§ Dr. GibsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether the proposed National and Regional Centres for Excellence in Science Teaching will be required to provide in service training opportunities to enable practising teachers to develop their skills in out of classroom teaching in biology and other scientific disciplines. [125269]
§ Mr. Charles ClarkeOur plans, in partnership with the Wellcome Trust, to establish a national network of science learning centres are progressing well. The national centre and up to nine regional centres will provide a range of continuing professional development opportunities for teachers of primary, secondary and post-16 science teachers, technicians and other support staff in the science classroom. We anticipate that, over time, the centres will help teachers to develop their skills in out of the classroom teaching.
In addition, the Department's 'Growing Schools' initiative has worked with hundreds of schools to develop best practice in the use of the outdoor classroom for a range of curriculum subjects, including science at each key stage.