Teach Secondary - Issue 13.2

space sector at the event, there to present to and work alongside our students. As one of our students, Zachary Bremner, remarked afterwards, “ Space camp was really interesting and insightful. My favourite part was meeting enthusiastic representatives of the space industry. I intend to contact Lockheed Martin and Viasat with a view to work experience. My career aspirations to enter the space industry were consolidated by this camp. ” Another of our students, Katy Hill, said “ I loved it! My favourite part was going to Sunderland University to look at different robots and learn how they’re used in space. It helped me learn more about the space sector and what jobs are available to me, and I’m happy that I made some good friends who share my interests and are doing the same ALevels as me .” Rewarding and inspiring As a department, we’ve sought to utilise the professional CPD available via the ENTHUSE partnership including: • ‘Stretch and Challenge in Science’ department CPD • Attending the Secondary Science Teaching and Learning conference in York • Developing health and safety awareness among our science teachers STEM ambassadors attending our school career events have also gone on to provide further CPD at our ENTHUSEmeetings. It was they who introduced us to the annual STEMFest event, which some of our triple science students attended last July and found to be a rewarding and inspiring experience. This year we’re hoping to participate in STEM Learning’s Research Placements and Experiences programme. The opportunities are certainly there, once you knowwhere to look. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Aisling Stewart is head of science at St Leonard’s Catholic School in Durham opportunities on our own doorstep. JoshMinto, from the RTC STEM ambassadors hub in particular, has been consistently willing to attend and share some local STEM leads. When he told us about Space Camp 2023, we felt it was a ‘science capital’ opportunity not to be missed. It’s well-documented that the north east of England is currently experiencing a STEM skills workforce gap, making it vital for our young scientists to be introduced to and involved in such opportunities as and when they arise. The Space Camp 2023 event was held over five days during half term at Sunderland University campus, as a joint venture between The National Space Academy, and sponsors LockheedMartin and Viasat. It provided our students with an immersive experience themed around space activity, and opened up whole new vistas for them– significantly boosting their technical and academic understanding, while also highlighting potential pathways for career progression in the UK space sector and other civil and military space-related domains. There were a range of high-profile guest speakers and representatives of the GET IT TOGETHER Rob Swinney explains more about the ENTHUSE Partnerships and how they work... Howdid the Science Hub Learning Partnership come into being andwhat does it do? For many years, Cardinal Hume Catholic School has run one of the highest performing Computing Hubs in the country on behalf of STEM Learning.We felt we could emulate this success across other subjects, and accepted the Science Learning Partnership contract in the summer termof 2022. The SLP provides high impact, quality assured science CPD for teachers at all experience levels and bespoke school-to- school support, while also leading ENTHUSE Partnerships, which bring schools together as clusters to work on specific aims. Towhat extent have the goals and approaches adopted by the Science Hub changed or evolved over time? The teacher recruitment and retention crisis has hit science departments particularly hard.Where once it was difficult to hire a qualified physics teacher, the problemnow persists across all three sciences. Schools are having to adapt, and so the SLP has come to focus on delivering subject knowledge enhancement courses to upskill non- specialists to fill gaps, or allow science teachers to deliver across specialisms.We also now provide courses to support ECTs, assist their development and keep them in the profession. Can you point to any specific examples of impact or outcomes as a direct result of the SLP’swork? We’ve worked with numerous schools across the North East,many of which have subsequently had Ofsted inspections with deep dives in science, and we’re proud that every one of them achieved at least a Good rating. Our ENTHUSE partnerships have provided CPD to staff, introduced them to novel ways of teaching science and provided a whole host of resources for themuse in schools – from air pressure rocket launchers, to steamboats and inflatable flying sharks. 63 teachwire.net/secondary S T E M