Science-Based PQ

We have designed Project Science as a project-based science course that equips year 10 and 11 students to achieve high grades in HPQ or EPQ.

While it would be ideal if students could engage in extended projects within the science curriculum, the sheer amount of content in GCSE, combined with exam pressures, make this unlikely. It is also possible for schools to squeeze HPQ into the existing curriculum, by giving students a quick investigation, or a desk-based research topic done mainly in their own time, supporting by delivering a few lessons on project management.

However, neither of these options is likely to achieve the more ambitious goal that Project Science has been designed for - to influence more Combined Science to choose science post-16. How does the course reshape the way students engage with science?

  1. Developing long-term interest: engaging case studies, real investigations and design and make projects are more likely to give students the thill of doing science.
  2. Building a positive science identity: the course treats students as junior scientists or engineers, and presents a wide variety of role models to help them see that science is for them
  3. Enhancing self-efficacy: the course’s apprenticeship model builds students' confidence and competence through scaffolded tasks, empowering them to take ownership of their projects
  4. Increasing STEM careers awareness: the teaching case studies expose students to a variety of roles within science and engineering fields, and they can be mentored by a professional
  5. Supporting diverse learners: Desk-based HPQs suit highly independent learners with strong intrinsic motivation. For many students, a structured course like Project Science, which starts with a guided project in Year 10, provides a more impactful approach
  6. Achieving better grades: Awarding Bodies note that science and engineering projects can be particularly successful because they use primary data, leading to higher marks, and the course teaches all the science practices and skills needed