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Science At The Downs
The Science Department at The Downs School is the largest and one of the most successful departments in the school. It is housed in 7 purpose built laboratories, served by two main preparation areas.
All Science staff at The Downs School are committed to providing a balanced science education to students of all abilities, from age 11 years to age 18 years. Every student receives a thorough and rounded education in Science and is given encouragement to succeed to his or her potential. The department comprises 10 teaching staff and 4 technicians. The staff work as a team and carry out responsibilities across the department.
National Curriculum Science, based on the QCA Schemes of Work, is taught to all students at Key Stage 3. The highest achievers at Key Stage 3 are offered the opportunity to study the separate sciences, Biology, Chemistry and Physics, at GCSE.
Physics
Physics topics are covered throughout the school as part of Key Stage 3 Science and Key Stage 4 Science.
From September 2006, the Science Department has adopted a new and exciting course for study at GCSE. This is based on the OCR 21st Century Science suite of syllabuses and is being studied by the current Year 10 and 11 students.
Assessment, in Year 10, is via three unit tests. One of these is taken in January and the other in June. The tests are based on objective style questions and each test will cover aspects of Biology, Chemistry and Physics. Students will also take a test in May based on pre-released material. These four tests are equally weighted in their contributions towards the final assessment and are worth 66.6% in total. The remaining 33.3%, completed in Year 11, is awarded for coursework.
The coursework, in Year 10, is divided between a practical data analysis (worth 13.3%) completed in Year 11 and a case study of an important current scientific issue (worth 20%) completed in Year 10
This qualification will be obtained at the end of Year 11.During Year 11, students will study for either of the following qualifications:
- Additional Science which, together with the Science qualification for
Year 10, will result in two GCSE grades.
Or
- Separate Science qualifications in Biology, Chemistry and Physics which together with the Science qualification from Year 10, will result in four GCSE grades.
Course Aims
The specification adopted by the Physics Department is the Salters Horners Physics course which is examined by Edexcel. This course aims to convey the excitement of contemporary Physics. It explores the frontiers of research and the applications of physics, relating them to the physics required at ‘AS’ and ‘A2’ level.
Entry Requirements
It is expected that students applying for the course will be capable of attaining at least a BB grade in GCSE science taken at higher level or a grade B in Physics if taken as a single science. A grade B in GCSE mathematics is also required. Students are strongly advised to include mathematics in their choice of subjects if they wish to study Physics in the Sixth Form. Studies beyond Advanced Level in Physics and related subjects require mathematics.
Course Content
The current Physics course offered follows the syllabus of the Salters-Horners course offered by Edexcel. The courses at ‘AS’ ‘A’ level employ a context led approach by looking at particular situations in which physics is used or studied, and then developing the physics that is relevant to an exploration of this context.
Assessment
Assessment follows a modular approach at both ‘AS’ and ‘A’ level and coursework is an integral part of this assessment.
Career and Higher Education Opportunities
'A' level Physics is a qualification for many rewarding careers including medicine, veterinary work, meteorology, dentistry, metallurgy, civil aviation, electronics and engineering. It is beneficial for careers such as telecommunications, computing, broadcasting, general laboratory work and physiotherapy.
It is a core subject for higher education courses in engineering and the physical sciences. It is useful for a wide range of higher education courses including computing, management and medical physics.
Advanced Subsidiary Level
At the end of Year 12, students will be examined on the material covered for the ‘AS’ syllabus in Physics. If they are successful in this examination, they will have the option of studying the additional components necessary to convert the ‘AS’ level qualification into an ‘A’ level.
