ABSTRACT
The curriculum thought to be appropriate for children of school age inevitably changes over time as different skills, competencies and areas of knowledge are valued. In England and Wales, the Education Reform Act of 1988 provided for schools a formal curriculum policy and identified what is currently deemed essential for all pupils between the ages of five and sixteen. This formal curriculum is also embedded in a broader framework of the whole curriculum, which recognises the importance of crosscurricular dimensions, themes and skills, especially at the primary school stage. What the Education Reform Act did not specify was how schools were to interpret and implement this curriculum policy, although guidance was given in various National Curriculum Council documents. This process was left to the staff of the schools themselves which, in reality, means to the headteacher and subject coordinators. As the science coordinator, you will be expected to be involved in this process for the National Curriculum Order for Science. This means thinking about and helping your colleagues to understand and interpret what science is all about, so that they can be in a strong position to implement science effectively in their classrooms.
