Teacher Conference for Post-16 Chemistry Event

Purpose of the Day
This is an annual event which is run by Chemistry at the University of Southampton in collaboration with the Maths and Science Learning Centre (formerly Science Learning Centre South East) and Wessex Group of 6th Form Colleges. The aim is to give Post-16 teachers in the region the opportunity to take a day out of school/college to spend time with colleagues from elsewhere and share good practice. Each year the programme is designed with input from teachers in local 6th form colleges affiliated to the Wessex Group (www.wessexsfc.ac.uk). Chemistry teachers from any school or college are welcome to attend.

To book: Telephone 02380 598810 or Email mslc@soton.ac.uk

There is no charge for attending this event.

Outline Programme

10:00 Arrival, Coffee
10:20 Introduction and update on Southampton Activities
10:30 A-level chemistry reforms (full title TBC)* - Steve Evans, Assistant Head of General Qualifications Reform, OCR.
11:30 The ‘chemistry triplet’, ‘multi-level thinking’ and other adventures - David Read, Chemistry, University of Southampton
12:15 Supporting A-level teaching with the Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre ** - Peter Hoare, School of Chemistry, Newcastle University
12:30 Lunch
13:15 Workshop sessions – groups rotate around 3 workshop sessions - See below for details
15:15 Coffee
15:30 Research Talk on Chemical Biology: Making DNA into drugs: the role of fluorinated oligonucleotides - Jon Watts, Chemistry, University of Southampton
16:00 Close

*Although Steve Evans’ talk will include elements which are specific to OCR, the aim of this session is to consider the wider issues pertaining to A-level reform, and the discussion which follows will undoubtedly be of value to those who are making decisions about which specification to study from 2015 onwards.
**Peter’s talk will be a short introduction to set the scene for the ‘hands-on’ workshop which will be running in the afternoon.

Workshop session details (1:15 - 3:15)
Participants will be divided into three groups in the afternoon which will rotate between 3 different workshop sessions. These are outlined below:

Workshop 1
Bite-Sized Resources Using Real 3D Crystal Structures to Teach Fundamental Concepts in A-level Chemistry -  Peter Hoare, School of Chemistry, Newcastle University

Peter and his MChem final year project and Nuffield Research Placement (end of year 12) students at Newcastle have collaborated with the CCDC team in Cambridge to create a set of teaching and learning resources for use at A-level which allow students to explore the structures of real molecules, ions and complexes stored on the CSD via a free-to-access web portal, the WebCSD. These resources support the teaching of topics such as shapes of molecules, geometric and optical isomerism, structure of benzene, transition metal chemistry and many others. This will be a hands-on workshop in a computer room and a booklet of exemplar teaching resources will be provided for each participant to take away and use with their students.

Workshop 2
Practical applications of chemical education research - David Read, Charles Harrison and Jon Tootill, University of Southampton

This workshop aims to enhance participants’ knowledge of specific teaching approaches which have their roots in the findings of chemical education research, and can have a significant positive impact on classroom practices. This knowledge will be developed through hands-on activities and discussion. It is hoped that some participants will sign up to join a longer-term study which will involve a group of teachers working with the Southampton team to probe the impact of any modifications to teaching practice on student learning.

Workshop 3
'Show and Tell' - Led by various

This event has been characterised by the extensive sharing of good practice between teachers from different schools and colleges. This session will be led by a team of teachers, who will share some specific innovations at the start of the session. This will be followed by an open discussion in which participants will be encouraged to share any innovations that they themselves have incorporated into their teaching. A record of the discussions will be disseminated over the event, capturing all 3 iterations for the benefit of all participants.

Research Talk on Chemical Biology

Making DNA into drugs: the role of fluorinated oligonucleotides - Dr Jon Watts

Oligonucleotides are likely to become a major class of therapeutics, and chemical modifications play a key role in improving the properties of this new class of drugs. This talk will discuss how fluorinated oligonucleotides can increase the potency and specificity of oligonucleotide-mediated gene silencing, including our results and some 'next frontiers' for future development.