School students have been clamouring for more meaningful science education. Teachers agree and, given training and resources, are keen to deliver it. The opening of the National Science Learning Centre at York and the launch of the Twenty First Century Science curriculum are important steps towards this goal.

The Wellcome Trust has provided £25 million for the National Science Learning Centre, in York, to support teachers' continuing professional development, with the Department for Education and Skills contributing £26m funding for nine regional centres.

In March 2006, the Prime Minister, Tony Blair, opened the National Centre, saying: "At school we all knew the one thing that made a difference was if the teacher felt personal enthusiasm for their subject, then it was communicated to their students." In the first year, more than 1000 teachers and technicians attended courses in York, a figure that will rise to 5000 teachers annually from 2013.

The Twenty First Century Science GCSE, launched in September 2006 following a successful pilot, will help prepare 14–16-year-olds for a rapidly changing world. Its modular approach is designed to cater both for the academically gifted destined for a career in science and for non-specialists who will nonetheless be living in a science-dominated world.

The GCSE aims to give essential factual education while also conveying the nature of science and rooting science in the world experienced by today's young people. It will also challenge science teachers, technicians and teaching assistants to keep themselves updated with a rapidly developing subject and to make use of innovative techniques that engage students – for example, through the national network of Science Learning Centres.

Image: Trainee teachers at the National Science Learning Centre

External links

• Science Learning Centres