Scottish Government response to the report of the Science and Engineering Education Advisory Group (SEEAG) Report –
Supporting Scotland’s STEM Education and Culture
FOREWORD FROM THE MINISTER FOR LEARNING, SCIENCE AND SCOTLAND’S LANGUAGES, Dr ALASDAIR ALLAN,
Science, Technologies, Engineering and Maths (STEM) learning is fundamental to every modern dynamic society and economy. This is no more so than in Scotland, home to numerous scientific discoveries, research and inventors, over many decades. I am therefore very pleased to be offering this foreword to the Government’s response to the SEEAG report, published on 28th February 2012.
We pride ourselves in Scotland on a strong record of excellent STEM education. However in an ever increasingly competitive and globalised world we cannot and must not stand still. The independent SEEAG report provides a timely, wide-ranging and ambitious set of proposals on improving our STEM education. It also offers advice on career pathways and public science engagement. It is a valuable and extensive source of evidence and direction to Government and its partners.
In particular the report’s focus on the essential skills of teachers and support for them, including through continuous professional development, is very timely. So too are its recommendation on inspiring young learners with stimulating and dynamic STEM teaching. There are many organisations and bodies doing good work on supporting STEM education, but the sheer number of initiatives can make it confusing for schools and teachers. The report helpfully suggests ways of addressing access to the support on offer. It also highlights the importance of Industry’s engagement with schools and young people. It is essential that young people see pathways into STEM careers, and gain an insight into the many rewarding career opportunities available from studying STEM subjects.
This SEEAG report is fundamental to establishing the kind of learning and teaching of STEM subjects we want to see in Scotland. We have to be ambitious and look ahead. We are determined to improve our STEM education, building from the strong position we are in. SEEAG’s comprehensive and insightful report provides an invaluable framework to drive this work forward.
I am very grateful to Dr Ian Wall and all the members of SEEAG for their intellect, time and energy they have given to the development and writing of the report. I look forward to working with the group as we take this essential agenda forward.
Dr Alastair Allan
Overview of the Government’s Response
Following on from SEEAG’s findings, there are several key issues the Government sees as priorities for action, as follows:
· We need to have a teacher workforce which is skilled and confident in delivering stimulating science learning, acknowledging there is a particular need to address support for primary teachers, who are often non-specialists in the STEM subjects. There are a range of levers here, including subject-specific CPD and appropriate support materials for teachers. In addition, there is an exciting opportunity to harness existing expertise and experience to build and develop Professional Learning Communities.
· Learners need to continue to have the opportunity to study a range of inspiring, up-to-date science within Curriculum for Excellence, with opportunities to experience practical science and interdisciplinary links across the STEM subjects and beyond. We are keen to maintain the existing interest and good attainment in science and maths, evidenced through high uptake and pass rates in National Qualifications.
· There are a range of STEM companies and organisations offering a positive contribution to both formal and informal science learning. However, there is a need for a better understanding of the various initiatives which currently exist, and co-ordination between them. Teachers need a clearer picture of the support which is on offer, to help build their planning, and adults and families need to be aware of the local and national opportunities to engage with science.
· There is a long-term social and economic imperative to ensure that Scotland’s young people engage with STEM. They need to have opportunities to establish a strong grounding in the STEM subjects, and opportunities to build their awareness of STEM-related careers. Industry engagement with young people is required, to enable them to see the relevant career pathways, and to want to pursue them.
Progress and Achievements Since Publication of the Report
The Government made several commitments at the launch of the SEEAG report, to address some of the Group’s key concerns:
· A 3 year commitment to Government funding of SSERC, with ring-fenced funding for new work on primary teachers’ CPD. This long-term commitment has given SSERC a strong mandate as a national provider of science CPD for teachers;
· 3 year funding for the Science Centres and Festivals;
· A commitment to establishing a Scottish Science Advisory Council (SSAC) co-ordinator post, with support from Education Scotland now confirmed
In addition, the following progress has been made since the report’s launch:
· Continued good results in this year’s exams in the science subjects and mathematics.
·Conclusion of the National Partnership Group’s (NPG) considerations, with their advice on Initial Teacher Education and career long professional development to follow soon.
· Publication of Education Scotland’s 3-18 Science’s Review, another source of evidence, alongside the SEEAG report, on key areas for development in science education
· Continued development of Education Scotland’s STEM support, with additions made to the learning contexts featuring on STEM Central, and an online STEM Central professional learning community now up and running. A Senior Education Officer for the sciences will soon be appointed.
· Working to timetable on the new Curriculum for Excellence Qualifications, with a newly appointed Qualifications Development Consultant looking at cohesion and integration across STEM subjects, and a fast tracking of the first phase of SQA’s assessment support materials from February 2013 to October 2012.
· Ongoing work around STEM career awareness, connecting with the Skills Investment Plans, and links to industry through the Industry Leadership Groups.We have also committed £250,000 to the Careerwise Scotland initiative, to get more young girls to consider a career in STEM; and
·Reconfiguration of the Talking Science public science engagement grant scheme, with more emphasis on targeting hard to reach communities, with this year’s successful applicants already announced.
Building on these priorities and progress, this Government response sets out work we are taking forward in the areas of STEM education, and offers a view on where our partners are contributing.
The response also offers an analysis of each of SEEAG’s recommendations. This detailed assessment highlights areas of future work, linking with the above priorities.
Finally, a reformulated grouping – the Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths Education Committee (STEMEC) – will be set up to help us guide and build partnerships and drive forward future action.
ITE AND CPD FOR TEACHERS
Throughout sections 2 and 3 of the SEEAG report, the group have made recommendations relating to the key place of Initial Teacher Education (ITE) and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in improving the quality of science education in schools.
Teaching Scotland’s Future – the work of the National Partnership Group
The Group have explicitly supported a number of the conclusions from Teaching Scotland’s Future[1] (TSF). The work of the National Partnership Group[2] (NPG) is relevant to SEEAG’s recommendations relating to teacher training and development. The NPG has submitted its final report to Ministers and this is currently being considered. It is expected that the report will be published shortly along with a response from the Scottish Government.
SEEAG has commented on the importance of securing the right entrants for ITE courses to ensure the high quality delivery of STEM education, particularly for the primary sector. The NPG has considered ways in which the criteria for entry to programmes of ITE can be made more rigorous and the General Teaching Council for Scotland will shortly undertake a review of entry requirements to courses of Initial Teacher Education.
SEEAG have also commented on the place of science within ITE courses. The NPG was not established to bring forward specific proposals related to science subjects. However universities are replacing the traditional BEd with a programme which includes academic study beyond the field of education, thereby increasing the breadth of ITE. This will result in teachers being exposed to a wider range of subjects, including the sciences, as part of their university course.
The NPG has also considered a series of issues relating to career-long professional development relevant to SEEAG’s recommendations on the development of effective models of CPD, its quality and its impact and has made a number of proposals in this area including work to support mentoring, PRD, masters level learning and ways in which areas of priority learning can be identified which are currently being considered by Ministers.
Related issues being considered by the NPG include the development of guidance on effective professional learning, the strengthening of the Professional Review and Development (PRD) process, and the introduction of mentoring in schools. As part of this work the NPG are considering ways through which learning can be evaluated and the impact on learners taken into account. The NPG has also considered how best to develop mechanism to help identify priority areas where Scottish education needs to improve, or where teachers experience greatest difficulties.
While some of the TSF recommendations have already been implemented, more work will be required to ensure they all come to fruition. The NPG also has made recommendations as to how this next phase of work will be taken forward.
Increased time for science CPD
SEEAG recommended that increased time provision is offered to teachers, in both primary and secondary, for STEM continuing professional development (recommendation 3.1). The 2001 Teachers’ Agreement that followed the McCrone Inquiry introduced a maximum of 35 hours per annum of paid and self-directed CPD for teachers. ‘Advancing Professionalism in Teaching’ (McCormac Review) recommended that “the 35 hours of contractual time per year that was allocated for CPD should remain but this should not be viewed as a time limit on CPD.” These issues of time allocation for CPD are connected to terms and conditions of service, a matter for the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers.
As set out above, the National Partnership Group is discussing how to embed career-long professional learning within teaching, and considering the focus and quality of CPD. As SEEAG have noted, these are important issues for making a positive impact on the outcomes for learners in science.
Scottish Science Education Research Centre (SSERC)
SEEAG have highlighted that science CPD should be placed in the context of developing the wider skills of teachers (recommendation 3.2), and that teachers should have opportunities to experience “interactive, hands-on CPD” (recommendation 3.3). It also explicitly recognises the role of SSERC in these areas, calling for it to become Scotland’s national science learning centre, with enhanced provision to deliver wider CPD support.
At the time of publishing the SEEAG report, the Scottish Government committed to funding SSERC’s core science CPD programme for the next 3 years. This will include delivery of experiential learning sessions to 1,800 teachers, student teachers and technicians per annum. We see this confirmed long-term central support for SSERC’s programme as providing a strong mandate as a national provider of science-specific CPD.
The SEEAG report also concluded that the delivery of primary science should be developed, pointing to the need to improve the knowledge, skills and confidence of primary teachers. In addition to our support for SSERC’s core work, we are therefore also providing a specific ring-fenced pot for a programme targeted at primary teachers. This will be delivered through a cluster model, with nominated teachers attending residential training which will enable them to become mentors for colleagues in their local area. SSERC will work with 4 local authorities in the first year 2012/13, with expansion of the programme planned for the following two years in consultation with the Association of Directors of Education in Scotland (ADES) on the most effective way of achieving this.
STEM Central
The Group welcomed the development of Education Scotland’s STEM Central[3] resource as a means of sharing support material, and recommended that it continue to expand and be the main entry portal for teachers (recommendation 3.7). In particular, SEEAG have suggested that it be developed into a ‘one stop shop’ for practical STEM and science engagement ideas, activities, and providers, with providers contributing links to/from STEM Central (recommendation 6.1).
Education Scotland (ES) will expand and develop STEM Central, in line with feedback from practitioners and with broader developments on implementation of CfE. Further learner journeys and contexts will continue to be added to the site, with a minimum of 3 due to be published during 2012/13. These will be developed with wider partners, where appropriate, consistent with the approach of STEM Central to date. Building partnership opportunities into these materials enables teachers to access the wealth of support available in a meaningful and planned way.
There are have been two recent complementary additions to STEM Central – the Education Scotland Learning Blog, and the STEM Central in Motion Learning Blog. The former allows Education Scotland Development Officers to share development work and projects, including in relation to STEM. The latter blog is more interactive, allowing practitioners and learners to share practice and ideas, and for partners to publicise their work. Those partners with a Glow login can post themselves, while others can have contributions posted via the Education Scotland DOs. This lends itself to a more reflective approach to sharing STEM opportunities, showing how they might be usefully incorporated in planned learning and teaching, compared to a basic list of provision.
There are obvious advantages to this Blog approach. It allows for information to be refreshed frequently, and for out of date initiatives to ‘drop off’ the listing. There is also scope for the STEM Central in Motion Learning Blog to become self-sustaining, with partners and practitioners having direct input. Education Scotland are proactively encouraging partner input to the Blog where they identify good practice, encouraging posts which show how offers are curriculum linked and enhance learning and teaching to improve outcomes for learners. The feeds from both Education Scotland Learning Blog and STEM Central in Motion appear on the STEM Central webpage, ensuring visitors to the website pick up on recent developments and helping to encourage return visits.