New Perspectives in Science Education

The academic year 1994 - 1995 will be forever remembered as a momentous year in Irish post-primary education.  An elective year was introduced into the relatively short post-primary phase (5 years) of education between the junior and senior cycles.  Students at 15 years old, having completed their first set of state examinations, the Junior Certificate in Education, may elect to take an optional year called the ‘Transition Year’.  The overall aim of transition Year is to offer ‘pupils a broad educational experience with a view to the attainment of increased maturity, before proceeding to further study and/or vocational preparation’ (Government of Ireland, 1993).  Because of the wide range of academic attainment of student and reasons for electing to do Transition Year and the fact that the course is not terminated by a state examination, an innovative approach is demanded in designing the Transition Year curriculum.  Two models for science teaching, learning and assessing are presented here: Model A: the discipline-based course with equal components denoted for physics, chemistry and biology with a strong emphasis on philosophy, ethics, cosmology; and Model B: the narrative based course where students take on the role of a business / professional laboratory addressing a real environmental concern where the results of the work was entered into an international competition. Both models have advantages and disadvantages that are outlined here and several issues arising are examined such as: (i) the role of the teacher as a subject specialist; (ii) the relationship of the Transition Year with the senior examination years; (iii) how science fits into the overall humanistic aims of the Transition Year; (iv) review of research claiming advantage to students having done Transition Year in the Leaving Certificate examinations; (v) socio-political pressures from school managements and parents; (vi) student-based concerns for performance in senior state examinations.