j holman-keynote speech-scientix-conference
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Sir John Holman, University of York, UK: Science Education: critical for Europe's FutureKeynote speech of the Scientix European Conference, 6-8 May 2011, Brussels, BelgiumTRANSCRIPT
Science education: critical for Europe’s future
John HolmanUniversity of York, UK
Science and art belong to the whole world, and before them vanish the barriers of nationality.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
International seminar on teaching evolution, National Science Learning Centre, 2009
The National Science Learning Centre, York
Mission for the Science Learning Centres
To inspire a new generation of scientists by inspiring their teachers
by securing and updating subject knowledge and extending teaching skills
Outline of my talk
1. Why is science education so important?
2. The critical factors in science education
3. The right curriculum
4. The right pedagogy
5. The right assessment
6. The most important thing of all
Outline of my talk
1. Why is science education so important?
2. The critical factors in science education
3. The right curriculum
4. The right pedagogy
5. The right assessment
6. The most important thing of all
Ferranti Mercury computer (1960s)
Moore’s Law
Computing power doubles every 18 months
Sickle Cell Disease
A single error in the DNA molecule causes a single error in the haemoglobin protein chain, which results in a very serious blood disease.
ScienceTechnologyEngineeringMathematics
TechnologyEngineeringMathematics
EngineeringMathematics
Mathematics
S T E M inside the classroom
STEM outside the classroom
Europe needs scientists (1)
By 2020 there will be 20 million high-skilled and 30 million medium-skilled jobs using STEM in Europe.
EUN
Europe needs scientists (2)
The key point is equipping every citizen with the skills needed to live and work in the knowledge society by giving the opportunity to develop critical thinking and scientific reasoning that will enable them to make informed choices.
Science Education Now! The Rocard report for the European
Commission, 2007
Confederation of British Industry Education and Skills Survey, 2010Responses from 694 employers
CBI Education & Skills Survey 2010
Gross additional lifetime earnings (wage premiums) by degree subject compared to two or more GCE A-levels
Skills supply and demand in Europe to 2020
... a considerable shift in labour demand towards skilled workers, implying that future jobs will become moreknowledge and skills intensive .
Technicians and associate professionals ….. have the highest potential for job creation in the next decade (around 4.5 million)
European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, 2010
Educate to Innovate
• That gives you a sense of what’s
happening around the world.
There is a hunger for knowledge,
an insistence on excellence, a
reverence for science and math
and technology and learning.
That used to be what we were
about. That’s what we’re going
to be about again.
• Barack Obama 23 November 2009
•
Horizontal axis: Human Development IndexVertical axis: Score on positive attitudes towards science
Svein Sjoberg, University of Oslo: Project ROSE
Science teaching has many supporters
Science teaching in schools and colleges
Governments Foundations Academia Industry Informal sector
What do we agree on?
• We need good achievement and good participation in science
• - more young people doing well in science subjects and more wanting to continue studying them.
Outline of my talk
1. Why is science education so important?
2. The critical factors in science education
3. The right curriculum
4. The right pedagogy
5. The right assessment
6. The most important thing of all
Young people make early decisions about their future career
A survey of 1141 scientists and engineers found that 63% of them first began thinking about working in STEM by the age of 14.
Taking a Leading Role, Royal Society, 2004
Attitudes to science are formed in primary schools • Children’s early
experiences are critical to shaping future attitudes to science careers
High quality careers guidance needs to
• Start when pupils are young • Be based on rich data about the labour market
curriculum
assessmentpedagogy
The basic elements of science education
Inquiry-based science education: what does it mean?
1. A curriculum that includes scientific processes as well as content.
2. Pedagogy that takes a practical, hands-on approach
3. Assessment that encourages 1 and 2.
Outline of my talk
1. Why is science education so important?
2. The critical factors in science education
3. The right curriculum
4. The right pedagogy
5. The right assessment
6. The most important thing of all
Inquiry-based science education: what does it mean?
1. A curriculum that includes scientific processes (the methods of science) as well as content.
2. Pedagogy that takes a practical, hands-on approach
3. Assessment that encourages 1 and 2.
We are all scientists now
For developed countries, it is essential to have young people prepared to become the expert doctors, engineers and research scientists of the future.
It is essential, but not enough. Developed countries also need a population who understand science, and critically aware of its implications.
Public confidence in science is easily shaken
The alleged link between the mumps-measles-rubella vaccine and autism led to
• a drop in the vaccination rate from 91% to 80% in the UK
• a rise in mumps cases from 119 in 1998 to 43,000 in 2005
Sir David King, Government Chief Scientist
A scientifically literate person
….. Understands the processes (methods) of science as well as its essential content (facts and principles)
….. Examples of scientific processes: designing controlled experiments, testing hypotheses, using peer review ……
The challenge is to get the right balance between the two.
The dual role of science education
The first stages of a
training in scientific
expertise
Access to basic
scientific literacy
for a minorityfor all
The science curriculum has to provide:
Specialists and generalists
• Less than 10% of school pupils will go on to become professional scientists and engineers
• Over 90% will not study specialist science• School curricula are usually designed to meet the
needs of the future specialists, even though they are in the minority.
Inquiry-based science education: for high-flyers too
Science teaching based on inquiry-based methods does not mean giving up the ambition of excellence.
Science Education Now! The Rocard report for the European
Commission, 2007
Outline of my talk
1. Why is science education so important?
2. The critical factors in science education
3. The right curriculum
4. The right pedagogy
5. The right assessment
6. The most important thing of all
curriculum
assessmentpedagogy
The basic elements of science education
Inquiry-based science education: what does it mean?
1. A curriculum that includes scientific processes as well as content.
2. Pedagogy that takes a practical, hands-on approach, developing concepts from practical experience
3. Assessment that encourages 1 and 2.
Pedagogy that takes a practical, hands-on approach, developing concepts from practical experience
– Especially important for younger pupils.
Is Europe using all its talent ……?
• In the EU 27, about 70% of graduates in science, mathematics, engineering and computing are male.
Eurostat
UK students’ experiences and perceptions of Science Education (374 14-18 year olds)
• 81% find science lessons interesting or very interesting
• 55% find them more interesting than English• 51% agree science is a popular subject among
young people in general • Young women are less positive about science than
young men.
Wellcome Trust Monitor 2009
UK students’ experiences and perceptions of Science Education (374 14-18 year olds)
• 52% say having a good teacher encouraged them to study science
• 47% said a bad teacher put them off • 41% were put off learning science because they
found the subject too difficult; 40% because it was too boring
• Young women were especially likely to be put off because they found the subject difficult.
Wellcome Trust Monitor 2009
Inquiry-based science education: dream or reality?
While most of the science education community agrees on the fact that pedagogical practices based on inquiry-based methods are more effective, the reality oif classroom practice is that in most European countries, actual science teaching does not follow this approach.
Science Education Now! The Rocard report for the European
Commission, 2007
Outline of my talk
1. Why is science education so important?
2. The critical factors in science education
3. The right curriculum
4. The right pedagogy
5. The right assessment
6. The most important thing of all
curriculum
assessmentpedagogy
The basic elements of science education
Inquiry-based science education: what does it mean?
1. A curriculum that includes scientific processes as well as content.
2. Pedagogy that takes a practical, hands-on approach
3. Assessment that encourages 1 and 2.
The Washington Post
How Shanghai topped PISA rankings -- and why it's not
big news in ChinaBy Valerie Strauss
Q. How did Shanghai students, participating in a high-profile international exam for the first time, land at the top of the math, reading and science
rankings? A. An obsession with test-taking, to the exclusion
of a lot of other things
Outline of my talk
1. Why is science education so important?
2. The critical factors in science education
3. The right curriculum
4. The right pedagogy
5. The right assessment
6. The most important thing of all
What made you study Chemistry?
• Survey of 160 first year Chemistry and Biochemistry undergraduates at the University of York, UK, November 2010
How important was each of these in influencing you?
(1 = not important; 5 = very important)
Course and textbooks
Quality of school labs
Your chemistry teacher
Your parents
The job prospects
What your friends were choosing
Your exam grades at age 16
Your exam grades at age 17
Average, 2010
How important was each of these in influencing you?
(1 = not important; 5 = very important)
Course and textbooks
Quality of school labs
Your chemistry teacher
Your parents
The job prospects
What your friends were choosing
Your exam grades at age 16
Your exam grades at age 17
Average, 2010
3.22
2.53
4.01
2.46
3.86
1.62
3.01
3.64
How the world’s best-performing school systems come out on top McKinsey, September 2007
Three things matter mosto Getting the right people to become teacherso Developing them into effective instructorso Ensuring the system is able to deliver the best
possible instruction for every child
Excellent teachers have
• Excellent subject knowledge
• Excellent pedagogical skills
• Excellent assessment skills
How the world’s best-performing school systems come out on top McKinsey, September 2007
‘Above all, the top performing systems demonstrate that the quality of an education system depends ultimately on the quality of its teachers’