August 6, 2014
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National 5 Sciences Resource Guides

Education Scotland’s Sciences have posted resources guides for Biology, Chemistry and Physics on the Sciences Glow 365 site. These guides, similar to those created for Higher, maps useful resources to key areas within the SQA’s course and unit support notes. Guides can be found in the appropriate subject folder. Use the hashtags for more updates into your Glow newsfeed or set alerts for these updates to appear in your glow inbox. These guides are part of the increasing number of resources found on the NQ Higher Sciences Site , the NQ course materials Glow portal and the Sciences Glow 365 site

August 2, 2014
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Gender imbalance in the Universities and Colleges of Scotland

Education Secretary Michael Russell has raised concerns that there is a gender imbalance in Scotland’s colleges and universities, with too few women holding senior positions.

The problem appears to be most prevalent within the physics, maths and computer technology departments.

Mr Russell has suggested this issue be addressed as a priority with solutions, such as Universities and Colleges becoming more family orientated working environments to attract women into senior positions, a possibility.

Science must also be given the priority it deserves in school, starting in primary school, to encourage and enthuse girls into the sector.

Read the full article:

http://www.heraldscotland.com/comment/herald-view/plotting-course-on-a-gender-balance.24908897

July 31, 2014
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Languages and STEM skills, opening doors!

SCILT, Scotland’s National Centre for Languages, is working with businesses and schools in Scotland to promote languages as a key skill for employment.

Operating effectively in a global economy relies on many skills and includes the right language skills. People who can communicate, at least conversationally, can make all the difference in the conduct of business, consolidating relationships with existing suppliers and customers and opening the way to new overseas contacts. When combined with STEM skills, the career opportunities in a vast array of sectors widens.

Key facts from the CBI Education and Skills Survey 2013

Seven out of ten (70%) businesses value foreign language skills among their employees

French(49%) and German(45%) are the leading languages in demand, but those geared to businesses in China feature increasingly prominently – of those valuing staff with foreign language skills, 28% value Manderin and 16% Cantonese
STEM skills are in high demand and nearly two in five firms (39%) are having difficulties recruiting staff. 41% expect this to persist over the next three years
Shortages of STEM qualified technicians (29%) and graduates (26%) are widespread among firms in engineering, hi-tech/IT and science areas
Businesses recognise that they have a key role in encouraging more young people to study STEM subjects, enthusing young people about STEM (55%) and working with Universities to ensure the business relevance of the course (50%).

Read about people who have combined their STEM and language skills in the pharmaceutical industry, technologies and the Scottish Football Association and find out why they consider that learning a language is really important.

http://www.scilt.org.uk/Business/Jobprofilesandcareers/tabid/2867/Default.aspx

July 30, 2014
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Education Scotland Sciences Conversation Days Summary

Following the publication of the updated Sciences 3-18 Curriculum Impact Report, Education Scotland hosted a series of conversation days to engage stakeholders in discussions around the findings of the report and to collectively identify priorities for action to secure improvements in science education nationally.

The first of four conversations took place in December 2012 in Denholm House, Livingstone, followed by a further two during June 2013 at Bishopbriggs Academy and Millburn Academy, with the final conversation taking place in Bucksburn Academy on 12th December 2013.

Education Scotland collated the responses from each event and produced blogs for our CfE Learning and Stem Central in Motion sites to disseminate the findings across Scotland and provide opportunity for those who were unable to attend to give their views.

We have now collated the responses from all four conversation days and produced a summary document, which highlights the key themes to emerge and details the views and suggestions of the delegates in attendance.

To download a copy: EducationScotland Science Conversation Days, Summary

Education Scotland is keen to hear your views. Click on the title of this blog post to leave a comment.

July 25, 2014
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First Lego League World Class Challenge August 26th 2014

FIRST LEGO League is a robotics program for 9 to16 year olds designed to get young learners interested in and enthsed by science and technology — and teach them valuable employment and life skills.

It can be used in the classroom or teams, composed of up to ten children with at least one adult coach, can come from a club or organisation who just want to participate in a challenge.

In First Lego League learners need to think like scientists and engineers as they programme a robot (using the LEGO® MINDSTORMS® robot set) to score points, devising a solution to a problem as part of their project, all while being guided by the FLL Core Values.

These three elements – the Robot Game, Project, and FLL Core Values – make up the Challenge.

Registration will open soon for the 2014 First Lego League World Class Challenge, What is the future of learning? exploring how we gather knowledge and develop skills in the 21^st Century.

For more information: http://www.firstlegoleague.org/mission/support#sthash.PAN7FUy8.dpuf

July 23, 2014
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Successful launch for UK space missions

On 8th July, a Soyuz rocket successfully launched two UK built cubesats: UKube-1 and TechDemoSat-1.

Cubesats are small satellites – normally about the size of a fridge – packed with scientific instruments.

UKube-1 is the UK Space Agency’s first cubesat mission. It is a collaboration between the UK Space Agency, industry and academia. The instruments on board include the first GPS device aimed at measuring plasmaspheric space weather; a camera that will take images of the Earth and test the effect of radiation on space hardware; an experiment to demonstrate the feasibility of using cosmic radiation to improve the security of communications satellites and flight test lower cost electronic systems; and FUNcube 2 – an educational project designed to engage and inspire school pupils.

The FUNcube payload consists of a tiny radio transmitter for science education and a materials science experiment from which school students can receive data which can be compared to results obtained from similar reference experiments in the classroom.

TechDemoSat (TDS-1) will carry no less than eight payloads plus a mixture of heritage and new product development systems from Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. This satellite includes a cosmic ray detector built by students at Simon Langton Grammar School, in Kent. LUCID, The Langton Ultimate Cosmic ray Intensity Detector, was developed by the students at the school after a trip to CERN. The LUCID experiment is part of a wider project called CERN@school , a programme that aims to bring the excitement of CERN into the classroom, and encourage the future generation of scientists

July 18, 2014
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Higgs Prize winners visit CERN

The Higgs Prize is awarded on merit to two pupils from a publicly-funded school who have shown outstanding performance in the Advanced Higher Physics exam.

Established in recognition of the impact Nobel Physics Prize winner Professor Higgs’ theoretical work has had on modern day particle physics, it aims to reward and inspire Scotland’s best young school physicists.

The first ever winners of the award were announced last December and have just returned from their prize winning visit to CERN.

Lucy Willets-White, who is now studying Physics at Imperial College, London and Peter Rhodes, who is about to begin his medical studies also at Imperial College joined undergraduates on the CERN Summer Student Programme.

The prize winners’ views can be read in Issue 46 of the CERN newsletter.

Further information regarding next year’s Higgs Prize will follow shortly.

July 18, 2014
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The Royal Institute – fun, easy ways to do exciting science at home

ExpeRimental is a new series of free short films that make it fun, easy and cheap to do science at home with children aged four to ten. Ignite a child’s natural curiosity and explore, question and test some of the fundamentals of science with a variety of hands-on exciting activities!

ExpeRimental Bringing Science Home

July 18, 2014
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ASPIRES awarded further funding by the ESRC

The ASPIRES study, tracked the development of young people’s science and career
aspirations from age 10-14.
The first ASPIRES Project has now ended but the ESRC has awarded further funding to continue their research for the next five years.
ASPIRES 2 will continue this tracking over the crucial next five years of the young people’s lives, to understand the changing influences of the family, school, careers education and social identities and inequalities on young people’s science and career aspirations and, crucially, relate these to their actual subject choices and attainment in national examinations and their post-16 choices. This tracking of young people’s aspirations and educational outcomes comprises the crucial ‘final link’ in the longitudinal project,
and will have strong bearing on educational policy and practice.

ASPIRES 2 aims to investigate:
1. How are student educational and occupational aspirations formed, and how do they change, over time?
2. How are subject choices and (GCSE) attainment related to aspirations, and how are these patterned over time?
3. How are aspirations shaped by families and schools (including experiences of school science and careers education)?
4. How are aspirations shaped by gender, class and ethnic identities?
5. How can findings be translated for stakeholder audiences, specifically for policy-makers/ intermediaries, teachers, students and parents/families

The final report of the ASPIRES Project is available online

July 16, 2014
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Dams to Darnley Environmental Education Pack

Young learners from Crookfur Primary School, East Renfrewshire and Cleeves Primary, Glasgow, have helped launch the new Dams to Darnley Environmental Education Pack.

The pack, which has been written by Countryside Ranger Eilidh Milne, is structured around Curriculum for Excellence and provides lesson plans and ideas for countryside ranger-led activities in Dams to Darnley and school grounds. It also includes lesson plans for outdoor learning activities for teachers, either within the country park, school grounds or local green space.

The pack can be downloaded at www.damstodarnley.org/pack and there will be a limited number of additional printed copies available on request.

Dams to Darnley Country Park is a partnership project between East Renfrewshire Council and Glasgow City Council.