“Science is a way of thinking much more than it is a body of knowledge.”
– Carl Sagan
Biology provides the foundation for understanding living systems - exploring how organisms grow, adapt, and interact within their environments. Through subject-specific training sessions, you will develop secure knowledge of how to teach key biological concepts - such as cells, genetics, evolution, and ecology - while refining the practical and analytical skills essential to high-quality science teaching. You will also explore how to spark curiosity about the living world, enabling pupils to see biology as a dynamic and evolving science that helps us make sense of life itself.
Your Subject Lead will support you to make connections between the best available research on quality teaching with classroom practice, helping you to apply and clarify the most effective pedagogical approaches to your subject.
Our secondary biology trainees receive specialist subject training within their placement schools, supported by a dedicated and highly experienced subject mentor. Explicit links are made across teaching phases from KS3 to KS5, also considering KS2 and transition, ensuring the content goes beyond the KS3 and KS4 National Curriculum to promote a deep understanding of biological principles and scientific enquiry.
Biology trainees will join our cohorts from chemistry and physics throughout the year. This collaborative approach reflects the interconnected nature of teaching science and ensures that you develop the knowledge and skills necessary to teach across the full science curriculum.
To quote Albert Einstein, arguably the greatest scientist of all time, "Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think”. What a prescient thought to bear in mind as you embark on the exciting journey to attain Qualified Teacher Status!
My name is Andrew Williams and I will have the pleasure of being your Science Subject Lead, with responsibility for ensuring that you receive the best possible subject-related input during what I know will be a most stimulating and rewarding year. Towards this end, our sessions are designed to be as practical and supportive as possible, providing you with ample opportunities to develop the knowledge and skills you will need to become expert teachers who are fully equipped to inspire the next generation of young scientists.
With respect to my own background, as a successful Science and Maths teacher with 35 years’ experience, I have taught Science and Mathematics to A-level as well as taking on a variety of other roles within schools, including Head of Department, Lead Teacher and ITT Coordinator, alongside a range of senior leadership positions. From a wider perspective, I have also acted as a GCSE examination team leader and Science Teacher Leader for the STEM National Science Learning Network.
However, as an ecologist, I would say that my natural habitat is definitely in the classroom, and I have always found teaching young people to be the most rewarding aspect of my career in education. In addition, as a passionate scientist, I firmly believe that the subject lies at the heart of the curriculum. Not only is science a fascinating subject in its own right, awakening our sense of wonder by deepening our understanding and appreciation of the amazing world we live in, it also provides a means of developing essential critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Science also drives the technological advancements that form the bedrock of human progress and, to end with another quote, this time by renowned physicist Edward Teller, “The science of today is the technology of tomorrow”.