ASE 2027 Annual Conference: Full Schedule

The ASE is delighted to be hosting its’ 2027 Annual Conference at the University of Northampton from 7th to 9th January.

08:45 GMT

From Typhoid Mary to airborne diseases: Transmission and tracking

Thursday January 7, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT

LH127 (Learning Hub Level 1)

This session explores how Micro: bit technology can be used alongside case studies and practical classroom activities to help students investigate how diseases spread.

Developed during the COVID pandemic through collaborative teacher learning, the approach was designed to model both airborne and more traditional contact-based transmission. Participants will see how these activities can support engagement with current, real-world science through problem solving, discussion, and enquiry.

The session will share the background to the work, outline how the activities were developed for classroom use, and demonstrate how Micro: bits and disease-transmission scenarios can be used to promote STEM learning and scientific sensemaking. Resources will be shared digitally with attendees.

1. Use case studies and Micro: bit technology to engage students in investigating disease transmission through relevant, real-world contexts.
2. Plan opportunities for students to apply science inquiry and problem-solving approaches as they analyse evidence and identify possible sources of infection.
3. Adapt an integrative STEM activity that supports exploration, sensemaking, and discussion of disease transmission in the classroom.

Speakers

Christine Royce

Professor, Shippensburg University, USA

Beverly DeVore-Wedding

Retiring President, NSTA, America

Thursday January 7, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT
LH127 (Learning Hub Level 1)

11-19

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy, Using AI and technologies in teaching and learning
Key Stage / Audience Type 14-16, Post-16, Teacher Developers, Early Career Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Trainee Teachers

08:45 GMT

Why did they leave? Exploring the reasons physics teachers left teaching

Thursday January 7, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT

LH321 (Learning Hub Level 3)

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?

Speakers

Stuart Farmer

Learning and Skills Manager, IOP and Perimeter Institute

I was a teacher of physics in Scotland for over 30 years before becoming the Scottish Education Manager for IOP in February 2019. Throughout this time I have been active in curriculum and assessment development and providing professional learning for teachers. I am a former Chair... Read More →

Mark Whalley

Senior Lecturer in Education, University of Chester

I'm a senior lecturer in Educational Leadership at the University of Chester. My main teaching covers Professional Learning and Change Leadership but I also tutor across the MA Educational Leadership programme. My principal research interest is in teacher retention and by focusing... Read More →

Thursday January 7, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT
LH321 (Learning Hub Level 3)

11-19

Theme Recruitment Retention and Wellbeing, Research
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, Initial Teacher Educators, 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, Advisors/Consultants, Researchers

08:45 GMT

Co-designing an assessment matrix for thinking scientifically outdoors

Thursday January 7, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT

LH115 (Learning Hub Level 1)

This session aims to enable participants to:

• Understand how children’s thinking scientifically can be assessed meaningfully in outdoor primary science
• Explore a research informed Thinking Scientifically Assessment Matrix that supports progression across primary phases
• Engage with examples of how the matrix has been co designed and trialled with experienced teachers in real classrooms
• Consider how assessment can strengthen, rather than constrain, outdoor science learning
• Reflect on how a shared assessment framework can support trainee teachers, Early Career Teachers and whole school professional learning

Outdoor science offers rich opportunities for curiosity, talk, investigation, and sense making; yet many teachers report uncertainty about how to assess thinking in these spaces. In this interactive session, participants will be introduced to a Thinking Scientifically Assessment Matrix designed to support assessment for learning in outdoor primary science. They will explore how the matrix makes children’s scientific thinking visible, supports progression over time, and aligns with everyday classroom practice rather than adding to the teacher's workload. Drawing on real examples from classrooms, the session will share how teachers have trialled the matrix outdoors, what has been learned through co-design, and how assessment has been embedded into practical, exploratory learning. Participants will be invited to engage with sample learning scenarios, consider where evidence of thinking might be captured, and reflect on how a shared framework could support consistency across year groups or within professional learning communities. The session will be relevant for classroom teachers, subject leaders, mentors, and those supporting teacher development.

By the end of the session, participants will be able to:
• Identify key features of progression in children’s scientific thinking across the primary age range, in outdoor contexts.
• Use an assessment matrix to recognise and interpret evidence of thinking in outdoor science lessons
• Adapt assessment approaches to support exploratory, enquiry rich learning
• Apply shared assessment language to support planning, reflection, and professional dialogue within and across schools
• Support trainee teachers and Early Career Teachers in developing confidence with assessment of primary science, particularly in outdoor and enquiry based contexts
• Integrate a research informed assessment framework within ITE programmes to strengthen coherence between university based theory and school based practice
• Consider next steps for embedding the assessment of thinking scientifically within their own settings

This session draws on EdD research, which focused on the creation and application of a Thinking Scientifically Assessment Matrix designed to articulate progression in children’s scientific thinking. The research explored how early career teachers used the matrix to support planning, teaching, and assessment in primary science, particularly in outdoor learning contexts, where assessment is often perceived as challenging or impractical. Building on this work, I am currently collaborating with experienced primary teachers through a structured programme of professional learning and classroom trialling. Together, we are refining the matrix through lesson observations, peer discussion, and shared analysis of children’s learning. This knowledge exchange approach values teacher expertise alongside research informed pedagogy, with the long term aim of making outdoor science learning assessable, sustainable, and impactful beyond the Early Years.

Speakers

Rebecca Lee

Class Teacher, Kimberley Primary School

Aamir Khalique

Class Teacher, Roundhill Primary School

Thursday January 7, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT
LH115 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Primary

Theme Practical work including beyond the classroom, Assessment
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 5-7, 7-11, Early Career Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Trainee Teachers

09:55 GMT

Harnessing the power of biology teaching to inspire students

Thursday January 7, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT

LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

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.

Speakers

Dan Jenkins

Head of Gatsby Plant Education Programme, Science and Plants for Schools (SAPS)

Dan is Head of the Gatsby Plant Science Education Programme and directs the Science and Plants for Schools project. For over 10 years Dan has developed practicals and resources for SAPS and is a dab hand at getting any plant to behave in the school lab. Dan’s background in plant... Read More →

Chris Graham

Sustainability Lead and Teacher of Biology, Hills Road Sixth Form College / SAPS

I am the Sustainability Lead, a teacher of OCR's Level 3 Certificate in Sustainability, and a Biology teacher at Hills Road Sixth Form College as well as the visiting teacher at Science and Plants for Schools (SAPS). I have over 20 years experience as a teacher and have been leading... Read More →

Exhibitors

Science & Plants for Schools (SAPS)

Science and Plants for School (SAPS)

Science & Plants for Schools (SAPS) creates opportunities for teachers, technicians and students to find out more about plants and to become more interested in plant science.

We know that good teachers and technicians can bring plant science alive and we want to help them. We are doing this by working with curriculum developers, producing useful teaching resources, enabling teachers to share ideas through our website, and encouraging plant scientists to... Read More →

Thursday January 7, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT
LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

11-19

Theme Sustainability climate change and environmental issues, Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, Teacher Developers, Advisors/Consultants, Initial Teacher Educators, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers

09:55 GMT

Keynote: Disciplinary oracy in the science classroom

Thursday January 7, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT

LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

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.

Speakers

Amy Gaunt

Amy Gaunt is Director of Education at Voice 21, the national oracy charity which exists to increase access to high-quality oracy education.

She is co-author of Create an Oracy Curriculum (2026) and Transform Teaching and Learning through Talk: the Oracy Imperative (2019... Read More →

Thursday January 7, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT
LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Curriculum (General)
Key Stage / Audience Type International, 0-4, 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, Post-16, Researchers, Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers

10:50 GMT

Biology educators tea/coffee and muffins (sponsored by Miss Estruch Teach & Tell)

Thursday January 7, 2027 10:50 - 11:15 GMT

Learning Hub Level 2 landing space outside rooms LH227-230

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!

Sponsors

Miss Estruch Teach & Tell

Miss Estruch Teach & Tell is the proud sponsor of the Biology Education Research Programme (BERG) on Thursday of Conference,

'Teach & Tell is run by Miss Estruch (Katie Estruch), a biology teacher since 2009 and former Head of Department, now helping teachers get their most valu... Read More →

Thursday January 7, 2027 10:50 - 11:15 GMT
Learning Hub Level 2 landing space outside rooms LH227-230

11-19

Theme Other
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, Advisors/Consultants, Post-16, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, Early Career Teachers, International, Teacher Developers

10:50 GMT

Physics and tea with the IOP

Thursday January 7, 2027 10:50 - 11:15 GMT

Learning Hub Level 3 landing space (outside 344-347)

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.

Speakers

Eleanor Wylie

Professional Support Coach, Institute of Physics

Ian Horsewell

Professional Community and Retention Strategic Lead, Institute of Physics

Sponsors

Institute of Physics (IOP)

The Institute of Physics (IOP) is the professional body and learned society for physics in the UK and Ireland, with an active role in promoting co-operation in physics around the world. We strive to make physics accessible to people from all backgrounds.

Come along and visit an

... Read More →

Thursday January 7, 2027 10:50 - 11:15 GMT
Learning Hub Level 3 landing space (outside 344-347)

11-19

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Post-16, Teacher Developers

11:15 GMT

(IRIS) From enrichment to entitlement: teaching research and innovation at secondary school

Thursday January 7, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT

LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Curriculum debate across the four nations keeps returning to one question. What is science education for? The answers point towards young people who can ask a good question, weigh evidence and contribute something new. Yet working scientifically is often reduced to practical technique, and the disciplinary knowledge behind real research goes untaught. Where research does appear it is usually optional, so the students who would gain most are least likely to meet it.

The Institute for Research in Schools (IRIS) has worked with over 10,000 students to carry out research. Getting Started with Research is what teachers told us they need to support research and innovation in schools.

What you get: Getting Started with Research is a free lesson programme for students, fully resourced and ready to teach. Lesson plans, slides, worksheets and a knowledge progression map. It builds a shared model of the research cycle, then teaches how researchers find and judge evidence, how curiosity becomes a testable question, who does research, and how students plan an enquiry of their own.

It is designed the way you already plan. Outcomes first, knowledge specified lesson by lesson, misconceptions named, retrieval and modelling built in, reading age controlled. It strengthens working scientifically rather than competing with it, and it maps to the curriculum in all four nations.

Aims and outcomes - In this session we will:

> show why research and innovation are better taught explicitly than left to chance

> walk through the lesson sequence and the knowledge each lesson builds

> show how it fits existing schemes of work, progression pathways and the enrichment you already run

Delegates will leave able to identify where research knowledge is currently assumed rather than taught in their own curriculum, and with free access to the full programme. Time is protected for questions.

Speakers

Georgina Lott

Head of Education Innovation, Institute for Research in Schools (IRIS)

Kelly Murfet

Education Innovation Lead, Institute for Research in Schools (IRIS)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-murfet-8a9065348/

Sponsors

Institute for Research in Schools (IRIS)

The Institute for Research in Schools
Our mission is to change the culture in UK education so that every young person experiences real research.

We do this by:Providing opportunities for young people to carry out research projects and share their findings with the worldEmpowering... Read More →

Thursday January 7, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT
LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

11-19

Theme Research, Curriculum (General)
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 7-11, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Researchers, Teacher Developers

11:15 GMT

Building professional curiosity, joy and agency in trainee teachers

Thursday January 7, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT

LH115 (Learning Hub Level 1)

At the Nottingham Institute of Education, we have remained committed to ensuring that professional curiosity, agency and joy underpin our science provision across our primary initial teacher education (ITE) programmes. Maintaining this ambition against a national context of financial pressures in the university sector while meeting government reforms as articulated through the Initial Teacher Training Early Career Framework (ITTECF), the introduction of ITAP (Intensive Training and Practice) and the new OFTSED ITT Inspection Framework has not been easy. Our concern is that some of these challenges are contributing to a constrained provision of primary science in ITE.

We know that we are not alone and we would like to use this session as an opportunity to collectively celebrate and identify next steps in nurturing professional curiosity, agency and joy for our next generation of primary science teachers.
We invite you to join us in this interactive presentation where you will be able to share and reflect on how science is positioned in your own teacher educator settings.
(Outcomes) By the end of the session, you will:
• Gain a developed awareness of practice-based approaches (e.g. outdoor learning, informal contexts, micro-teaching, practitioner research projects) for embedding professional curiosity and developing critical research engagement in primary science ITE.
• Critically reflect on how ITE programmes currently develop research engagement and how this can establish professional agency.
• Consider wider possibilities, through the ASE and beyond, that will empower student teachers and ECTs in their professional development of their subject, curriculum and pedagogical knowledge in primary science.

Aims:
• Understand how science can be given a strong, coherent and joyful profile across a primary ITE curriculum
• Explore how purposeful and critical engagement with research can be scaffolded for student teachers and ECTs.
• Collaborate as a community of teacher educators to support the identification of practical strategies that can embed professional curiosity and joy in primary science ITE.

Background: At the Nottingham Institute of Education, we have remained committed to ensuring that professional curiosity, agency and joy underpin our science provision across our primary initial teacher education (ITE) programmes. Working as a team of primary science initial teacher educators in England, we have reflected on how to maintain this ambition against a national context of financial pressures in the university sector while meeting government reforms as articulated through the Initial Teacher Training Early Career Framework (ITTECF) and the introduction of ITAP (Intensive Training and Practice. Our concern is that some of these challenges are contributing to a diminished and constrained provision of primary science in ITE.

Our approach has evolved through our ITE undergraduate and postgraduate curriculum design, collaboration with expert practitioners, specialist science expertise within our university and local partnership schools. External examiner feedback and student outcomes have supported the development of this approach, highlighting its impact on confidence, agency and subject knowledge.

We will reflect on how we have deliberately designed, within our primary ITE curriculum, opportunities that encourage a critical engagement with research in primary science. This includes utilising external evidence-informed professional support such as the Primary Science Enhancement Award (PSEA), embedding science within ITAP so that foundational teaching foci, such as high-quality talk and questioning, can be developed through the lens of primary science and promoting practitioner enquiry in primary science within our final dissertation action research projects.

Speakers

Alison Murphy

Senior Lecturer, Nottingham Trent University

Natasha Serret

Associate Professor of Science Education, Nottingham Trent University

I started my professional career as a classroom teacher and science lead in a London primary school. I was and remain passionate about classroom learning that promotes a scientific mindset alongside the development of an understanding of key scientific concepts. This professional... Read More →

Thursday January 7, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT
LH115 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Primary

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy, Recruitment Retention and Wellbeing
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 5-7, 7-11

11:15 GMT

Preparing future teachers for generative AI: critical, creative, and ethical

Thursday January 7, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT

LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

The session will explore how student teachers currently use generative AI critically, ethically and practically as part of their developing professional practice. Rather than presenting generative AI as a shortcut or a threat, the session will position AI as a tool that requires teacher judgement, subject knowledge and careful pedagogical decision-making. The session will highlight research conducted into how student teachers currently use generative AI in their teaching practice.

Participants will be able to:
- describe emerging patterns in how student teachers are using generative AI in their preparation, planning and professional learning;
- identify key opportunities, concerns and support needs arising from student teachers’ current AI use;
- evaluate AI-generated educational materials using criteria such as accuracy, appropriateness, inclusion, bias and pedagogical value;
- distinguish between AI use that supports professional learning and AI use that risks over-reliance or weak pedagogical decision-making;

Speakers

Ryan Gallagher

Programme Director in Science Education, University College Cork, Ireland

Stephen Murphy

Deputy Programme Director in Science Education, University College Cork, Ireland

Thursday January 7, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT
LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Using AI and technologies in teaching and learning
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers, Early Career Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators

12:25 GMT

Honorary and Professional Members lunch (invitation only)

Thursday January 7, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT

Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

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)

Speakers

Lynn Ladbrook

Chief Executive, Association for Science Education

Emily Perry

Professor of Education, Manchester Metropolitan University

Claire Seeley (MA CSciTeach)

Primary Science Education Consultant / Co-Chair of the ASE

Claire Seeley has been a teacher for over thirty years in a wide variety of contexts including both inner city and rural schools England. Claire is also a Primary Science Consultant, providing both continuing professional development and initial teacher training. She has a passion... Read More →

Natasha Serret

Associate Professor of Science Education, Nottingham Trent University

Marianne Cutler

Director of Curriculum Innovation, Association for Science Education

David Allen

Associate Professor Learning and Teaching / Outgoing Chair of the ASE 25/26, University of Hertfordshire & Creative Primary Science Education Consultancy

I worked in primary schools for over twenty years as a classteacher, senior leader and Deputy Headteacher. I taught across Key stages 1, 2 and 3 in UK and in Spain. During this time I developed a passion for science, art and design, improvised drama, assessment for learning, creativity... Read More →

Rob Butler

Registrar, Association for Science Education

I'm a Chartered Science teacher, the registrar and Project Officer for the ASE (running the Keeping Science Practical project).
I'm a senior professional development leader for the Science Learning Partnership network and I help the Science Council promote their professional registers. I'm an ex-special school senior leader, an ex-science teacher and an OUP author. I jointly run the ASE's Inclusive Science Educati... Read More →

Thursday January 7, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT
Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Other
Key Stage / Audience Type 0-4, 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, International, Post-16, Researchers, Teacher Developers, Technicians, Trainee Teachers

12:25 GMT

Using a dual lens to strengthen subject specific CPD in science

Thursday January 7, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT

LH344 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

How often do we engage with subject‑specific CPD as busy science teachers and how often does it genuinely change what we do in the classroom?

In this session, you will explore a practical model for developing subject knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge simultaneously using a learner–practitioner lens. Drawing on real case studies from secondary schools and ITT, we will examine how short, expert explanation videos can be used not as “off‑the‑shelf solutions” but as tools for deliberate professional learning.

You will be guided through how teachers and trainees are supported to:

Watch explanations first as learners to strengthen subject understanding

Revisit them as practitioners to analyse pedagogy, misconceptions, and explanations

Use structured reflection tools, including a CoRe tool, to make tacit expert thinking visible

The session will model reflection activities used in practice and invite you to critically consider how this approach could strengthen subject‑specific CPD in your own context — whether as a classroom teacher, mentor, or subject leader.

By the end of the session, participants will be able to:

Have a greater awareness of the research basis on the merits and challenges of effective subject specific CPD as well as the importance of development subject matter knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge to develop expert subject teaching.

Have an awareness of how you can and the benefits of applying a learner–practitioner lens to analyse explanations of challenging science concepts.

Know how to use a CoRe tool to support the development of pedagogical content knowledge for themselves and others

Consider applications for their own education settings ways to design subject‑specific CPD that is embedded, scalable, and sensitive to real‑world constraints.

Speakers

Catherine Leeson

Subject Development Lead - Science, Teach First

Bethany Howes

Subject Development Lead - Science, Teach First

Thursday January 7, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT
LH344 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators

13:35 GMT

(STEM Learning) Subject Knowledge for Physics Teaching (SKPT - a taster session for bringing physics to life in the classroom

Thursday January 7, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT

LH125 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Subject Knowledge for Physics Teaching (SKPT) courses are delivered by The Ogden Trust in partnership with STEM Learning and are fully funded by the Department for Education, to provide free physics professional development for teachers teaching physics outside their specialism.

Delivered by an expert practitioner in a supportive learning community, teachers build their competence and confidence to bring physics to life in the classroom.

The programme is delivered in a range of formats that best meet the needs and requirements of schools and teachers.

Pop into this taster session to find out more about how this course could enhance your science teaching career pathway to teach physics as an additional specialism.

Speakers

Elizabeth Calvert

SKPT Programme Manager (Science and STEM Engagement Lead), STEM Learning UK

Thursday January 7, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT
LH125 (Learning Hub Level 1)

11-19

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Teacher Developers

13:35 GMT

(CLEAPSS) Observing practical primary science lessons: A framework for leaders

Thursday January 7, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT

LH124 (Learning Hub Level 1)

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.

Speakers

Sally Fulford

Primary Consultant, CLEAPSS

Ex -secondary and primary science teacher now working (and loving my roles) as a consultant for Primary CLEAPSS, the Ogden Trust, PSQM, TAPS and more. Based in Devon.

Jason Harding

Primary Section Leader, CLEAPSS

Sponsors

CLEAPSS

Founded in 1963, CLEAPSS supports safe, engaging, and innovative practical activities in science (as well as design & technology and art & design). We provide schools and college staff with expert advice, training, resources, and trusted guidance. Providing staff with access to CLEAPSS... Read More →

Thursday January 7, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT
LH124 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Primary

Theme Leadership
Key Stage / Audience Type 5-7, 7-11, Teacher Developers, Initial Teacher Educators, Advisors/Consultants
Social media handle(s) @cleapss_primary

13:35 GMT

Designing inclusive science pedagogy for every child to achieve and thrive

Thursday January 7, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT

LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

This session invites you to rethink what inclusion looks like in science classrooms.

With increasing expectations that every child will achieve and thrive, teachers are navigating a complex challenge: how to meet diverse needs without lowering expectations or adding unsustainable workload. In science, this is intensified by the demands of the subject—specialist vocabulary, abstract ideas, and practical enquiry.
Rather than focusing on intervention after difficulty arises, it introduces a model of inclusion by design, where potential barriers are anticipated and addressed during planning. Drawing on principles from Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and SEND-informed practice, the session will show how small, intentional choices in teaching can widen access to scientific thinking.

We will explore how to:
•design lessons that support engagement, understanding and participation for all learners
•shift from ‘doing’ science to thinking scientifically
•broaden what counts as evidence of learning

Along the way, we will consider some critical questions:
•Who gets to feel like a scientist in our classrooms?
•Which aspects of our teaching unintentionally create barriers?
•And what might it mean to design differently?

This session is lecture-style but will include brief reflection points to connect ideas to your own practice. By the end of the session, participants will be able to:
•Identify common cognitive, linguistic and participation barriers within science lessons
•Explain the principles of an anticipatory, UDL-informed approach to inclusive pedagogy
•Analyse their own teaching or curriculum materials in terms of access, engagement and expression
•Apply at least one practical strategy (e.g. multi-modal representation, structured participation, flexible outcomes) to redesign a science activity
•Critically reflect on how current practices may privilege particular learners and how this could be adapted

Speakers

Katy Bloom

Associate Professor ITE & Science Lead, York St John University

Thursday January 7, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT
LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Inclusion and Diversity including SEND, Leadership
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 5-7, 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators

13:35 GMT

Do AfL practices provide feedback for teachers and guidance for learners?

Thursday January 7, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT

LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

This talk and discussion is a tribute to Professor Paul Black, whose pioneering work in classroom assessment practices for around 40 years transformed the way that assessment is used to help children learn.

While most teachers are aware of Assessment for Learning, many do not know its origins and the reasons why and how formative assessment has become more valued and recognised in promoting learning. This talk goes back to the seminal paper and the studies that Paul Black and Dylan Wiliam considered in their review of formative assessment that they published in 1998. It will look at studies done by the King's team from 1999- 2026 by considering vignettes of classroom practice and snippets of classroom interactions, so that you can understand some of the reasons project teachers began to change their classroom assessment practices. It will then challenge the audience to think about the classroom assessment they do,or they support others in doing, and explore how assessment has shaped and focused their teaching and impacted on the ways that children learn.

Paul Black passed away peacefully on May 16th 2026, leaving a profound legacy in science education and assessment; his impact has been phenomenal and continues to influence teachers of all phases and at all stages of their career.

Speakers

Chris Harrison

Professor of Science Education, King’s College London

Researcher keen to work at classroom level. Teacher educator. Research interest: Assessment and especially Assessment for Learning. Inquiry in science/experimental science. Professional Learning and practice-based evidence. Big, big ASE enthusiast!!

Thursday January 7, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT
LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Assessment
Key Stage / Audience Type 5-7, 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, Initial Teacher Educators, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Teacher Developers

14:45 GMT

Climate change solutions in secondary physics, chemistry and biology

Thursday January 7, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT

LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

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.

Speakers

Ellie Pinches

Education Officer, Royal Meteorological Society

Thursday January 7, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT
LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

11-19

Theme Sustainability climate change and environmental issues
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 11-14, 14-16, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Advisors/Consultants

14:45 GMT

Presidential Address: We need to talk about equity: Dilemmas, threats and possibilities for science education

Thursday January 7, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT

LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

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.

Speakers

Professor Louise Archer OBE

ASE President / Karl Mannheim Chair of Sociology of Education, UCL Institute of Education

I am currently the Karl Mannheim Professor of Sociology of Education at UCL IOE (2017-) and co-chair of the Sociology Activity Group (with Jessica Ringrose). Previously I was Professor of Sociology of Education at King's College London, where I was also the Director of the Centre... Read More →

Thursday January 7, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT
LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Inclusion and Diversity including SEND
Key Stage / Audience Type 0-4, 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, International, Post-16, Researchers, Teacher Developers, Technicians, Trainee Teachers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

15:40 GMT

Chair Chat

Thursday January 7, 2027 15:40 - 16:10 GMT

Learning Hub Level 2 landing space outside rooms LH227-230

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!

Speakers

David Allen

Associate Professor Learning and Teaching / Outgoing Chair of the ASE 25/26, University of Hertfordshire & Creative Primary Science Education Consultancy

Claire Seeley (MA CSciTeach)

Primary Science Education Consultant / Co-Chair of the ASE

Natasha Serret

Associate Professor of Science Education, Nottingham Trent University

Emily Perry

Professor of Education, Manchester Metropolitan University

Thursday January 7, 2027 15:40 - 16:10 GMT
Learning Hub Level 2 landing space outside rooms LH227-230

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Assessment, Curriculum (General), Curriculum Change in England, Inclusion and Diversity including SEND, Leadership, Practical work including beyond the classroom, Recruitment Retention and Wellbeing, Research, Subject knowledge & pedagogy, Sustainability climate c
Key Stage / Audience Type 0-4, 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, International, Post-16, Researchers, Teacher Developers, Technicians, Trainee Teachers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

15:40 GMT

Meet the ASE Teacher Developers Committee

Thursday January 7, 2027 15:40 - 16:10 GMT

LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

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!

Speakers

Katy Bloom

Associate Professor ITE & Science Lead, York St John University

Thursday January 7, 2027 15:40 - 16:10 GMT
LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Leadership, Curriculum (General), Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Advisors/Consultants, Initial Teacher Educators, Post-16, Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

16:10 GMT

Departmental improvement journeys in practical science

Thursday January 7, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT

LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

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).

Speakers

Rob Butler

Registrar, Association for Science Education

Thursday January 7, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT
LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

11-19

Theme Practical work including beyond the classroom, Leadership
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, Technicians, 11-14, 14-16, Advisors/Consultants
Social media handle(s) @theASE

16:10 GMT

They pass exams - but can’t think: fixing “doing science”

Thursday January 7, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT

LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Students can often produce correct answers in science - yet struggle when asked to explain, justify, or apply their thinking.

This session explores why this happens, and what teachers can do about it.

Participants will begin by examining real examples of student responses that achieve marks but reveal limited understanding. From this, we will identify key barriers, including over-reliance on recall, weak disciplinary language, and limited experience of constructing explanations.

The session will then focus on practical strategies that have been tested in the classroom, including:

Explicitly modelling how to “think like a scientist”
Teaching students how to build explanations, not just recognise them
Using scaffolds that are deliberately faded to promote independence
Designing questions that reveal and develop thinking, not just check answers

Participants will actively apply these approaches by improving a weak student response and adapting a task for their own context.

The session prioritises clarity, realism, and immediate classroom application. By the end of the session, participants will be able to:

Recognise when students are succeeding without understanding
Diagnose specific weaknesses in students’ scientific thinking
Implement structured approaches to improve explanations and reasoning
Adapt existing tasks to better develop disciplinary thinking

Speakers

Emma Swift

Vice Principal, Alvaston Moor Academy

Thursday January 7, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT
LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

11-19

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 11-14, 14-16

17:30 GMT

ASE Reception

Thursday January 7, 2027 17:30 - 19:30 GMT

Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

The ASE Reception (formerly known as the Members Reception) is an open event for everyone, whether you are an ASE Member or not - it's an opportunity to say hello and network with others after an inspirational first day at Conference. Join us for a glass of bubbly to celebrate the ASE!

The ASE Books of the Year winners will also be announced, as well as the CASTME awardees. We look forward to welcoming everyone on Thursday evening of 2027.

Special Service Awards will also be announced.

Everyone is invited to have their first drink, compliments of the ASE. A PAYG will remain open for the evening until 21.30 for continued networking and socialising.

The Alexander Award: The Alexander prize is awarded annually, to a woman or group that includes women who has made a significant contribution to the scientific, technological, engineering or mathematical (STEM) education of girls or women, in situations of scarce resources.

It is granted in memory of Sir Norman Alexander, a physicist who held various roles in Nigeria, Ghana, Mauritius, Botswana, Lesotho and Swazliand. Sir Norman was married first to Elizabeth Alexander a pioneering scientist herself who carried out research in radar, geology, and tropical soils and then, after her death to Constance Geary, chief women education officer in Northern Nigeria. Mary Alexander, Sir Norman's daughter established the award in Sir Norman’s name, for women and girls in recognition of the pioneering working carried out by his wives and daughter.

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.

Speakers

David Allen

Associate Professor Learning and Teaching / Outgoing Chair of the ASE 25/26, University of Hertfordshire & Creative Primary Science Education Consultancy

Claire Seeley (MA CSciTeach)

Primary Science Education Consultant / Co-Chair of the ASE

Lynn Ladbrook

Chief Executive, Association for Science Education

Natasha Serret

Associate Professor of Science Education, Nottingham Trent University

Emily Perry

Professor of Education, Manchester Metropolitan University

Thursday January 7, 2027 17:30 - 19:30 GMT
Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Other
Key Stage / Audience Type 0-4, 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, International, Post-16, Researchers, Teacher Developers, Technicians, Trainee Teachers

08:45 GMT

The future of the physics teaching workforce

Friday January 8, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT

LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

The last year has seen radical changes in the numbers of trainee physics teachers recruited, retained as well as those returning to the profession.

What does the future hold?

The Institute of Physics laid out its own vision for a thriving teaching workforce in its 3Rs report, published in September 2025. What has changed since then and what have we learned?

Speakers

Chris Shepherd

Manager (Teaching Workforce), Institute of Physics

Gemma Butt

Project Officer (Teaching Workforce), Institute of Physics

Friday January 8, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT
LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

11-19

Theme Recruitment Retention and Wellbeing
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 11-14, 14-16, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators

08:45 GMT

Closing the primary science CPD gap: flexible models that work (White Rose Education)

Friday January 8, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT

Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

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.

Speakers

Joe Partridge

Primary Science Specialist, White Rose Education

With over a decade of experience as a teacher, I specialise in STEM subjects and digital content creation. In my current role at White Rose Education I develop resources that support primary teachers, aligning with the national curriculum and fostering engagement in science. Through... Read More →

Dan Breeze

Head of Primary Science, White Rose Education

Sponsors

White Rose Education

White Rose Education is proud to sponsor the Primary Programme of the ASE 2027 Annual Conference

Created by teachers, mathematicians and scientists, White Rose Education is dedicated to helping every teacher become a world-class teacher.

White Rose Science takes the highly successful approach we pioneered with White Rose Maths and transfers it to the primary science curriculum. It uses a “small steps” approach to science teaching, and closely follows the national curriculum for science for years 1 - 6. It gives

... Read More →

Friday January 8, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT
Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

Primary

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy, Leadership
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, 5-7, 7-11

09:55 GMT

Research in action: unlocking better science teaching

Friday January 8, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT

LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

This session will explore how action research has been used to drive meaningful and sustained improvements in science teaching and learning at The Manchester Grammar School. Framed around the principle of teachers as researchers, we will share how small-scale, classroom-based inquiry has empowered colleagues to take ownership of their professional development and directly shape departmental practice.

Over the course of the session, we will present a series of practitioner-led research projects carried out across the science department. We will outline how these projects were structured, supported, and embedded into a wider CPD programme, including the role of collaborative discussion, learning walks, and professional dialogue.

Crucially, we will evaluate the impact of this approach beyond individual classrooms, demonstrating how insights from action research have informed departmental priorities, strengthened consistency in teaching, and contributed to a culture of reflective practice. We will also reflect on the challenges of implementing this model and how they were addressed to ensure engagement and sustainability.

The session will include opportunities for discussion, enabling participants to consider how a similar approach could be adapted to their own contexts. Attendees will leave with practical strategies for embedding action research into CPD and for fostering a culture where evidence-informed practice can thrive.

Speakers

Anna Wicking

Assistant Head (Professional Development and Digital Innovation), The Manchester Grammar School

Jason Ashton

Physics Teacher, The Manchester Grammar School

Friday January 8, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT
LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

11-19

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy, Research
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 14-16, Post-16, Initial Teacher Educators, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers

09:55 GMT

Keynote: Raising the bar - ambition, curiosity and depth in science

Friday January 8, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT

LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

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.

Speakers

Mary Myatt

Educational writer, speaker, blogger, consultant, Myatt & Co

I'm Mary Myatt an education adviser, writer and speaker working with schools, trusts and organisations across the UK. My work focuses on curriculum, teaching and learning, leadership and, increasingly, how we make Key Stage 3 more ambitious and intellectually generous for every pupil... Read More →

Friday January 8, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT
LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, Early Career Teachers, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, International, Researchers, Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

10:50 GMT

Biology educators tea/coffee and muffins (sponsored by Miss Estruch Teach & Tell)

Friday January 8, 2027 10:50 - 11:15 GMT

Learning Hub Level 2 landing space outside rooms LH227-230

Sponsors

Miss Estruch Teach & Tell

Friday January 8, 2027 10:50 - 11:15 GMT
Learning Hub Level 2 landing space outside rooms LH227-230

11-19

Theme Other
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, Advisors/Consultants, Post-16, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, Early Career Teachers, International, Teacher Developers

10:50 GMT

Physics and tea with the IOP

Friday January 8, 2027 10:50 - 11:15 GMT

Learning Hub Level 3 landing space (outside 344-347)

Speakers

Eleanor Wylie

Professional Support Coach, Institute of Physics

Ian Horsewell

Professional Community and Retention Strategic Lead, Institute of Physics

Sponsors

Institute of Physics (IOP)

Friday January 8, 2027 10:50 - 11:15 GMT
Learning Hub Level 3 landing space (outside 344-347)

11-19

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Post-16, Teacher Developers

10:50 GMT

Chair Chat

Friday January 8, 2027 10:50 - 11:15 GMT

Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

Speakers

David Allen

Associate Professor Learning and Teaching / Outgoing Chair of the ASE 25/26, University of Hertfordshire & Creative Primary Science Education Consultancy

Claire Seeley (MA CSciTeach)

Primary Science Education Consultant / Co-Chair of the ASE

Emily Perry

Professor of Education, Manchester Metropolitan University

Natasha Serret

Associate Professor of Science Education, Nottingham Trent University

Friday January 8, 2027 10:50 - 11:15 GMT
Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Assessment, Curriculum (General), Curriculum Change in England, Inclusion and Diversity including SEND, Leadership, Practical work including beyond the classroom, Recruitment Retention and Wellbeing, Research, Subject knowledge & pedagogy, Sustainability climate c
Key Stage / Audience Type 0-4, 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, International, Post-16, Researchers, Teacher Developers, Technicians, Trainee Teachers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

11:15 GMT

Creativity & curiosity for all: the impact of student-led science

Friday January 8, 2027 11:15 - 12:05 GMT

LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

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

Speakers

Maria Rossini

Head of Education, British Science Association

Talk to me able making STEM accessible to all young people, lego, disability and anything related to CREST www.crestawards.org

Gemma Butt

Project Officer (Teaching Workforce), Institute of Physics

Friday January 8, 2027 11:15 - 12:05 GMT
LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

Suitable for All key stages

Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, Technicians, Trainee Teachers, Early Career Teachers, Researchers

11:15 GMT

New to Science Leadership

Friday January 8, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT

LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Leading people is not the same as teaching students! Middle leaders are the engine room of schools and are worth investing in.

In this session, we will draw on the New to Science Leadership course (the most recent cohort led in autumn 2026 by ASE in partnership with Astin Consulting) to answer questions such as:

- what kind of training best prepares teachers for leading their peers?
- is leading the same as managing?
- how to prepare for a difficult conversation, how to run an effective departmental meeting, how to lead change?

Ideal for teachers new to leadership (or aspiring to), or those responsible for developing new leaders.

Speakers

Christina Astin

Coach and Education Consultant, Physics Partners and Astin Consulting

http://www.linkedin.com/in/christina-astin

Friday January 8, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT
LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

11-19

Theme Leadership
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, Initial Teacher Educators, Teacher Developers
Social media handle(s) @ChristinaAstin, @astin_consulting

11:15 GMT

Panel: Thriving and surviving your first few years (for Early Career Teachers)

Friday January 8, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT

Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

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!

Speakers

Martin Reece

Science Education Consultant

Friday January 8, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT
Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

11-19

Theme Other
Key Stage / Audience Type 5-7, 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, Early Career Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Post-16, Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

11:15 GMT

PISA 2025: Outcomes and implications for the Teaching and Learning of science

Friday January 8, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT

LH124 (Learning Hub Level 1)

The primary focus of the PISA Assessment in 2025 was on the outcomes of school science education for 15-year-olds. The 2025 Assessment framework, which was the basis of testing in over 90 countries in 2025, introduced three new elements.
First, two of the original competencies in the 2015 framework were merged. This change enabled the introduction of a new third competency that measured students’ ability to “research, evaluate and use scientific information for decision making”.
Second, because of the importance of educating students about the environment, climate change a specific focus on environmental education was added. The framework for this was elaborated in the document Agency in the Anthropocene.

This framework has three new competencies with a focus on education for sustainability and climate change. Finally, the concept of attitudes to science has been broadened to the notion of science identity which introduces the notion of capital. This talk will explain these changes, their rationale and illustrate ways in which they were measured with sample items. In addition, it will present the findings from the results published in September 2026, and discuss their implications.

Speakers

Jonathan Osborne

Professor, Stanford University

My career started by teaching science in London comprehensives in 1972 for 9 years. Curently I am the Kamalachari Professor in Science Education, Emeritus, in the Graduate School of Education, Stanford University in California but now back in the UK. I was President of the US National... Read More →

Friday January 8, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT
LH124 (Learning Hub Level 1)

11-19

Theme Curriculum (General), Research
Key Stage / Audience Type International, 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, Researchers, Teacher Developers, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Advisors/Consultants, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators

11:15 GMT

Promoting argument-driven explanation in Earth & Environmental Science

Friday January 8, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT

LH125 (Learning Hub Level 1)

In this session attendees will be introduced to Model-Evidence-Link (MEL) instructional materials designed to assist American learners as they construct arguments to evaluate the plausibility of evidence connected to models and the research base that supports using these scaffolds. These MEL diagrams allow students to think critically about socio-scientific issues by evaluating connections between lines of evidence and alternative explanatory claims.

Explorations that utilize the MEL scaffold promote changes in epistemic judgments, including claim plausibility, and help students move toward a more civically minded and scientific stance. Student discourse is a critical part of these activities and include negotiation toward scientific consensus.

MEL activities for available for teaching about socio-scientific issues include climate change, dead zones, energy, extreme weather, fracking, freshwater resources, fossils, moon formation, nuclear energy, origins of the universe, soil and food security and wetlands. All materials are freely available under a Creative Commons license. Participants receive access to all instructional materials and instructional guides, found here:

https://serc.carleton.edu/mel/index.html

Speakers

Donna Governor

President, NSTA, America

Lorraine Ramirez-Villarin

Associate Professor, University of North Georgia, USA

Friday January 8, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT
LH125 (Learning Hub Level 1)

11-19

Theme Sustainability climate change and environmental issues
Key Stage / Audience Type Researchers, 11-14, 14-16, Teacher Developers, International

11:15 GMT

Rising to the challenge: improving pedagogy & practice in physics education

Friday January 8, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT

LH127 (Learning Hub Level 1)

This session will look at two specific EEF guidance reports in detail with a physics-specific lens: Improving Secondary Science and Effective Professional Development. We will draw on a wider evidence-base concerning the challenges of adult behaviour change and its influence on improving teacher practice. This session will consider individual and organisational impact and will be relevant to teachers and leaders of physics.

Background: The Ogden Trust has worked closely with Durrington Research School and The EEF on the Working Through Others programme, a new pillar of The EEF's impact work focused on developing and delivering evidence-informed practice. The results of this collaboration have informed The Ogden Trust's new strategy and programme development.

Speakers

Jackie Flaherty

Head of Teaching and Learning, The Ogden Trust

Ben Crockett

Co-Director, Durrington Research school

Ben is an Assistant Director at Durrington Research School, and Assistant Headteacher at Durrington High having joined the school in 2013. Ben has previously been head of Geography. As part of his wider school role, Ben in responsible for ensuring the quality and consistency of... Read More →

Friday January 8, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT
LH127 (Learning Hub Level 1)

11-19

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, Initial Teacher Educators

12:25 GMT

(Pearson) Science reform in action - what comes next for teachers and learners?

Friday January 8, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT

LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

Science education is entering a pivotal period of change. This interactive, evidence-informed session will explore how reform can translate ambitious national intent into qualifications, assessment and classroom practice that work for teachers and learners. Drawing on Pearson’s engagement with teachers, science leaders, students and subject communities, the session will consider what successful reform should achieve , what different stages of science reform could mean for subject leaders, teachers and students, and what schools will need to implement changes successfully.
Session aims

Make science reform tangible and relevant for classroom practitioners and leaders.
Surface practitioner priorities, risks and implementation need so that teacher and learner experience informs future qualification thinking.
Build confidence by identifying proportionate preparation schools can undertake while policy and qualification details continue to develop.

Delegate takeaways

A phased school-readiness checklist.
Practical actions departments can begin without overcommitting.
A sharper understanding of potential implications for learners, teachers and departmental delivery.
Questions and discussion prompts to use with departments, senior leaders and trust teams.

This session is followed by a catered lunch, sponsored by Pearson, for secondary educators and early career teachers or trainees. Please join us to continue the networking opportunity and further explore how Pearson can support you.

Speakers

Shauna O'Brien

Head of Science, Pearson

Tosin Oliyide

Senior Qualifications Manager - Science, Pearson

Friday January 8, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT
LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

11-19

Theme Assessment, Inclusion and Diversity including SEND, Leadership
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, FE/Skills, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Advisors/Consultants, Teacher Developers

12:25 GMT

Bring climate change to life through chemistry and real-world contexts

Friday January 8, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT

LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

How can chemistry lessons help learners make sense of climate change and sustainability?

In this session, we explore how sustainability contexts can bring chemical concepts to life and connect them to the global challenges of climate change.

We use examples from historical developments and current research to show how chemistry underpins a range of climate solutions. We will look at how chemists and scientists tackle these issues, helping learners see the relevance of their studies beyond the classroom.

We will explore ready-to-use resources and approaches, and reflect on how teachers could adapt these for their own settings. We will also draw on findings from the Green Shoots report to show how teachers can embed climate change and sustainability more consistently and meaningfully into chemistry teaching.

Speakers

Rebecca Laye

Education coordinator, professional development & regional engagement, Royal Society of Chemistry

Emma Lumb

Education coordinator, community engagement, education strategic programmes, Royal Society of Chemistry

Friday January 8, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT
LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

11-19

Theme Sustainability climate change and environmental issues
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, Initial Teacher Educators, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers

12:25 GMT

Chemical grenades

Friday January 8, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT

LH127 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Most teachers have been confronted in the classroom by a "chemical grenade" - a question from a pupil that may or may not have been intended to cause damage, but which was also both hard to answer and very interesting, often just touching the edges of the syllabus.

By sharing some of the most interesting chemical grenades from my teaching, I hope to outline an approach to answering these questions in the pursuit of developing teachers' chemistry knowledge and ability to explain abstract concepts from physical an inorganic chemistry at GCSE and A-level in a "rigorous but hand waving" way that pupils might appreciate.

Some grenades to be considered, most drawn from A-level pupils, include: "When an equilibrium responds to an increase in pressure, does the pressure ever return to its old value?", "If copper complexes are coloured because of d-d transitions, why don't they just re-emit the light they absorbed?", "How do chiral molecules rotate plan polarised light differently when they are randomly oriented?", "Why doesn't adding a solid to an equilibrium mixture change the position of equilibrium?"

I hope to show that working out the answers to these questions, and then how to present the answer to pupils, can be tricky, but also leads to a better understanding of the chemistry being taught.

Speakers

Matthew Smith

Head of Chemistry, St Pauls School

Matthew has been teaching high school chemistry for 16 years and is in charge of a team of 13 chemists at St Paul's School. His department teaches about 750 pupils and has been building microscale and small scale chemistry into their curriculum for several years, and he and his team... Read More →

Friday January 8, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT
LH127 (Learning Hub Level 1)

11-19

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 14-16, Post-16, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers

12:25 GMT

Frontier Science: Engineering the future

Friday January 8, 2027 12:25 - 13:30 GMT

LH345 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

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.

Speakers

Ollie Folayan FREng CEng FIChemE

Head of Process Engineering, Costain

Friday January 8, 2027 12:25 - 13:30 GMT
LH345 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Frontier Science
Key Stage / Audience Type 5-7, 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, FE/Skills, Technicians, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, Post-16, Teacher Developers
Social media handle(s) @OllieFolayan74

12:25 GMT

What's the point of teaching science? What we've found from research

Friday January 8, 2027 12:25 - 13:30 GMT

LH344 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

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.

Speakers

Mark Whalley

Senior Lecturer in Education, University of Chester

Friday January 8, 2027 12:25 - 13:30 GMT
LH344 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy, Research
Key Stage / Audience Type Researchers, Teacher Developers, 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, FE/Skills, Post-16, Initial Teacher Educators, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Advisors/Consultants

13:35 GMT

Mathematics support for serving science teachers - seeking a way forward

Friday January 8, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT

LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

Building on our work investigating the mathematical skills of trainee science teachers, in this session we will explore the needs of serving teachers. The aim of the session is to inform our next steps to support trainees and serving science teachers with the maths skills required to teach GCSE sciences.

In this session we will:
(a) identify mathematical skills challenges
(b) revisit issues experienced by trainees
(c) identify the issues for serving teachers using:
(i) a survey of GCSE Examiners’ reports
(ii) an overview of existing CPD provision for serving teachers together with lessons from uptake and evaluation information.

Working closely with trainee teachers, we have begun to review existing resources that might help teachers to improve their maths skills.
In this session participants will be asked about:
(a) the resources teachers and teacher developers use to develop maths skills of serving teachers
(b) whether an online self-assessment tool would be helpful
(c) what additional CPD provision may help
(d) the possible role of online asynchronous support
(e) resources that might support science teachers to improve their maths skills pedagogy

Background: With over 60 years of Physics teaching experience between them as well as a background of supporting Science teachers with Physics, Ally Davies, Liz Nourshargh and Caroline Neuberg have been working together on the maths skills of trainee science teachers since 2021, initially as part of the IOP Physics Teacher Educator Programme. Since then, they have presented at conferences, published a paper, written maths support materials and delivered Maths CPD on behalf of a number of organisations. As they continue to work with trainee Science teachers and deliver maths CPD for a variety of organisations, they aim to ensure that the tools developed are suitable for and freely available to all Science teachers.

Speakers

Ally Davies

Consultant, Ally Physics

At this conference I'll be speaking about recent work on maths skills of trainee science teachers and considering what support might be helpful for in service teachers of science.
In my semi-retirement, I'm also working to improve representation of minoritised groups/identities... Read More →

Caroline Neuberg

Senior Lecturer in Education / Consultant, Leeds Trinity University

Dr. Caroline Neuberg is a Senior Lecturer in Secondary Education at Leeds Trinity University (LTU). The second Intensive Training and Practice (ITAP) completed by her science trainees focuses on signature pedagogies, dedicated to practical work. Many of the trainees, who have experienced... Read More →

Friday January 8, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT
LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

11-19

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, Researchers, 11-14, 14-16, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators

13:35 GMT

Primary TeachMeet Lightning Talks

Friday January 8, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT

Creative Hub Atrium Level 1

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!

Speakers

Angharad Pass

Primary Science Specialist Education Consultant

The Padlet for the Teachmeet is here: https://padlet.com/saraheamesscienceleader/ase-conf-saturday-10th-january-2026-primary-science-teach-me-ruozfsim8u6eq9lz

Friday January 8, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT
Creative Hub Atrium Level 1

Primary

Theme Curriculum (General)
Key Stage / Audience Type 0-4, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Trainee Teachers, Early Career Teachers, Teacher Developers, International
Social media handle(s) @theASE

13:35 GMT

Helping KS2 children understand climate change: practical lessons

Friday January 8, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT

LH229 (Learning Hub Level 2)

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.

Speakers

Graham Davies

Climate Educator & Podcast Host, The Climate Classroom

Friday January 8, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT
LH229 (Learning Hub Level 2)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy, Sustainability climate change and environmental issues
Key Stage / Audience Type 7-11, 11-14, Teacher Developers
Social media handle(s) @grahamtheclimateclassroom

13:35 GMT

Teaching about ‘AI in real-world science’ in the science classroom

Friday January 8, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT

LH125 (Learning Hub Level 1)

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.

Speakers

Jane Waite

Senior Research Scientist, Raspberry Pi Foundation

Ben Garside

Senior Learning Manager, Raspberry Pi Foundation

Friday January 8, 2027 13:35 - 14:30 GMT
LH125 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Using AI and technologies in teaching and learning, Research
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, Researchers, International, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, FE/Skills, Advisors/Consultants, Initial Teacher Educators

14:45 GMT

Is science for everyone? Tackling unconscious bias in primary schools.

Friday January 8, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT

LH115 (Learning Hub Level 1)

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.

Speakers

Francesca Gale

Head of Science Engagement and Enrichment, Welcome Connecting Science

Alex Farrer

PSQM Development Lead, Primary Science Quality Mark

PSQM Professional Learning Partner.
Primary Science Teaching Trust Fellow.
Member of the PSQM Expert Advisory Group.
Member of the ASE Teacher Developers’ Committee.
Accredited trainer of the Primary Science Capital Teaching Approach.
Co-author of the PSTT resources See Through Sci... Read More →

Friday January 8, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT
LH115 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Primary

Theme Inclusion and Diversity including SEND
Key Stage / Audience Type 0-4, 5-7, 7-11, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Advisors/Consultants, Teacher Developers

14:45 GMT

Education system building

Friday January 8, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT

LH344 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

Central aims for the session: (a) to support participants in understanding what constitutes educational system building and (b) how to categorise and evaluate their own leadership efforts to identify key areas of focus for continuous improvement.

Education system building is an empirically evidenced approach to educational improvement. System building involves teachers and school leaders collaborating to organise, support, and manage teaching and learning across five key domains of practice:

1. Building educational infrastructure: designing formal teaching materials (schemes of work, assessments) and establishing social resources for learning (norms, values, and relationships among students, teachers, and leaders)

2. Teacher professional learning for supporting use of infrastructure in practice: formal CPD, coaching, and opportunities for peer learning (co-planning, peer observation, lesson study, collaborative data analysis)

3. Managing environmental relationships: navigating external environmental influences (exam boards, DfE, inspection bodies, cultural and political shifts), and engaging environmental actors (universities, professional bodies, community actors)

4. Monitoring and managing performance for continuous improvement: monitoring and evaluating teaching and learning (data analysis, staff appraisal, observations of teaching and department routines, and designing mechanisms for teacher feedback), and identifying areas for continuous improvement

5. Developing and distributing academic leadership: structuring teams and roles (HODs, curriculum leads), and encouraging leadership of initiative across all staff

In reflecting on my work as a HOD in three schools, I can organise my activities into each of these domains, and identify domains where my efforts are focused in an average week. I can also compare across my different schools and see how work in each domain looked different depending on the context. This can be a useful framework for reflection to identify 'gaps' in our leadership practice.

However, this lens is most powerful for helping us coordinate improvement efforts across these domains. For example, it can help us to identify when data being collected is not being used to (re)design students’ educational experiences, or staff appraisal routines are not used to shape teacher learning initiatives and/or (re)configure informal leadership roles. A system building frame also helps leaders to conceptualise why some approaches that explicitly work across domains, like lesson study, can be incredibly powerful.

In this session, I will outline the key findings from the education system building research coming out of the US, and draw on my experience as a science leader in England to reframe this for a UK educational context, as well as provide participants with an opportunity to audit their own leadership practice, and learn from other leaders how their work looks similar/different through a system building lens.

Speakers

Emily Seeber

Head of Science, Lord Wandsworth College

Friday January 8, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT
LH344 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Leadership, Research
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, Initial Teacher Educators, Advisors/Consultants, Researchers

14:45 GMT

Talking Science: who needs teachers anymore? Teaching science in the age of AI (SEPA)

Friday January 8, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT

LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

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.

Speakers

Victoria Hedlund

AI bias researcher, consultant and founder, Gen Ed Labs

Miles Berry

Professor of Computing Education, University of Roehampton

Marianne Cutler

Director of Curriculum Innovation, Association for Science Education

Sponsors

SEPA

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, with Professor Dame Athene Donald... Read More →

Friday January 8, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT
LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Using AI and technologies in teaching and learning
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, International, Post-16, Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

16:10 GMT

Frontier Science: What we learn(ed) from rainbows

Friday January 8, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT

LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Unexpectedly, many concepts and practices central to our physics today, that students and educators could find interesting, originated in the study of rainbows.

Speakers

Michael Berry

Emeritus Professor of Physics, University of Bristol

Friday January 8, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT
LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

11-19

Theme Frontier Science
Key Stage / Audience Type 14-16, Post-16, International, Initial Teacher Educators, Trainee Teachers, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Teacher Developers

16:10 GMT

Integrated instructions and microscale practical work

Friday January 8, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT

LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Effective practical work can be challenging for students for many reasons, not least the overload on their working memory. Students’ understanding of the chemical concepts underlying a practical observation or measurement relies on them cognitively attending to a wide range of matters: their theoretical understanding of the world, new and recalled skills and knowledge, instruction in written and verbal form, the materials and equipment, and the social environment of the classroom.

This session will discuss two key aspects of improving students’ experience and engagement with practical work. Microscale practical tasks make use of smaller quantities of chemicals, simpler equipment and techniques, and a more rapid progression from start to observations and measurements. Integrated instructions use simplified guidance incorporated into diagrammatic representations of equipment and method. Participants will see how these approaches have been embedded throughout the chemistry curriculum, including the selection of suitable tasks, typical student responses and outcomes, and the process of securing staff buy-in. Links will be drawn between examination syllabuses and the conceptual understanding developed through these practicals.

Outcomes: Participants will be able to identify opportunities for microscale practical work, adapt instructions to reduce extraneous demand, and plan steps for implementation in their own departments.

Speakers

Bob Worley

Part Time Advisor, CLEAPSS

Bob Worley FRSC MSc was the 2021 winner of the Royal Society of Chemistry Prize for Excellence in Secondary Education. He taught for 20 years and afterwards became the Senior Advisor at CLEAPSS dealing with school chemistry laboratory safety, from which he pioneered microscale chemistry... Read More →

David Paterson

Assistant Head Teacher, Aldenham School

Friday January 8, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT
LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

11-19

Theme Practical work including beyond the classroom
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, Teacher Developers, 14-16, Post-16, Initial Teacher Educators, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Advisors/Consultants

16:10 GMT

Preparing for participation: Lesson prep and high participation strategies

Friday January 8, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT

LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

During the session, we will:

* Explain what we mean by lesson preparation, and some key strategies that secure high participation in lessons (including Call and Response, Turn and Talk, mini-whiteboards)
* Share our experiences embedding these in our own practice, and in establishing these across departments and schools
* Facilitate discussion on how these practices might be applied in attendee's contexts

As a result of the session:
* Teachers will have a new approach to lessons - preparation rather than planning
* Teachers will have a good understanding of some high participation strategies that they can use in the classroom
* Leaders and teacher developers will have advice and ideas for implementing these in their contexts

Background: Historically, the quality of teaching and learning (and in turn student outcomes) in science lagged behind other subjects in our MAT and the national picture for science. This led to a period of reflection and learning, drawing on works from the 'CogSciSci' network of authors and bloggers, the 'In Action' series of books and 'Teach Like A Champion'. One output of this was what we called a Framework for Good Science Teaching, which put checking for understanding as one of the 4 central pillars, and in particular the use of high participation strategies to ensure all students cognitively participate in the lessons. Beyond this, the whole purpose of the framework was to move colleagues away from 'lesson planning' - typically endless resource creation - to 'lesson preparation', where staff intellectually engage with the resources available to consider how to best use them with their students. We will talk about our experiences across the Trust, and within one specific school where this has had significant impact on students' understanding of science. We intend to support further learning on these strategies through online webinars and writings in ASE publications, for attendees to continue their professional development.

Speakers

Deb Barnett

Director of Science, Co-op Academies Trust

Laura Dufty

Head of Science, Co-op Academies Trust

Friday January 8, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT
LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

11-19

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 11-14, 14-16, Post-16

16:10 GMT

Teacher confidence: The key missing link in primary science improvement

Friday January 8, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT

LH115 (Learning Hub Level 1)

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.

Speakers

Becki Price

Science consultant and teacher, The Willows Primary School

Chris Wemyss

Teacher and Subject Leader, Gladstone Primary School

Friday January 8, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT
LH115 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Primary

Theme Recruitment Retention and Wellbeing
Key Stage / Audience Type 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Teacher Developers

16:10 GMT

Panel: Planning and upskilling CPD for curriculum reform

Friday January 8, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT

LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

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.

Speakers

Marianne Cutler

Director of Curriculum Innovation, Association for Science Education

Friday January 8, 2027 16:10 - 17:05 GMT
LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Curriculum Change in England, Leadership
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, Post-16, Teacher Developers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

17:10 GMT

Meet the ASE 11-19 Committee

Friday January 8, 2027 17:10 - 17:30 GMT

LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

If you are a secondary teacher or science education consultant, come along to the "Meet the 11 to 19 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 for one of the ASE journals?

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

Speakers

Rebecca McCready

Chair of ASE 11 to 19 Committee, Duke's Secondary school, SE Northumberland

Friday January 8, 2027 17:10 - 17:30 GMT
LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

11-19

Theme Curriculum (General), Leadership, Recruitment Retention and Wellbeing, Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, Post-16, Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

17:10 GMT

Meet the ASE Primary Committee

Friday January 8, 2027 17:10 - 17:30 GMT

LH124 (Learning Hub Level 1)

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!

Speakers

Angharad Pass

Primary Science Specialist Education Consultant

The Padlet for the Teachmeet is here: https://padlet.com/saraheamesscienceleader/ase-conf-saturday-10th-january-2026-primary-science-teach-me-ruozfsim8u6eq9lz

Friday January 8, 2027 17:10 - 17:30 GMT
LH124 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Primary

Theme Curriculum (General), Leadership, Recruitment Retention and Wellbeing, Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type 0-4, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

08:45 GMT

Frontier Science: How the physical sciences can empower biology - applications of single molecule fluorescence to the biosciences

Saturday January 9, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT

LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

The capability to image single molecules has revolutionised biology.

I will explain how these methods work and how we are currently applying them to study the molecular basis of neurodegenerative disease.

Lastly I will describe how our early single molecule work on DNA polymerase led to the development of next generation DNA sequencing, now widely used, and the lessons that can be learnt from this experience.

Speakers

Sir David Klenerman

University of Cambridge

Saturday January 9, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT
LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Frontier Science
Key Stage / Audience Type 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, International, Post-16, Researchers, Teacher Developers, Technicians, Trainee Teachers

08:45 GMT

I just went blank: the biology and psychology of exam anxiety

Saturday January 9, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT

LH321 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Crucially, biology and psychology feed each other. Cortisol impairs working memory, which worsens worry, which keeps the amygdala firing, which sustains the stress response. The loop runs until something interrupts it, which is why both physiological strategies (controlled breathing) and cognitive ones (reappraising arousal as challenge, not threat) work.

By the end, participants will:
> understand the biological and psychological mechanisms driving exam anxiety
> recognise the difference between knowing material and being able to show it under pressure
> have practical strategies to help students break the anxiety loop from both directions

Background and context: Exam anxiety is common, and for many students it actively undermines performance - the familiar experience of a capable student who "goes blank" despite knowing the material.
This isn't simply nerves. When the brain appraises an exam as a threat, the amygdala triggers two stress responses: a fast one (adrenaline, via the sympathetic nervous system) and a slower one (cortisol, via the HPA axis). Cortisol directly impairs the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus - the very structures handling working memory and retrieval.
This is the biological mechanism behind the blank mind.

Speakers

Amanda Clegg

Science and Leadership Consultant, AKC Educational Consultancy

With over 30 years as a teacher and senior leader, I'm passionate about transforming science education through high-quality practical work, team leadership, bespoke cpd and coaching that makes a real difference.
I thrive on mentoring educators to reach their full potential—watch... Read More →

Karen Collins

Educational Consultant, Apogee Education, Learning and Development

@kcoscience

Saturday January 9, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT
LH321 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Assessment
Key Stage / Audience Type 7-11, 14-16, 11-14, Post-16, Teacher Developers

08:45 GMT

Research Meet (1)

Saturday January 9, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT

LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

Research provides a means for exploring teaching and learning in classrooms and other contexts, with some studies suggesting new ways of working. Every year many science education Masters, PhD and EdD students develop an expertise in a specific area of science education which can provide useful insights into how science works in the classroom. Come along to this session to hear a range of findings arising from a number of these studies and join in discussions for those that interest you.

Speakers

Alastair Gittner

Teacher and Chair of ASE Research Committee, Hallam Teaching School Alliance

Saturday January 9, 2027 08:45 - 09:40 GMT
LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Research
Key Stage / Audience Type Researchers, 0-4, 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, FE/Skills, Post-16, Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Early Career Teachers

09:55 GMT

Photosynthesis & respiration – place in science curriculum - misconceptions

Saturday January 9, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT

LH115 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Photosynthesis and respiration are the chemical reactions that enable solar energy to fuel life on this planet. Photosynthesis is also where almost all living substances start their life.

• The energy pathway from solar to respiration underpins life on earth
• It helps students understand the origin of fossil fuels and our climate concerns
• It is made far too complex and complicated when part of the biology curriculum
• I argue that they need a place in the chemistry and physics curriculum not only in biology.

I have written and produced many resources to help students understand the associated physics (energy) and chemistry, which address misconceptions and simplify what are very complex biochemical pathways:

• FuseSchool short video which has had half a million views https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XIyweZg6Sw
• SSR articles
https://www.ase.org.uk/resources/school-science-review/issue-382/model-respiration-and-photosynthesis-in-which-oxygen-plays
https://www.ase.org.uk/resources/school-science-review/issue-349/fuel-and-food-are-not-made-energy-constructive-view

• Science issues resource. Www.scienceissues.org.uk
The talk will start with some questions teachers can use on their students to identify misconceptions. Participants will discuss their ideas in pairs (“Tell Each Other”)

I will show the FuseSchool Video and my simple “stretched oxides” photosynthesis model together with this very simple global diagram to show cross-curricular importance. [Can't attach pictue - it shows the degradation ove energy from sunlight to waste heat driving the cycling of matter: fuel+oxygen = carbon dioxide + water

We then debate how we can give these reactions more importance in future science curricula, linking it all with the need to help students understand the science behind climate change (specifically the origin of the extra carbon dioxide we are putting into the atmosphere).

Speakers

Keith Ross

Science Teacher Developer, Science Issues

Saturday January 9, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT
LH115 (Learning Hub Level 1)

11-19

Theme Curriculum (General), Sustainability climate change and environmental issues
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 14-16, Initial Teacher Educators

09:55 GMT

Panel: Big Followings, Real Learning: A Q&A With Science Educators Who Reach Millions

Saturday January 9, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT

Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

We've all seen it: the student who can't focus for ten minutes in class will happily watch twenty or thirty science videos in a row on their phones.

Online science education has grown into a high-quality, mainstream part of how young people learn, sitting alongside the classroom rather than at its edges, and the best creators are now among the most influential science educators in the country. So what do they know that those in the classroom can borrow?

This session, chaired by Dave Allen, brings together some of the most successful science educators working on YouTube, TikTok and beyond for an open Q&A. Ask them how they grab and hold attention, turn a tricky topic into something memorable, and keep the science accurate under the pressure of the feed. It's a practical, honest conversation about the craft of engagement, the quality of learning that online education can deliver, and what genuinely transfers from a phone screen to a classroom.

Speakers

Stuart Naismith

Primary Teacher / Advisor, STEM with Mr N

I am Teacher of Innovation at Kelvinside Academy, a STEM educator and creator of STEM with Mr N, through which I have created hundreds of freely available STEM education videos and resources for teachers, children and families. Having spent most of my career as a primary classroom... Read More →

David Allen

Associate Professor Learning and Teaching / Outgoing Chair of the ASE 25/26, University of Hertfordshire & Creative Primary Science Education Consultancy

Saturday January 9, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT
Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Using AI and technologies in teaching and learning
Key Stage / Audience Type 0-4, 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, International, Post-16, Researchers, Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers, Technicians
Social media handle(s) @theASE

09:55 GMT

Research Meet (2)

Saturday January 9, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT

LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

Speakers

Alastair Gittner

Teacher and Chair of ASE Research Committee, Hallam Teaching School Alliance

Saturday January 9, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT
LH324 (Learning Hub Level 3 lab-type space)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Research
Key Stage / Audience Type Researchers, 0-4, 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, FE/Skills, Post-16, Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Early Career Teachers

09:55 GMT

Staying human in the science learning loop (AI Fairness)

Saturday January 9, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT

LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Is Generative AI fair for all science learners? The Department for Education names supporting personalised learning as a use case for generative AI in education, while warning that generative AI content can be inaccurate, biased or out of context. Science teachers carry responsibility for managing diversity, equity, inclusion and supporting identity formation in their classrooms. Generative AI is now sits inside that responsibility, often invisibly, as it infers things about students from their names, work, vocabulary and interests.

This accessible session widens the conversation from bias to fairness, looking at how generative AI shapes aspects such as cognitive challenge, assessment, the language and the framing different students encounter in their science learning. Building on research presented at ASE in 2026 (Hedlund, 2025) and on ongoing work into bias and fairness through names and assessment, the session turns research into practical guidance for science classrooms across all phases.

The session is built around being the informed human in the science learning loop. You will explore what to watch for, the quick wins that improve fairness, the mitigated prompts and processes that change what generative AI gives to your students, and how to model critical generative AI use to the students you teach. The session is pitched for a range of confidence levels with generative AI, and is grounded throughout in the realities of the science classroom.

Outcomes

Delegates will be able to:
• Recognise when generative AI is inferring student identity and changing science output as a result.
• Use specific strategies, prompts and processes that support fair generative AI use in their classroom.
• Model critical generative AI use to their students as part of wider digital literacy in the new Curriculum.
• Discuss the fairness implications of generative AI in science learning with colleagues, leaders and students.

Speakers

Victoria Hedlund

AI bias researcher, consultant and founder, Gen Ed Labs

Saturday January 9, 2027 09:55 - 10:50 GMT
LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Using AI and technologies in teaching and learning
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 0-4, 5-7, 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, FE/Skills, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators

10:50 GMT

Chair Chat

Saturday January 9, 2027 10:50 - 11:15 GMT

Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

Speakers

David Allen

Associate Professor Learning and Teaching / Outgoing Chair of the ASE 25/26, University of Hertfordshire & Creative Primary Science Education Consultancy

Claire Seeley (MA CSciTeach)

Primary Science Education Consultant / Co-Chair of the ASE

Emily Perry

Professor of Education, Manchester Metropolitan University

Natasha Serret

Associate Professor of Science Education, Nottingham Trent University

Saturday January 9, 2027 10:50 - 11:15 GMT
Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Assessment, Curriculum (General), Curriculum Change in England, Inclusion and Diversity including SEND, Leadership, Practical work including beyond the classroom, Recruitment Retention and Wellbeing, Research, Subject knowledge & pedagogy, Sustainability climate c
Key Stage / Audience Type 0-4, 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, International, Post-16, Researchers, Teacher Developers, Technicians, Trainee Teachers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

11:15 GMT

From recruitment to retention - supporting international physics teachers in England

Saturday January 9, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT

LH321 (Learning Hub Level 3)

This session focuses on the latest findings and recommendations from ASE’s International Science Teachers project, supported by the Gatsby Foundation

Speakers

Marianne Cutler

Director of Curriculum Innovation, Association for Science Education

Rob Butler

Registrar, Association for Science Education

Saturday January 9, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT
LH321 (Learning Hub Level 3)

11-19

Theme Research, Recruitment Retention and Wellbeing
Key Stage / Audience Type 11-14, 14-16, International, Researchers, Advisors/Consultants, Initial Teacher Educators, Teacher Developers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

11:15 GMT

Developing authentic enquiry in primary science (White Rose Education)

Saturday January 9, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT

LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

This session explores how inquiry-based learning (IBL) in primary science can move beyond procedural or “pseudo” inquiry towards authentic inquiry where children genuinely hold epistemic authority within the classroom.

Drawing on an ongoing PhD study at the University of Cambridge Faculty of Education alongside practical classroom implementation using White Rose Science resources, the session will examine the relationship between teacher identity, working scientifically and pupil voice in primary science.

Recent national conversations have highlighted that while substantive knowledge is increasingly secure, disciplinary knowledge and authentic scientific inquiry remain underdeveloped. In many classrooms, children are still receiving science rather than actively doing science. This session argues that the challenge is not simply a lack of resources or curriculum structure, but a teacher identity issue.

The session will share findings from collaborative Lesson Study cycles conducted in a Year 4 classroom with a high proportion of EAL learners. The research focuses on how teachers interpret classroom moments such as silence, misconceptions, uncertainty and pupil struggle, and how those interpretations shape whether pupils are positioned as passive recipients of knowledge or active participants in scientific meaning-making.

Participants will explore the distinction between transmission teaching, pseudo-IBL and authentic IBL, considering how subtle teacher responses can either open or close epistemic space for children. Practical examples from science lessons will demonstrate how small shifts in teacher behaviour, such as allowing productive silence, redirecting questions back to pupils and encouraging peer-to-peer scientific discussion, can significantly increase student voice and disciplinary engagement while still working within existing curriculum structures.

Practical examples from a Year 4 science classroom will illustrate a clear inquiry-based lesson structure centred on recurring working scientifically skills. Lessons begin with recap activities and image stimuli that encourage children to notice, wonder and connect prior knowledge. Throughout the lesson, pupils repeatedly apply the same scientific skill in different contexts while teachers observe carefully for misconceptions, uncertainty and participation, using these observations to shape shared anchor charts and individual science journal entries. Exit passes are then used to assess developing understanding.

The session argues that this approach depends on teachers being confident in holding epistemic space for pupils, a confidence developed through collaborative Lesson Study and identity-focused professional reflection. Delegates will leave with practical, manageable strategies for collaborative planning, observation and reflection that can be implemented immediately in classrooms and schools.

Whilst this session is proposed by White Rose Education, this session is not promoting White Rose Science, and is focussing on the PhD research. This is not a funded initiative. The PhD researcher is a WRS customer and we are supporting him in his research.

Speakers

Daniel Kechoud

Year 4 Teacher, Science Lead and PhD Candidate, Wolf Fields Primary School / University of Cambridge

Dan Breeze

Head of Primary Science, White Rose Education

Sponsors

White Rose Education

Saturday January 9, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT
LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

Primary

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type 5-7, 7-11, Researchers, Teacher Developers

11:15 GMT

Keynote: Authentic scientific inquiry in school science: Learning from the history and philosophy of science

Saturday January 9, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT

Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

Inquiry-based learning is difficult to put into practice when we are teaching scientific content that is well-known and indisputable. If teachers already have the correct answers, why should students bother trying to find them out for themselves? Drawing from the history of science can help us find interesting questions that today’s mainstream science does not address and does not have ready answers to. I will illustrate this through examples taken from my previous and current work, including the anomalous boiling of water and the puzzle over the workings of the Voltaic battery. Taking inspiration from John Dewey, I focus on the experience of student. How can we help students have a true experience of science, both in experiencing natural phenomena and experiencing scientific inquiry? Dealing with phenomena that deviate from textbook descriptions can allow students to experience nature truly for themselves. Puzzling over how to make sense of such phenomena can give them the experience of actual scientific inquiry.

My discussion in this talk is part of a general attempt to enhance the interaction between science education and the history and philosophy of science (HPS). Despite great efforts by Michael Matthews, Douglas Allchin and others, HPS remains on the fringes of science education, and science education is not a major concern in mainstream HPS. This is a lamentable situation. On the side of philosophy of science, there is obvious potential for engagement with the teaching of the nature of science. From the history of science, I think the most promising contribution is to help students (and teachers) realise that respected past scientists have investigated nature in different ways from what we are now accustomed to, and that there is value in revisiting these alternative approaches.

Speakers

Hasok Chang

Professor, Dept of History and Philosophy of Science, University of Cambridge

Hasok Chang is the Hans Rausing Professor of History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Cambridge. He received his degrees from Caltech and Stanford, and has taught at University College London.

He is the author of Inventing Temperature: Measurement and Scientific Pro... Read More →

Saturday January 9, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT
Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type International, Teacher Developers, Researchers, 5-7, 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, FE/Skills, Post-16, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

11:15 GMT

Using AI effectively to reduce workload - A realistic perspective

Saturday January 9, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT

LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

This interactive workshop will give you a grounded, practical exploration of how AI can support workload reduction without creating additional stress, unrealistic expectations, or dependence on technology.

You will explore real examples of where AI can save time, including planning support, summarising information, drafting routine communications, adapting content for different audiences, generating starting points for resources, and reducing repetitive administrative tasks. Through discussion and short practical activities, you will consider how to evaluate when AI is genuinely useful, when it may be inefficient, and where caution is needed.

A key focus will be on critical use rather than blind adoption. You will consider issues such as accuracy, bias, safeguarding, privacy, and the importance of maintaining professional oversight.

Designed for educators and professionals who are curious about AI but want realistic, manageable approaches rather than technical deep dives or exaggerated claims, this session will leave you with practical ideas, increased confidence, and a clearer understanding of how AI can support, but not replace professional expertise.

Following this session, participants hopefully will be able to:

* Identify appropriate tasks where AI may reduce workload effectively.
* Critically evaluate whether AI is the right tool for a specific task.
* Apply simple AI-supported strategies to improve efficiency in planning, communication, and organisation.
* Recognise common risks and limitations when using AI in professional settings.
* Use AI more intentionally, ethically, and with clearer professional boundaries.
* Trial at least one realistic AI workflow within their own practice.

Speakers

Joanna Pellereau

PGCE Course Science Lead, Warwick University Centre for Teacher Education

Having been a physics teacher and Head of Department for over a decade, I am now Physics PGCE lead and a teaching fellow at the Centre for Teacher Education at the University of Warwick. I also take on freelance work and have supported OUP with the Kerboodle resources for the new... Read More →

Saturday January 9, 2027 11:15 - 12:10 GMT
LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Using AI and technologies in teaching and learning, Research, Recruitment Retention and Wellbeing
Key Stage / Audience Type Researchers, Teacher Developers, 0-4, 5-7, 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, FE/Skills, Technicians, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators, Advisors/Consultants

12:25 GMT

Beyond the formula: Teaching molar relationships using proportionality (White Rose Education)

Saturday January 9, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT

LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

This workshop challenges teachers to rethink how molar relationships are introduced and taught. Moving beyond the traditional reliance on formulae such as moles = mass ÷ Mr and moles = concentration × volume, it presents a more intuitive, proportional based approach aligned with mathematical reasoning.

Participants will explore how teaching mole calculations through proportional relationships can deepen conceptual understanding, reduce cognitive load and improve student confidence in tackling quantitative chemistry problems. By connecting chemistry more explicitly with familiar mathematical strategies, this approach supports learners in making sense of problems rather than memorising procedures.

Designed for both early career and experienced teachers, the session will provide practical classroom strategies, worked examples, and opportunities to reflect on current practice. Delegates will leave equipped with adaptable methods to enhance student understanding and attainment.

Speakers

David Fairclough

Secondary Science Specialist, White Rose Education

Sponsors

White Rose Education

Saturday January 9, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT
LH322 (Learning Hub Level 3)

11-19

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type Early Career Teachers, Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers, 14-16

12:25 GMT

Decolonising primary science: examples, research and next steps

Saturday January 9, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT

LH113 (Learning Hub Level 1)

The aim of this session is to support teachers in applying a decolonial lens to their primary science teaching practice. It will encourage participants to explore parallel ways of knowing and to acknowledge how colonial legacies continue to shape our current education systems. We will demonstrate how to link historical and indigenous epistemologies to Western understanding and applications of science and suggest how these ideas can be taught concurrently.

Concrete classroom and whole‑school examples of this approach will be shared, alongside discussion of their impact on children’s attitudes, beliefs and engagement with science. In addition, the session will disseminate evidence from our research into the use of generative artificial intelligence in identifying and producing resources to support teaching through a decolonial lens.

We will start with an introduction for the need to decolonise the primary science curriculum and an overview of what this entails, and discuss tried and tested classroom and whole‑school examples. We will also include a review of research into how GenAI can be used to source specific materials for this approach and offer delegates an opportunity to trial GenAI prompts to source materials, ending with a brief Q&A.

Speakers

Danielle Oudomvilay

Classroom Teacher and Science Subject Lead, Bevington Primary School

Alex Sinclair

Associate Professor; Primary Science Course Lead; Ex Co-Chair of ASE (23/24), St Mary's University, Twickenham

I am Associate Professor and Primary Science Lead for the Initial Teacher Education programmes at St Mary’s University, Twickenham. As a member of the Primary Science Curriculum Advisory Group (PCAG) I was involved in producing the Framework for a Future Primary Science Curriculum... Read More →

Saturday January 9, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT
LH113 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Primary

Theme Inclusion and Diversity including SEND
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Initial Teacher Educators

12:25 GMT

Frontier Science: Exploring Mars

Saturday January 9, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT

LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

I have explored Mars with the Curiosity Rover, orbiters and Martian meteorites.

This talks summarises how we have reached a new understanding about the evolution of Mars and its Habitable, ‘Warm and Wet’ ancient past, and how we plan to continue exploring Mars with new missions – robotic and human.

Speakers

John C Bridges SFHEA

Professor / Planetary Scientist, University of Leicester School of Physics and Astronomy

Saturday January 9, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT
LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Frontier Science
Key Stage / Audience Type 5-7, 11-14, 14-16, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, Early Career Teachers, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, International, Post-16, Researchers, Teacher Developers, Trainee Teachers, Technicians

12:25 GMT

Relax and unwind with 3 short films on nature

Saturday January 9, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT

Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

Join us to relax and unwind during lunchtime at the ASE Annual Conference. Enjoy three stunning short films showcasing fascinating wildlife and their ecosystems.

‘The Caretakers’ is a journey into the weird, wonderful and truly astonishing lives of the small yet mighty creatures who keep the world turning – beetles. They have been successful for millions of years, but they’re in serious trouble; what does the future hold for these incredibly important animals, and for us if they disappear? 21 minutes. Director – Tom Hanner

‘Creatures of the Kaleidoscope’ Explore one of natures most magical creatures, the Cuttlefish. Embark on a mesmerising journey of nature’s living kaleidoscopes. Follow these elusive creatures as this documentary delves deep into the extraordinary lives of these remarkable cephalopods, see their unique abilities as they morph into a stunning array of colours and shapes in a blink of an eye. Witness the incredible transformation from vulnerable prey to cunning predators, navigating the vast oceans ever changing surroundings and dangers. 18 minutes. Director – Hannah Jodie Alexander

‘Fascinating World of Wood Ants’ This film visualizes the lifecycle of Wood Ants and emphasizes their vital ecological role in the ecosystem. It showcases their journey, social dynamics, and ecological contributions, highlighting the importance of preserving their habitats in the face of environmental challenges. 11 minutes. Director – Siddique Salim Khan

These short films are kindly made available for viewing at ASE’s Annual Conference through ASE’s long-standing collaboration with the Museo de Ciencias of the Universidad de Navarra.

Speakers

Marie Ann Reynell

Director of Development, Museo de Ciencias, Universidad de Navarra (Science Museum, University of Navarra)

Saturday January 9, 2027 12:25 - 13:20 GMT
Leathersellers Hide (Learning Hub Level 4)

14:45 GMT

Curriculum Change in England for KS1 to KS4

Saturday January 9, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT

LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

Join the team working with the Department for Education to develop the reformed Science Programmes of Study in England and GCSEs subject content as we outline the priorities and evidence underpinning the drafting process. This session focuses on KS3 and KS4 plus transition from KS2 and KS1.

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

Speakers

Marianne Cutler

Director of Curriculum Innovation, Association for Science Education

Lauren McLeod

Head of Education Policy, Royal Society of Biology

Lauren joined the Royal Society of Biology as Head of Education Policy in July 2017. Previously she has worked on gender projects, including Opening Doors, and higher education projects as part of the education team at the Institute of Physics, and as a science teacher in North L... Read More →

Rachel Hartley

Pedagogy and Professional Practice Strategic Lead, Institute of Physics

Laura Daly

Programme Manager, Education Policy, Royal Society of Chemistry

Saturday January 9, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT
LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Curriculum Change in England, Leadership
Key Stage / Audience Type 5-7, 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, Advisors/Consultants, Initial Teacher Educators, Teacher Developers
Social media handle(s) @theASE

14:45 GMT

The best of Science on Stage 2026

Saturday January 9, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT

LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

The biennial Science on Stage Festival took place in Klaipeda, Lithuania in May 2026.

The Science on Stage Festival brings together hundreds of teachers from across Europe and beyond to share and innovate strategies for teaching science at all levels, from early years through primary to secondary. In this session, members of the Science on Stage delegation which represented the UK at the Festival will describe and demonstrate some of the best bits from Klaipeda.

This session is being co-ordinated and chaired by Stuart Farmer, Chair of the Science on Stage UK National Steering Committee, along with some of those representing the UK in Klaipeda.

Speakers

Stuart Farmer

Learning and Skills Manager, IOP and Perimeter Institute

Becky Parker MBE

Director (Project Earth) / Physics Teacher / Visiting Professor (School of Physics and Astronomy), Queen Mary University of London

[email protected]
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/projectearthhq/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ProjectEarthHQ
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/project-earth-global/
My LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/becky-parker424... Read More →

Maren Kelly

Head of STEM, St Catherine's Prep School

Peter Munroe

Head of Chemistry, Uckfield College

Simon Poliakoff

Physics teacher and Lead Practitioner Teaching and Learning, The Priory School Hitchin

Over the last few years whilst working as a physics teacher Simon has created sets of ideas for teaching physics organised by topic area which are shared freely on a Creative Commons non-commercial licence via the www.teachphysics.org website. The aim has been to bring together practical... Read More →

Rose Edmondson

Teacher of science and geography, Falinge Park School

Alex Black

Council Member, Lets Think Forum

Saturday January 9, 2027 14:45 - 15:40 GMT
LH323 (Learning Hub Level 3)

Suitable for All key stages

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type 0-4, 11-14, 14-16, 5-7, 7-11, Advisors/Consultants, FE/Skills, Initial Teacher Educators, International, Post-16, Early Career Teachers, Trainee Teachers, Teacher Developers, Researchers

15:55 GMT

There is another way: Learning lessons on behaviour from AP

Saturday January 9, 2027 15:55 - 16:50 GMT

LH127 (Learning Hub Level 1)

This session will explore alternatives to mainstream behaviour management policies, by drawing from examples in an alternative provision setting. The session will challenge the traditional rewards and sanctions system and the use of detentions by showing how these systems fail to engage pupils in education in a meaningful way and ultimately leads to harm to all students, but particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds and those with SEND. It will then explore an alternative approach, using genuinely trauma-informed practice and instilling an intrinsic engagement in learning. We will cover our approach and what can and cannot be easily applied in a mainstream setting.

Outcomes:
Participants should gain:
- an understanding of how and why the current paradigm of behaviour management is not appropriate for a range of learners
An ability to challenge standard approaches to behaviour.
- knowledge of alternative approaches from AP settings and how these can be used to transform behaviour management and policy in mainstream settings

Background: This session is based on our experiences working in an alternative provision setting for the past 4 years...

- at the 2026 Conference, many people Matthew spoke to were interested in our setting’s unique approach to behaviour, specifically the lack of any sanctions or rewards system, and how we successfully educate pupils who have been unable to engage in mainstream, including those who have been permanently excluded.

- this session combines Matthew’s insight as a science teacher and Elijah’s MEd research. It will consider classroom approaches but will also address broader issues and themes in education and will hopefully be of interest to a range of audiences.

- those in leadership positions will have more opportunity to implement school-wide structural changes, but I hope that those in standard teaching roles will also gain from the session and be able to adapt their own practice within the confines of a wider school policy.

Speakers

Matthew Axbey (they/them)

Manager of ICT, Data, Exams, and Assessment Team, Malden Oaks School & Tuition Service

Elijah Wisken

Teacher of SEN, Rivers Academy West London

Saturday January 9, 2027 15:55 - 16:50 GMT
LH127 (Learning Hub Level 1)

11-19

Theme Inclusion and Diversity including SEND
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 11-14, 14-16, Post-16, Initial Teacher Educators, Advisors/Consultants

15:55 GMT

Collaborative professional learning in primary science practical activities

Saturday January 9, 2027 15:55 - 16:50 GMT

LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

This session focuses on a 5 year research and development project SCIENCE NINJAS that CLEAPSS and King's College London undertook with teachers in primary schools. It will chart the developmental journey we took in framing and adapting the professional learning work that we undertook with primary teachers, across KS1&2, as they explored and experimented with both increasing the amount of practical activities they did with their classes and how they focused in on the teaching and assessment decisions they needed to take to support science learning through practical work.

This project was built on a collaborative approach with classroom teachers, CLEAPSS teacher educators and researchers from King's. Each of these groups has benefitted greatly in their knowledge, understanding and skills required to ensure practical activities in primary not only engage children but help them learn science. In our talk we will report on how science NINJA leads from the research schools have perceived the impact of the project on their children, their teachers and themselves and what they have found beneficial and tricky in steering the professional learning during this project.

This will be topped with reflections from the CLEAPSS and King's team. So come along and have a taste; we promise their will be delights as well as treats to take back to your own classroom or share with interested colleagues.

Speakers

Lucy Wood

Kings College London

Chris Harrison

Professor of Science Education, King’s College London

Maria Pack

Primary Science Consultant, CLEAPSS

Jason Harding

Primary Section Leader, CLEAPSS

Saturday January 9, 2027 15:55 - 16:50 GMT
LH013 & LH014 (Learning Hub Ground Floor)

Primary

Theme Practical work including beyond the classroom
Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 5-7, 7-11, Initial Teacher Educators

15:55 GMT

Dialogic teaching -a new CPD resource for primary science

Saturday January 9, 2027 15:55 - 16:50 GMT

LH113 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Join ASE and our partner, University of York Science Education Group, for the launch of our Dialogic Teaching in Primary Schools MOOC.

This resource is supported by the Templeton World Charity Foundation as part of ASE’s Sustaining the Impact of Big Questions in Classrooms in Science Education initiative

Speakers

Marianne Cutler

Director of Curriculum Innovation, Association for Science Education

Peter Fairhurst

Research Fellow, University of York Science Education Group

I am a research fellow at the University of York where, in addition to empirical research, the focus of my work is the translation of research-evidence into classroom resources that support students' learning of science through the development of teachers' research-informed pract... Read More →

Saturday January 9, 2027 15:55 - 16:50 GMT
LH113 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Primary

Theme Subject knowledge & pedagogy
Key Stage / Audience Type 7-11, Initial Teacher Educators, Teacher Developers

15:55 GMT

A framework for fostering scientific argumentation: Enhanced (CASE)

Saturday January 9, 2027 15:55 - 16:50 GMT

LH124 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Participants will experience a series of short science-learning episodes designed to model how prediction and the five CASE pillars can foster effective scientific argumentation. Through carefully structured dialogic activities, participants will discuss scientific contexts, make and justify predictions, evaluate competing explanations and reflect on the pedagogical moves that support productive classroom talk.

The session will briefly introduce the theoretical foundations of CASE and the role of prediction in generating cognitive conflict and conceptual engagement. Participants will then work collaboratively through classroom examples that demonstrate how prediction tasks can stimulate reasoning, evidence-based discussion and metacognitive reflection.

Throughout the session, participants will analyse how teacher questioning, social interaction and task design contribute to an environment where scientific argumentation can flourish. Time will also be provided for reflection and action planning so participants can consider how these approaches could transfer to their own contexts.

Background: Scientific argumentation is increasingly regaining recognition as central to high-quality science education, yet many classrooms still struggle to move beyond short-answer recall or teacher-led questioning. This workshop explores how prediction, when deliberately integrated within the CASE framework, can help create conditions in which students are more willing to articulate, defend and reconsider their thinking.
The conditions that researchers such as Osborne, Kuhn and Erduran have insisted are necessary for successful argumentation will be explored in relation to the CASE pedagogy.

The way that eliciting predictions and explanations creates a classroom culture for dialogic teaching to flourish will be demonstrated throughout the presentation. The presenter has developed and refined approaches that combine the established CASE pillars with explicit prediction routines to encourage deeper reasoning and richer pupil talk. The session is informed by research into cognitive conflict, social construction of understanding and the role of exploratory discussion in science education.

Speakers

Alex Black

Council Member, Lets Think Forum

Natasha Serret

Associate Professor of Science Education, Nottingham Trent University

Saturday January 9, 2027 15:55 - 16:50 GMT
LH124 (Learning Hub Level 1)

Suitable for All key stages

Key Stage / Audience Type Teacher Developers, 5-7, 7-11, 11-14, 14-16, Initial Teacher Educators