View from the lab

A chance to hear from our Early Career Teacher - Vicky Hilditch. I caught up with Vicky just before Feb half term 2022 to see how her 1st year as a science teacher was progressing.

In this episode Andy Woods talks to educational researcher from the University of Warwick Dr Tom Perry (@TWPerry1). In 2021 Tom led a team of researchers funded by the EEF to carry out a systematic review of the current research evidence of cognitive science strategies and their effectiveness in the classroom. In this episode we discuss the evidence of many popular techniques used in schools today including spaced practice, interleaving and embodied learning amongst others. This is a deep dive into Tom and his team’s work and is a fascinating insight into the way educational researchers gather evidence and make their judgements.

In episode 20 of view from the lab Andy Woods finds out how youtube pioneer Primrose Kitten built her ever popular science education channel (from scratch!). We talk about her love of all thing’s science and maths and how her career journey took her from her early work in cancer research, to science teaching in London and onto educating the nation’s students with her prolific and engaging digital output. Take half an hour out of your day to listen to this ‘purrfect’ episode of ‘view from the lab’!

Andy Woods catches up with Early Career Teacher (ECT) Vicky Hilditch to have a chat about how things are going in her 1st ‘full-on’ (!) year of science teaching. We discuss how the Autumn term has gone, what she has learned and the challenges that may lie ahead in 2022!

Mocks marking service link - go.pearson.com/mockspodcast

Welcome back to the first podcast of 2022! In this episode Andy Woods delves into what makes a positive difference to our learning environments and their impact on our students. Dr Katherine Forsey (@DrBiol [twitter]/@DrKatherineForsey- Insta and Facebook) (CSciTeach) has wide ranging experience in outdoor education and working at the interface between school science and STEM based industries. In this episode we discover how Katherine’s career in science education has evolved after she finished her PhD at the University of York. We then discuss ways in which learning environments can be improved. Katherine describes and explains the 7 important factors (based on research by Professor Stephen Heppell) in which schools can optimise their spaces to support learning. Press play and listen out for some pragmatic changes you implement and make to make your science lab a chamber of educational excellence!

Further links...

• Learnometer website with information on each of the 7 factors - https://gratnellslearnometer.com/

• Learning Rooms website - links Planning Learning Spaces programme with teacher support and free science/STEM/outdoor teaching resources https://gratnellslearningrooms.com/

• Does your classroom help children learn? - recorded webinar on Learning Environments and practical steps to improve your own https://gratnellslearningrooms.com/does-your-classroom-help-children-learn/

• Does your classroom help children learn? - published article in the ASE’s International Science Education Journal https://www.ase.org.uk/resources/ase-international-journal/issue-13/does-your-classroom-help-children-learn (ASE members only) also in Teach Middle East p35-37 https://teachmiddleeastmag.com/teach-middle-east-magazine-jan-apr-2021-issue-2-volume-8/ (open access)

• List of plants for the classroom to reduce CO2 and increase oxygen - https://gratnellslearnometer.com/which-plants-are-best-to-reduce-co2-in-a-classroom/

• Learning Rooms Outdoors - free resources https://gratnellslearningrooms.com/learning-rooms-outdoors/

• Learning Rooms Outdoors - free webinar recording https://gratnellslearningrooms.com/learning-rooms-outdoors-webinar/

In this jam-packed episode of the pod I talk with Professor David Read (Professional Fellow in Chemical Education at the University of Southampton). David is an expert in supporting students in their transition from 6th form, to university courses, specifically in chemistry. He has a keen interest in innovative pedagogy techniques and is often in the vanguard for integrating new tech into the courses he teaches. We delve into the pros and cons of different teaching approaches and explore what lessons can be learned from everyone’s enforced ‘lock-down learning’ experience due to COVID -19. I hope you can take time out of your busy day to listen to David’s ‘View from the Lab’.

In this mini series within 'view from the lab'. I will be catching up with Vicky Hilditch who is an early career science teacher based in northwest England. I will be dropping in for a quick conversation with Vicki at the end of every half term to see how things are progressing and how she's finding her new career. I hope you'll join me on her journey throughout the 2021 to 2022 academic year. For the 1st episode I caught up with her at the end of October to see how the start of the year had gone. So, without further ado let's hear Vicky's 'view from in the lab'.

In this episode of the podcast Andy Woods catches up with the mighty Kit Betts-Masters, a.k.a ‘Gorilla physics’. You may know him from his YouTube channel and his prolific video output which supports physics students both in the UK and across the globe.

We explore key lessons learned from the challenges brought by teaching during the pandemic, and the importance of using the right technology at the right time, to maximise its impact on our learners. We discuss active learning techniques and many more topics besides, too many to list here!

We're putting a spotlight on STEM careers in this episode of the podcast and talking to inspirational young conservationist Dr Rutendo Shackleton (nee Wazara). Tendo is a scientist based at Chester Zoo and her main focus is the study of elephant behaviour and welfare . During her time at the zoo she has been involved with some ground breaking research on how best to look after elephants in captivity, which we discuss in this episode. Tendo has had an interesting educational journey to get where she is today, and we dig into her story so far and the challenges she's faced along the way. It's now time to press play, so you can hear her - 'view from the lab'.

In episode 13 of the podcast Andy Woods talks to Pritesh Raichura who is the Head of Science at the world-famous Michaela school in North London, sometimes referred to as England's 'strictest school'. We delve into what makes the culture at Michaela unique and he explains how it enables their students to make astonishing progress during their time there. He talks through their approach to learning and how teachers there work collaboratively to produce consistently excellent lessons. Make time in your schedule to listen to Pritesh's informative 'view from the lab'.