The Science department seeks to deliver an exciting curriculum in a motivating and challenging way that ensures all pupils have the opportunity to achieve their full potential. The aim of the department is to:

• Become confident citizens in a technological world and be able to take or develop and informed interest in matters of scientific importance.
• Recognise the usefulness and limitations of scientific method and appreciate its applications in other disciplines and in everyday life.
• Be suitable prepared to embark upon certain science dependant courses and studies up to and including A level in and of the pure sciences.
• Stimulate interest in, and care for, the environment.

Girls at Putney Park follow the national curriculum for years 6, 7 and 8 which gives them a solid foundation to continue onto GCSE Science.  Since there are no Key Stage 3 SAT’s we have time to start teaching the GCSE course in the second term of year 9.  The flexibility in course structure has allowed us to offer the Separate Science Program at the same time as the Core and Additional. (See below).

We enter all girls for the GCSE Science Core with AQA examination board. This continues directly on from Key Stage 3 Sciences. The second award that the girls are entered into is the GCSE Additional Science. With the new syllabus structure it is now possible to offer gifted students the opportunity to study GCSE Separate Sciences after they have completed Science Core and Additional Science.

These qualifications provides an excellent basis for further study in Biology, Chemistry and Physics at Advanced Level as well as forming a firm scientific background for those who wish to study other subjects. At the end of the course, girls will be awarded two GCSE grades or 3 GCSE grades for separate science, as a result of their work in all three sciences.

Practical work and investigations are essential features and serve to develop skills and abilities necessary to achieve many of the objectives. The practical assessment takes place through ISA’s (Investigative Skills Assignments) throughout the course. These are in class experiments which are then assessed with a written exam. Several of these are taken over the two year course but only the best mark from each science is submitted.

The syllabus is supplemented by field work, visits to the various science museums and lectures outside school, when appropriate.

For more details please visit the Science page in our emagazine.