Science Blog
March 2011
Science Club is underway! Every Thursday in room 17 from 3.00 to 3.45pm, see Mr Khan or Ms Akhtar for details.
February 2012
Welcome to our new Curriculum Leader Mr Byrne, we hope that he settles smoothly into school life at OSCA.
As usual there have been busy times in the Science Department. Years 9, 10 and 11 have been sitting GCSE external exams. In December there were trial exams and in January the real thing! The department would like to congratulate pupils in the way they approached the exam period. Study support for revision was arranged after school and was well attended by many pupils. Some pupils even arrived at 7.30 in the morning on the day of their particular exam for more help and for a ‘warm up’ before the start time. We are now eagerly waiting for results day on March 8th!
Year 11 face yet more science exams on Thursday March 1st which is Core Science re-sit day.
Years 9 and 10 and 11 are continuing to work towards those target grades by completing their Investigative Skills Assignments (ISAs) in lesson time. The ISA is worth 25% of the GCSE so is a very important component of the course.
Study Support will run during the February half term break for year 11 pupils, Mr Byrne will be providing dates and times.
National Science and Engineering Week runs from March 9th-18th and the department will be organising special activities to coincide with this. A Science Club will also be starting around this time so listen out for any announcements.
Finally, see student Openhive for lots of fun and interesting links to science magazines, websites and books.
September 2011
We would like to welcome our new members of staff, Mr Tomilinson and Mr Patel.
The new term has been very busy so far. We would also like to welcome our new year 7 pupils and hope they have enjoyed learning about lab safety and lab apparatus, they are very keen to get experimenting! Year 8 are getting along with their syllabus as their Key Stage 3 work will finish in time for them to begin GCSE Science in year 9. Years 9 and 10 have begun their GCSE work and will be facing ‘real’ GCSE exams in January 2012. Year 11 pupils are facing their biggest challenge and striving to achieve successful GCSE results, they are due to take re-sits for their Core Science on November 15th, we wish them every success in improving their grades. Study Support sessions will be available during October half-term week and after school.
Our biggest news item is that ‘Thinktank’ from The Birmingham Science Museum are visiting the school on Monday Oct 3rd. They will be putting on creative shows all day for our year 9 pupils inside a large inflatable black dome! The shows will be about atoms, cells and space. More news and pictures to follow about the highlights of the day.
The science department is also planning a ‘Science and Technology’ club to commence in November. Activities and visiting speakers are on the agenda, further details to follow soon, anyone who may be interested, please speak to Mr Tomlinson.
July 2011
Welcome to the Science blog!
We have had a busy time in Science this term. Our first year 11 BTEC students finished their Level 2 Certificate, many students also completing the Extended Certificate. Our year 11 GCSE students worked hard in preparation for their exams and will be waiting for results day – August 25th! Year 10 students completed re-sit exams in June and will be hoping for improved results.
The Creativity Specialisms Day at the end of term will involve year 7 pupils in Science. We will undertake two projects, one concerning the operation and future of mobile phones and the other considering the influence of packaging/advertising on children’s eating habits.
Next term in order to further inspire our new GCSE students, we are hoping to organise a visit from Thinktank (part of Birmingham Science Museum). This will involve a day long series of demonstrations and shows held inside a large inflatable dome. More details on this to follow next term.
Finally on a sad note we have to say good-bye to three members of the science department, we wish them well in their new ventures.
• Ms Harris is leaving to move to Switzerland. She has completed two years with the ‘Teach First’ scheme for university graduates, her final assessment graded her as ‘outstanding’ and she has delivered endless stimulating and enjoyable lessons to pupils.
• Mr Smith is moving to Italy after eight years in the school. Both as a science teacher and Head of House, Mr Smith has gained great respect from many students. Graded as a ‘strict’ teacher students have always, however, been keen to comment on how well they felt they learnt in Mr Smith’s lessons!
• Lastly Mr Clow is retiring after thirty-seven years in the teaching profession, the last ten of which have been spent as Head of Science in the academy. Mr Clow has been a highly respected and popular teacher amongst staff and students alike whose firm but fair treatment of students has been extremely effective. Mr Clow has had a huge impact on the department and on the lives of many young people over the years and he will be greatly missed.
Mrs Brown will take over temporarily as Head of Science.
We welcome two new members of staff next term, Mr Tomlinson and Mr Patel and wish them well for the time they will spend with us.
