Credit: Tim Mitchell/Ri

Credit: Tim Mitchell/Ri

However, other subjects have been prioritised over science in the teaching curriculum in recent years, resulting in science being squeezed. The Wellcome Trust recommends that primary schools teach science for at least two hours a week, but only 42% of schools manage this – the average is just 1 hour and 24 minutes.

How to see yourself as a future scientist

It’s not just time that is lacking – many schools lack the facilities or staff to provide specialist science teaching, and this disproportionately affects those from disadvantaged backgrounds. These, and other, factors can leave young people uninspired by science, or ignorant of its relevance to their lives or potential for careers.

External science education programmes make a positive, measurable difference to young people’s understanding of, and interest in, science. These programmes help to give young people access to a stimulating and relevant science education, which sparks their curiosity and encourages more of them to see themselves as future scientists.

For primary-aged pupils, they inspire a sense of wonder and excitement with science, and provide access to state-of-the-art facilities and specialist teaching that primary schools don’t have; for secondary they sustain or re-energise a passion that may have waned, free from the constraints of exam-driven curriculums. For all they create an opening to the possibilities of science, that school teachers can subsequently capitalise on.

Summer science workshops for everyone

The Royal Institution, who have been engaging the public with science for over 200 years, put this into practice through activities like our summer schools programme. In the summer holidays, we run a series of workshops for young people aged 7-18, covering all areas of science, from maths and engineering to chemistry and computing!

Workshops in the L’Oreal Young Scientist Centre – a modern laboratory in the Ri’s historic home in central London – have provided hands-on experiences in cutting-edge science for more than 52,000 young people since 2009. Our imaginative and exploratory workshops, led by a dedicated team, aim to bring science to life in the most compelling way and offer young people from all backgrounds a fascinating insight into the reality of life as a scientist or engineer.

Putting science learning into practice

Young people can explore topics in biology, chemistry, physics and engineering, by making explosive bath bombs, extracting their own DNA, investigating forensic science, exploring the chemistry of colour and much more! The whole experience ignites a passion for scientific discovery and encourages curiosity-driven learning.

Students can enjoy an environment in the LYSC that will not constrain them to producing the ‘right’ results in a fixed period of time, as they often must do within the boundaries of the school curriculum. Instead they’ll be able to be creative and to experiment in response to their observations, just as professional research scientists do. And just as in the best research laboratories, students have access to advanced technology and experiments outside the remit of the normal school curriculum.

“Don’t just tell them about science, show them”

William Lawrence Bragg, the youngest ever Nobel Prize winner and former Director of the Ri’s Laboratory, on setting up the schools lecture programme at the Ri in 1956 said: “Don’t just tell them about science, show them”.

Dave Porter goes further: “As the first Manager of the LYSC my unofficial mantra is ‘don’t just show them demonstrations, let them experiment themselves.’ It is really important that when students leave the centre they feel as if they have been trusted to make their own decisions, look after their own equipment and been heavily involved in guiding the course of their work. This is as true for younger visitors, who investigate acids and alkalis and solids and liquids whilst making bath bombs and lip balms, as it is for the post 16 students who analyse their own genotype with advanced molecular biological techniques.”

Other workshops in the summer schools programme are devised by the Ri’s Masterclasses team, where students take part in sessions led by experts from across industry and academia. The Masterclass programme was started by Prof Sir Christopher Zeeman in 1981 after the popularity of his 1978 Christmas Lectures on mathematics, and aims to open the eyes of young people to the excitement, beauty and value of mathematics, engineering and computer science.

Going beyond the school curriculum

The summer workshops are unique hands-on and interactive extracurricular sessions that go beyond the school curriculum and bring these subjects to life through surprising topics such as art and sculpture, design, medicine and cryptography. Students can design and build their own underwater robots, have a go at computer coding and mathematical origami, or even try their hand at bioengineering.

The 2019 summer schools programme went live at rigb.org/families/summer-schools on Wednesday 17 April. We’re pleased to cater for children with special needs or physical disabilities, and to be able to offer funded places in partnership with the Potential Trust. And of course, Ri Young Members receive 15% off all summer schools bookings, amongst other exciting perks!