach to project work across age phases, supporting engagement with real-world scientific challenges. Evaluation evidence indicates that participation can lead to improved attainment and progression into STEM, alongside enhanced confidence and aspiration.

A central feature of the workshop is a panel discussion bringing together teachers and CREST graduates. This provides an opportunity to explore lived experiences of project work, including its impact on motivation, identity, and classroom practice. Delegates will engage directly with panellists through facilitated discussion and audience questions.

The session concludes with structured reflection and planning, enabling participants to identify practical strategies for embedding project work within their own settings.

By the end of the session, participants will:

Understand the evidence base underpinning project-based learning in science education
Explore how CREST operationalises effective project work in practice
Reflect on the impact of project work through teacher and student perspectives
Identify practical approaches to embedding project-based learning in their own contexts
Develop one actionable change informed by evidence and discussion

Come along and listen to the panel, chaired by Martin Reece - a mix of ECT's, mentors and teachers in the early stages of their careers.

They will share their professional insight into their successes and challenges so far. What have they learnt? What would they recommend? What would they do differently? Listen to their top tips on how to manage wellbeing alongside the daily demands of teaching and hear how they have steered their ongoing professional development.

Join us. Listen. Ask questions and come away feeling enlightened!

Join the team working with the Department for Education to develop the reformed Science Programmes of Study in England as we outline the priorities and evidence underpinning the drafting process. This session focuses on KS1 and KS2, including preparation for KS3.

Please note the other sessions in the conference programme, on KS1 and KS2, and on biology, chemistry and physics at KS3 and KS4.

This session will walk participants through what we learned from Adapt-Ed about teaching climate adaptation effectively at primary level. We will share key findings on what worked, what surprised us and what the children and teachers told us about the experience. Participants will have hands-on time with the curriculum resources and materials developed through the project, all of which are freely available to download and use. There will be space to discuss how the approaches might translate to your own school context and ask questions about the research and delivery model.

Outcomes:
By the end of the session, participants will be able to:
• Explain the difference between climate mitigation and adaptation and why both matter in primary education
• Access and use Adapt-Ed curriculum resources and teacher CPD materials in their own setting
• Identify at least two place-based or experiential approaches to teaching climate adaptation that are realistic for a primary classroom
• Reflect on how climate adaptation themes can connect to existing curriculum areas in science and beyond

Background: Climate change education in schools has tended to focus on mitigation - reducing emissions - while adaptation, preparing children and communities for the impacts already underway, has received far less attention. Yet UK schools are already experiencing those impacts directly, from overheating classrooms to local flooding, and children in disadvantaged areas are disproportionately affected.
Adapt-Ed was a collaborative research project led by Sheffield Hallam University with The Green Estate, Sheffield City Council and Let's Go Zero, working with primary schools in disadvantaged Sheffield neighbourhoods. The project developed and delivered teacher CPD, curriculum resources and immersive outdoor learning experiences focused on flood risk, drought, overheating, food security and nature-based solutions. Robust evaluation tracked changes in children's ecological literacy, connectedness to nature and pro-environmental attitudes using the 2-MEV (Two Major Environmental Values) scale.

The Government paper (DfE) published 2026,  Every Child Achieving and Thriving underpins national vision, drive and strategy for inclusion in schools.

This session will facilitate a professional ponder on the document key messages through a science educator perspective. What resonates for you? What might you do more or do less in your future work in and with schools?

Scientific literacy is not secured by asking pupils to remember more scientific terms. In primary science, pupils need the language to think, reason, explain, compare, justify and connect ideas. This session will explore how schools can move beyond vocabulary word lists towards an explicit, progressive and purposeful approach to scientific vocabulary teaching.

The session is informed by Recommendation 1 of the EEF Improving Primary Science guidance, which identifies vocabulary as an important factor in improving pupils’ science learning. However, the session is designed to be relevant beyond England. Pupils in any science curriculum need support to move between everyday language, general academic language and precise scientific terminology. Words such as force, solution, current or material can carry everyday meanings that interfere with scientific understanding, while Tier 2 words such as compare, evidence, cause, effect, increase and decrease often provide the language pupils need in order to reason scientifically.

I will share learning from my current PSTT-funded scientific vocabulary project, which supports a primary school to review existing vocabulary provision, distinguish between Tier 2 and Tier 3 words, refine definitions, identify polysemous words and decide where vocabulary is best taught across the curriculum. The project includes baseline audit tools, pupil vocabulary tasks, CPD, implementation support and the development of a vocabulary progression resource.

The session will use this project as a case study to explore how schools can move from isolated vocabulary activities towards a coherent, curriculum-led approach to scientific literacy. Participants will consider how one school is reviewing its identified key vocabulary, separating Tier 2 and Tier 3 terms, defining words more precisely and selecting teaching approaches to support pupils’ scientific talk and writing.

The session will be interactive. Participants will work with a sample primary science vocabulary list to identify Tier 2, Tier 3 and polysemous words, consider which words are doing the most conceptual work and decide where vocabulary should be explicitly taught, revisited and applied. I will then share a practical five-step model emerging from the project: audit, classify, sequence, teach and evaluate. This model is intended to help teachers and science leaders move from isolated vocabulary activities towards coherent curriculum implementation.

Participants will leave with a clearer understanding of why Tier 2 vocabulary often needs to be taught before Tier 3 terminology, how everyday meanings can obstruct scientific understanding, and how vocabulary can be planned progressively across a primary science curriculum. They will also take away a practical framework for reviewing vocabulary in their own setting and identifying manageable next steps.

This interactive workshop invites participants to explore how outdoor learning can transform the teaching of primary science. Using The Croft on the Heath as a real case study, the session will share practical examples of how outdoor environments have been used to deepen scientific enquiry, increase engagement and develop children’s understanding of the natural world.

Participants will explore how outdoor learning supports working scientifically through observation, questioning, classification, measurement and investigation. The workshop will include examples of curriculum-linked activities, discussion around developing a whole-school mindset and opportunities for participants to reflect on how outdoor science could work within their own settings regardless of space, budget or experience.

The session will also provide practical guidance on funding opportunities, including grant applications and community partnerships that can support the development of outdoor learning spaces and resources.

Participants should expect a collaborative and reflective session with practical ideas that can be adapted immediately within primary science provision.

As a result of attending this session, participants will be able to:

* identify practical ways to embed outdoor learning within primary science teaching
* adapt existing science units to include meaningful outdoor enquiry opportunities
* develop strategies to build staff confidence and pupil engagement in outdoor science
* recognise how outdoor learning can support progression in working scientifically skills
* identify potential funding opportunities and next steps for developing outdoor science provision within their own setting

Background: This workshop is rooted in the ongoing development of The Croft on the Heath at St Mary’s First School. Created through grant funding, community support and a shared vision for nature-connected learning, the project has transformed both the physical environment and the approach to teaching science across the school. Drawing on leadership experience, Forest School principles and classroom practice, the session reflects on how outdoor learning has evolved from isolated enrichment activities into a whole-school pedagogical approach that values curiosity, exploration and pupil-led enquiry.

The workshop also reflects on the challenges faced during implementation, including staff confidence, curriculum integration and sustaining momentum, alongside the strategies that enabled outdoor learning to become embedded within science teaching.

More than a dozen schools in deprived areas of the North West are currently delivering their Year 3 science curriculum via an extended story involving a Black female engineer rocketing around time and space in a cardboard time machine. Why? What has this unique project taught us about the power of story and simple stage magic to engage learners? Is there a particular power to performers in role? What do teachers get out of it? How can SLT members support their teachers to find the elusive “why” in the existing science curriculum – and how do we encourage children to talk more in our science classrooms?

Participants will leave with some answers to those questions - plus ideas for how to make use of some of the key elements of this successful oracy-rich programme in their own classrooms.

Aims: to share learning from an innovative arts-based learning project in Manchester, and explore what elements of the programme can be taken forward by educators more widely - including feeding into a brand-new arts-based learning programme currently being developed in Morecambe Bay by the same company.

Background: "Terri and the Time Machine" is currently being delivered in over a dozen North West primary schools. It is an arts-based creative programme delivering the whole of the Year 3 science curriculum, funded by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation. Professor Lynne Bianchi (SEERIH) provided expert advice during development. In-depth evaluation was conducted throughout the initial three years by Dr Zoe Crompton (Manchester Metropolitan University). The fully-funded period came to an end in July 2025; but 14 schools are continuing to participate, thanks to extended support from the PHF and financial contributions from the schools involved. Why? What is the benefit of teachers working with a theatre company, and what have we discovered by undertaking this unique project?

In this talk, IChemE President Ollie Folayan will share his journey into chemical engineering, describe a day in the life of an engineer, talk about the work he has done to widen access to underrepresented groups and highlight the forces shaping engineering in the future.

Science is a mandatory subject across most nations, and we too often take its privileged position for granted. Much has been written about the purpose of education but far less when it comes to the specifics of science education.

Science teaching and curriculum development should be grounded in sound reasons for its presence on the curriculum along with what it should contain and what it should stand for. Over the last year data has been gathered, supported by the ASE, to probe how science teachers perceive the purpose of science education. Surveys have been able to establish certain standpoints are more widely help than others; in this presentation we will look at this research and its findings, and look at science education through the lenses of utility, curiosity, culture and citizenship. This research has implications for all involved in science education, from the classroom through to curriculum policy makers.

By the end of the session colleagues will hopefully have some alternative perspectives on why science education is so important and why its importance will only grow over time.

Fast, focused, and full of inspiration, our TeachMeet Lightning Talks are a celebration of ideas that work.

Hear from fellow primary educators sharing short, sharp insights from their classrooms: something they’ve tried, something that’s shifted practice, or something that’s made a real difference to pupils.

From rethinking the curriculum to small tweaks with big impact, each talk offers a glimpse into real practice – honest, practical, and usable. Dip in, get inspired, and leave with a handful of ideas you’ll want to try straight away.

This session is coordinated by the ASE Primary Committee who will be present to help and support throughout the session - come along and join in!

Metacognition has been shown, through numerous studies (including the two superb EEF reports) to be an incredible important pedagogical approach to supporting the improved attainment of our learners. However, metacognition is notoriously a difficult to understand approach, that is so often invisible in lesson.

Understanding what to do is not always obvious - which is exactly the purpose of this session. The purpose of this session is to not just illuminate precisely what metacognition is, but also to explore a number of different approaches (with examples) of what it looks like in the science classroom.

All attendees will leave with a clearer understanding as to the importance of having a metacognitive focus in their teaching, and a greater set of tools to be able to develop meaningful opportunities for metacognitive development in their classrooms.

This session explores how EarthLearn and EarthTogether are supporting schools to develop a coherent, future-facing approach to environmental science education, Moving beyond single-issue topics, these initiatives connect themes such as air quality, climate and biodiversity through real-world student-driven enquiry. Drawing on the Air  We Breathe programme as a case study from King's Group Academies, we will demonstrate how local contexts can be used to engage students with global challenges, build data literacy and foster meaningful action. We will also introduce Minibeasts and Me, a new biodiversity-focused programme that extends this model into the study of ecosystems and the natural world.

Participants will gain insight into how authentic contexts, collaboration across schools and partners, and a strong emphasis on student agency can transform science learning. Through interactive discussion and practical examples, the session will consider how these approaches can be adapted across different settings and phases. Aligned with the conference theme, this session highlights how working together can support the development of connected, relevant and empowering science education that equips young people to understand and shape their world. 

Climate change is now part of everyday classroom conversation, yet many primary teachers still feel uncertain about how best to explain complex climate topics in a balanced, age-appropriate and scientifically confident way.

This highly practical and interactive workshop draws on lessons learned through delivering climate workshops to KS2 pupils in primary schools across the Midlands, together with the development of The Climate Classroom educational podcast and companion educational materials.

The session will focus on practical, classroom-tested approaches for helping children understand key climate ideas clearly: what greenhouse gases do, why the planet is warming, how food, transport and materials connect to climate, and how solutions and innovation can be discussed without creating fear or confusion.

Participants will experience adaptable techniques including role play, discussion prompts, short quizzes, visual imagery and simple explanation frameworks designed for KS2 and early KS3 pupils.

The session will also consider how teachers can prepare well using reliable materials and trusted scientific sources, while still responding honestly to unexpected pupil questions that may need follow-up after the lesson.

Sources discussed will include NASA, NOAA, the IPCC, the WMO and the UK Met Office.

Participants will leave with practical classroom strategies, classroom-tested activity ideas, greater confidence in discussing climate change, and examples of freely accessible climate literacy resources suitable for KS2 and early KS3 classrooms.

In science we predominantly represent data numerically or graphically. Teachers, and students, are comfortable with the idea that we can represent the world by a series of numbers or a line on a graph.

Sonification is an approach to treating and analysing data through sound to create an auditory display. One example that has been fairly widely used is the representation of astronomical data and concepts, including in planetaria. One benefit for astronomers of using sound is because the dataset are extremely large which can make it hard to plot the data in a conventional manner i.e. graphically. However, sound can have a range of parameters such as pitch, volume, tempo and type of instrument. This variety means that it is possible to represent and comprehend a much more complex data set using sound.

In addition, sonification also has use to support people who are blind or vision impaired to access data and visual information more readily.

In this session, participants will make their own (simple) sonifications of different data, and consider how they could use sound to help students explore data in their classrooms.

AI technology is changing the fabric of scientific knowledge building.  In biology, for example, AlphaFold predicts the structure of proteins and other biomolecules, changing how drugs are developed and diseases are  studied. In medicine, AI-powered image generation is changing medical diagnostics. In chemistry, AI tools are automating and accelerating organic chemistry and material discovery. In physics, complex AI-based simulations accelerate research across topics, while AI-based robotics is driving change in engineering. Further, scientific inquiry requires new skills for scientists, such as designing ‘AI experiments’, navigating data ethics and governance, evaluating AI models, and interpreting AI system output.

How, then, is school science changing to teach about this new way of scientific working and these new discoveries? What new AI-related real-world science concepts and skills might be taught?

The aim of this workshop is to start this discussion. We will lead a workshop to brainstorm candidate uses of AI in real-world science and consider what concepts and skills might be introduced at different stages of science education.
We will provide examples of how basic AI literacy concepts have been introduced in existing AI lessons covering topics such as ecosystems and healthcare.  We will use these to spark discussion on what content might be taught in classroom science lessons to showcase `AI in real-world science’.  We are particularly interested in stimulating discussion on how scientific inquiry in school might change in the light of AI technology.
 
The outcome from this workshop will be that participants will become more familiar with AI literacy concepts and begin to form ideas about what AI literacy for Science might look like. They will also start to develop ideas for lessons that introduce `AI in real-world science’ into their science classrooms. We do not have the answers to what should be taught and how about `AI in real-world science’, but as computer science education researchers, we would like to facilitate this discussion with science educators to help work towards this goal.

Animal behaviour is an inherently fascinating subject that helps students make sense of the natural world — and of themselves. From communication and courtship to cooperation, learning and survival, students instinctively connect their own experiences with the behaviour of other animals, whether wild or domestic.

As Education Officer for The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour and an experienced classroom teacher, I will showcase a range of free, classroom-ready resources and practical activities designed to support teachers in delivering specification content through engaging examples from animal behaviour.

This interactive session will provide delegates with adaptable strategies, discussion ideas and active-learning approaches suitable for a wide range of ages and abilities, from primary through to A level.

This session is ideal for teachers looking for practical, memorable and enjoyable ways to teach biology content, particularly early-career teachers or non-specialists seeking fresh approaches. Activities and resources suitable for primary, secondary and post-16 teaching will be included throughout.

Many children do not think that science is relevant or important to their lives, now or in the future. Research shows that children are already being influenced by gender-based beliefs at 7 years old or even earlier and have made up their minds before the age of 11 that science is not for them. Teachers can play a key role in challenging these views before they become too entrenched. The Science 4 Everyone materials are a range of freely accessible resources that teachers and school leadership teams can use to raise awareness of unconscious bias and its potential to influence pupils’ science capital and attitudes towards science. They are used in this session to reflect on challenges faced when making science accessible to all.

The presenters will use their extensive experience from the classroom and from working with teachers and students in both the informal and formal science education sector to reflect on what makes the most difference to ensuring that children believe science is for everyone.

This session is aimed at classroom teachers, science leaders and teacher developers who work with them, and aims to:
• Share evidence from research, including issues around unconscious bias and stereotype threat and their relation to pupils’ science career ambitions.
• Outline resources and effective practical strategies that teachers have found to be effective. Examples will be used from schools and informal settings that have promoted inclusion and equity by using these materials and approaches
• Give participants opportunity to try out and discuss some of Science4Everyone practical toolkit materials that can be readily integrated into curriculum design to address the unconscious biases that we all hold
• Encourage participants to reflect on which strategies might be most useful to address the needs of the children in their schools and reflect on how to audit, implement and review actions to inspire all children to see science as meaningful and relevant in their own lives.

Participants will:
• know more about unconscious bias and its impact on inclusive science teaching, the support freely accessible from the Science 4 Everyone materials and the links to research evidence about the importance of pupils developing a science identity.
• reflect on what is working well in their own setting and where improvements could be made.
• have opportunity to reflect on which strategies might be most useful and begin to plan how they could audit needs, implement priorities and review actions as part of a development cycle.

This session explores how to make primary science teaching engaging and relevant by connecting new learning to prior knowledge and building progression across key stages. It considers the importance of purposeful practical work, where activities have a clear learning focus and are explicitly linked to scientific concepts.

The session also explores how meaningful primary science can be hands-on, curiosity-driven and connected to real-world contexts and pupils’ experiences, helping children see science as relevant to their lives and the wider world.

The session will follow our own involvement in understanding accessibility and improvements in accessibility in formal assessments for Cambridge OCR.

During 2026 Mike Jackson was on a panel for SecEd to speak about accessibility which builds on conversations within the organisation as well as learning from teachers who have fed back from both summative assessments and practical endorsement adaptations (e.g. for blind students).

This year's Talking Science explores the evolving role of teachers in a world increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence. As AI transforms how young people learn, communicate and access knowledge, what does this mean for the future of science teaching? The session will consider both the opportunities and challenges facing science educators in supporting young people to become scientifically literate.
Following short stimulus inputs from our speakers, delegates will discuss and prioritise their recommendations for policy and practice that will help ensure the benefits of AI are realised equitably across science education. The discussion will explore implications for curriculum, assessment, teacher expertise, equity and students' future engagement with science.
SEPA intends to produce a short summary of key themes emerging from the discussion.

In common with our previous Talking Science sessions, this session promises thought-provoking insights and lively debate. We look forward to seeing you there and your contributions.

The Science Education Policy Alliance (SEPA) brings together the Association for Science Education, Institute of Physics, Royal Society, Royal Society of Biology and Royal Society of Chemistry to coordinate and collaborate on science education policy www.se-pa.co.uk

Refreshments will be served at the end of this session, courtesy of SEPA, for 25 minutes.

This hands-on workshop will feature two CLEAPSS primary practical activities, which offer opportunities to practise oracy skills. Through active participation attendees will start to appreciate how a range of strategies to support oracy can be incorporated into these and other practical activities.

All our activities use easily accessible resources and are developed with teachers and trialled in schools with children. You will leave with practical ideas and guidance to use in your own classroom and to share with your colleagues.

Participants will be able to reflection on how oracy strategies can be used in practical work and leave the session with experience of taking part in practical science activities.

Helen and Kathryn are both experienced primary school teachers who work for CLEAPSS as Primary Consultants, supporting schools to deliver safe and effective practical science activities. In addition to this, Helen and Kathryn work for a range of primary science organisations. Through their ongoing work in classrooms, Helen and Kathryn recognise the need for teachers to embed strategies that develop pupils’ oracy during science lessons.

Teacher confidence is frequently discussed in primary science, yet it is rarely treated as a strategic priority within school improvement planning or within the support structures offered by organisations working alongside schools. This session explores the argument that meaningful and sustained improvements in primary science cannot happen without intentional investment in teacher confidence.

Drawing on examples from classroom, school and trust-level practice, participants will reflect on how confidence influences curriculum enactment, practical science, pupil engagement and teaching quality. The session will explore why confidence is often overlooked because it is perceived as difficult to measure, despite its clear impact on outcomes for both teachers and pupils.

Participants will also be challenged to consider the extent to which current professional development and science support models genuinely create space for teachers to develop confidence over time. Rather than viewing confidence as a by-product of training, the session will argue that it should be deliberately planned for, revisited and evaluated as part of sustainable improvement work.

The session will further explore the link between teacher inclusion and pupil inclusion, recognising that teachers who feel disconnected from science or perceive the subject as “not for them” may find it more challenging to deliver engaging and ambitious science experiences for children.

Through discussion, reflection and analysis of case studies, participants will leave with practical ideas for how teacher confidence can become a visible and valued part of school improvement conversations and wider science support programmes.

Participants will:
> Reflect on the impact of teacher confidence on science teaching, learning and inclusion
> Consider examples of how schools, trusts and science organisations can intentionally developed teacher confidence over time
> Consider how teacher confidence could be incorporated into improvement planning, professional development and external science support programmes
> Identify practical ways to revisit, monitor and evaluate teacher confidence within their own contexts
> Recognise teacher confidence as a strategic factor in achieving sustainable improvement in primary science

This session draws on my experience as a primary teacher, Science subject leader and nationally recognised Science consultant, working with schools, trusts and organisations to improve science provision across a range of contexts. Through this work, a recurring theme has emerged: where teachers lack confidence in science, this significantly influences the quality of teaching, curriculum enactment and pupil engagement.

My interest in this area has developed through supporting teachers and leaders over time and recognising that confidence is often treated as incidental rather than intentional within school improvement. Schools readily plan and budget for curriculum resources, schemes and assessment systems, yet teacher confidence is rarely identified as something that can be deliberately developed, revisited and evaluated. Equally, organisations supporting schools in science education often focus on provision, resources or subject knowledge without explicitly addressing how teachers experience science themselves.

This is particularly important within primary science, where some teachers may feel that science “isn’t for them”, limiting participation, risk-taking and engagement within the subject. The session also reflects current national priorities outlined in Every Child Achieving and Thriving (2026), particularly the emphasis on sustainable school improvement, workforce development and inclusive practice. While inclusion is often discussed in relation to pupils, this session considers the importance of inclusion for teachers too: if teachers themselves do not feel included, capable or confident within science, this inevitably impacts the experiences and opportunities available to children.

Every child deserves to see themselves and their cultures reflected in science. This interactive session offers a practical framework for doing that, without adding pressure to an already full curriculum. We'll introduce "two-eyed seeing" and share six dimensions of holistic science learning, then move quickly into short hands-on tasks. You'll sit briefly in a yarning-circle-inspired opener, try a story-to-science mapping using the emu life-cycle example, sketch a seasonal plan around a "class tree", audit a familiar lesson using nature-as-teacher prompts (symbiosis, hedgehog foraging, squirrels storing acorns), and rewrite a paragraph of planning language to shift from "resources" towards respect, reciprocity and responsibility. You'll leave with an A4 planning mat, a sensitivity checklist, and at least one concrete change you can make to next week's science lesson.

The aims of this session are to:
•Explain the principle of ‘two-eyed seeing’ and why it strengthens primary science.
•Explore six dimensions of holistic scientific literacy.
•Participate in practical activities to showcase how six dimensions of scientific literacy can be embedded in the primary science curriculum.
•Apply a simple cultural-sensitivity checklist when planning.

Outcomes:
Participants will leave able to articulate two-eyed seeing to a colleague, integrate at least one Indigenous or local knowledge example into an existing science unit, apply a cultural-sensitivity checklist when planning, and use relational language that positions children as part of, not separate from, nature.

Background
This session draws on our work at UCL and experience working in Jamaica, Singapore, The Gambia, Japan, Senegal and Australia, synthesised in our recent research in planetary-conscious pedagogy (Strachan & Markwick, 2025). It has been shaped by classroom practice, conversations with community knowledge holders, and research on science capital (Godec et al., 2017), storytelling in science (Salehjee, 2020; Fishman, 2020), and two-eyed seeing (Hatcher et al., 2009). We approach the examples with humility, acknowledging that all knowledge, including modern science, is interpreted through a cultural lens.

A selection of experiments both demonstrated and trialled from the six recent freely downloadable Science on Stage booklets. Experiments suitable for all ages covering a wide range of topics but each easily accessible in school and home these will open many opportunities. We will demonstrate some uses of household items and offer participants an opportunity to try themselves.

The booklets also provide an ideal resource of CPD. and the demonstrations will include opportunities for Q&A.

This panel brings together CPD, curriculum and science leaders to share how they are approaching the challenge of preparing themselves and their colleagues for the new Programme of Study. Hear how schools are identifying professional learning needs, developing subject knowledge and pedagogical expertise, and planning CPD to build staff confidence and capacity ahead of implementation.

The panel will provide an opportunity to hear directly from those working at the chalkface about the approaches they are taking, the challenges they are encountering and the priorities they have identified as they prepare for curriculum reform.

The discussion will consider the importance of sustained professional learning and how schools can make the most of the time available before September 2028, rather than treating curriculum change as a one-off and finite task.
Whether you are a science leader, curriculum leader, teacher developer or involved in planning professional learning, join us to hear practical experiences and ideas that can inform your own approach to preparing for the new curriculum.

You may know the idea of the Third Teacher: the Reggio Emilia principle that the physical environment is as formative as any instructor. What might this mean for your science classroom?

This interactive workshop explores how conscious spatial design — layout, naturalness, stimulation, and pupil-controlled affordances — can deepen engagement, support scientific thinking, and strengthen collaborative inquiry. The session itself is designed to demonstrate the very principles it explores.

You'll move through three activities — individual reflection, small-group application, and collective visioning — surfacing answers grounded in your own classroom experience and actionable research. You'll leave with concrete techniques to apply immediately, and the opportunity to help shape what comes next: a founding circle for a UK-wide action research network exploring classroom design in secondary science at scale. This is the future of science education — and we'll build it together.

Participants will be able to:
•Reflect critically on how their classroom's physical features currently support or constrain pupil engagement, cognition, and behaviour
•Apply evidence-based spatial design techniques to enhance science learning outcomes immediately
•Join a founding action research network with shared resources, peer collaboration, and opportunities to both contribute to and benefit from emerging findings

This session aims to:
• convene a founding circle for a UK-wide action research network exploring the transformative potential of classroom design in secondary science settings
• empower teachers and practitioners with evidence-based, immediately applicable answers, built directly from their own classroom experience

Background: Across years of action researching transformative learning experiences, a pattern emerged: expert facilitators consistently build a deliberate relationship with the physical space before their sessions begin. This observation sparked a master's thesis — An Architecture for Empowerment: Exploring How Physical Environments Co-Create Human Capacity — synthesising environmental psychology, 4E Cognition, neuroscience, and architectural theory. Its core finding: physical environments are not backdrops to learning but active co-creators of cognitive, emotional, and relational capacity. Science classrooms — with their fixed benches, equipment-laden surfaces, and competing sensory demands — represent a largely untapped frontier for this work.

If you are a primary science educator, come along to the "Meet the Primary Committee" session at the end of Friday of Annual Conference 2027.

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 Primary Science or one of the ASE journals?

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