#596: Thoughts on the proposed subject content

Last Friday saw the document that we had been waiting for for a long time: proposed subject content for the GCSE Natural History.

I've been looking through it to make a sort of 'to do' list ahead of the next stage of the process and have scribbled all over a copy of the document below - and started collating some comments for the consultation.

There's still a lot of thinking to do.

There are some other perspectives from a Labour MP for example...

This piece from Seirian Summer in Phys.org / The Conversation made some interesting points.

The education system has done little to nurture curiosity and understanding of nature in real life.

They like the ecology aspects:

This curriculum serves the field of ecology pretty well. Students will learn to identify native species found in grasslands, woodlands, urban and marine environments. They will learn about the dynamic relationships between species and the implications of human influence (including climate change) for habitats, ecosystems and species. This helps equip the next generation as effective stewards of the natural world, and it complements other subjects such as biology and geography.

On the idea of plant blindness"

We have become a nature-blind society: "plant blindness" is a term used to describe how we fail to see the most common wildlife (plants) under our noses. We need to relearn the innate ability we all had as toddlers to notice the tiny creatures beneath our feet or the fractal patterns emanating through sunlit leaves.

On the 20 hours of fieldwork that the course requires, they say it's not enough - GCSE PE includes 45 hours of practical time... (which may not take place outside of course).

Twenty hours is an average of 15 minutes a week over a two-year GCSE. Hardly time to step outside, let alone find something that catches your eye, make notes about its appearance and behavior, then find the right identification key to name it. In a time-stressed world, noticing nature—really observing it closely, not just ticking species off a list—offers an excuse to slow down, be mindful and spark your curiosity.

They also mention something that I think should form part of the assessment: a nature journal, with observations, leaves and other related ephemera, sketches, sound recordings, images and drawings and clippings from newspapers and other sources, plus tickets of places visited and events attended.

A short course on nature journalling may be an option for teachers, providing guidance on fieldwork observation, recording and methods used in ecology. There are 17 bullet points in that section of the proposed content.

More to come over the next year...

#595: Greening the Curriculum

"It's not good enough that sustainability is restricted to a few subjects and that most of our teachers and lecturers don’t know enough about it. Our education system must teach the truth and prepare us for the future, because we are the future."

Teach the Future – A youth led campaign sponsored by the NUS

Produced by OCR as part of the preparations for the development of the new qualification.

Greening the Curriculum.

#594: UK Species

The Natural History Museum has a page on the UK's species.

The museum is working on bringing all of the standard reference names for all species of flora and fauna in the UK, together in one place.

Over 70,000 species of animals, plants, fungi and single-celled organisms are found in the UK.

A SEARCH function is available for this inventory.

#593: Wild Isles

The recently released proposed subject content references a BBC series called 'Wild Isles', which was made in association with the Open University.

This inspired the 

There was an associated book published and I've bought a cheap second hand copy so that I have it as reference for whatever resources I get involved in creating.

Wild Isles is a celebration of the wildlife found on a relatively modest collection of islands positioned at a latitude so northerly to be unattractive to many animals and plants. Despite these unpromising foundations, the islands of Britain and Ireland, together with more than 6,000 lesser islets that make up our archipelago, contain some of the most diverse, beautiful and wildlife-rich landscapes and seas on our planet. This book will explore the fascinating relationships within and between species who make their home on our beautiful isles.

Each chapter focuses on a particular kind of wild space. Britain and Ireland are dominated by a wide variety of grasslands from lowland water meadows to upland moors, and we will see how these human-shaped, semi-natural landscapes thrum with insect, bird and mammal life. Life requires water to flourish, and streams and rivers carry freshwater through our landscape, creating unique ecosystems and interrelations within and beside these waters, which are revealed in a third section. While Britain and Ireland's woodlands are comparatively thin on the ground compared with most of continental Europe, we will see some of the forests and trees that remain are unusually ancient and, great repositories of life. Finally, of course, we are surrounded by sea, and our position on the continental shelf before it plunges into the depths of the Atlantic Ocean gives rise to an often overlooked plenty of marine life. A glorious richness divided into five breathtaking sections.

The book has inspired the choice of habitats in the proposed subject content, from which awarding bodies will have to develop worked examples and sample wildlife (flora and fauna) for students to engage with.

The series can be viewed on BBC iPlayer.

There was also a separate OU booklet which I requested at the time, and is added to my list of resources.

As well as the main series, there's a documentary exploring how to protect the Wild Isles.

#592: Life after Death

Another article from 'The Conversation' which will be a useful resource to mine for suitable inspiration for some of the proposed curriculum content for the GCSE Natural History.

It explores how things that have died pass on their nutrient to new life...

The term "ecological memory" is used here.

#591: More coverage of the draft subject content conultation

More coverage of today's announcement in a few other places.

The TES covered the announcement.

Education secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “As we move into a world where careers are being increasingly shaped by science, technology and environmental change, it’s crucial young people have the skills for the jobs of tomorrow.

“This new GCSE will help students build a strong understanding of the natural world, alongside the knowledge, skills and hands-on experience to access careers in some of the UK’s fastest growing sectors.”

She added: “With extensive fieldwork built in, the GCSE will also get young people out and about exploring local parks, rivers and more - a critical part of childhood as more and more of our worlds are taken up by screens.”

Dr Doug Gurr, director of the Natural History Museum, said there was a “strong demand” from young people for learning more about nature.

He believes the new qualification could help “equip a generation with the knowledge, skills and confidence to create a future in which people and planet thrive”.

Doug Gurr, the director of the Natural History Museum wrote in the 'Daily Telegraph'.

Bridget Phillipson visited the Natural History Museum today to launch the consultation.

We've had a good surge of new members on the GCSE Natural History Facebook group - and are now up over 900 members.

#590: Finally!

We have finally got some progress on the next stage of the GCSE Natural History, with a consultation on draft / proposed subject content.

The DfE has shared this on their website.

We have worked with experts and stakeholders to develop proposed subject content for a new GCSE in natural history. The GCSE will allow students to engage with and study specific organisms, including plants or animals and the contexts in which they live, and their complex interactions and dependencies.

It will develop students’ skills of observation, description, recording and analysis, through sustained and structured field study.

Findings from this consultation will be taken into account when finalising the subject content.

Ofqual will consult on assessment arrangements later this year.

We will be taking a look at this over the weekend and sharing some initial thoughts and ideas, and will be responding to the consultation as well.

There are also almost 600 posts on the blog to dig into for resource creation.

Also in the Guardian this piece, featuring Steve Backshall.

Not so sure about the Guardian headline here... the course will hopefully teach a lot more than that...

#589: Encounter Edu Live Lessons

Jamie Buchanan Dunlop has shared details of the latest Encounter Edu  live lesson for older students coming up for the end of term. This will happen on the 2nd of July 2026.

Learn from three leading climate scientists in this live lesson from the Exeter Climate Forum. This is an opportunity to hear about three different perspectives on the climate challenge, with plenty of time for discussion afterwards.

Students will hear from Dr Mike O'Sullivan on the global carbon budget, Professor Peter Mumby on the impact of warming oceans on coral, and Dr Tom Powell on positive tipping points and the road to action and hope.

The format will be a quick introduction that frames the importance of climate change, followed by each speaker making a brief presentation in turn. The rest of the live lesson will be given to questions from the audience.

This session is designed for A-level students and senior secondary students with an interest in climate science, environmental policy, or related fields. Teachers and other related professionals are also welcome to attend.

More details and booking link here.

#588: UK wildlife on British banknotes - the shortlist.

The shortlisted animals which may appear on bank notes from the Bank of England have been revealed.

The replacement of historical characters, particularly Sir Winston Churchill, with British wildlife sent political leaders into a frenzy of condemnation earlier this year.

But now people have a month to offer their views about which species of wildlife should be honoured on the £5, £10, £20 and £50 notes.

The shortlist, chosen by a panel of wildlife experts, excluded household pets. People will be able to vote for up to six of their favourites from the shortlist, external.

The mammals are: the bottlenose dolphin, the brown hare, the European hedgehog, the grey seal, the pine marten and the red fox.

The second category of birds feature: the Atlantic puffin, the barn owl, the common kingfisher, the Eurasian curlew, the great spotted woodpecker, and the white-tailed eagle.

The final section of amphibians, insects and fish, has: the Atlantic salmon, the basking shark, the buff-tailed bumblebee, the common frog, the Emperor dragonfly, and the marsh fritillary butterfly.

Vote here before the 3rd of July.

#587: Hamza on Tour

If the GCSE Natural History is to reach as many young people as possible, it will need ambassadors.

Hamza's enthusiasm would make him perfect for this role, and he is going on tour in 2027.

#586: Oxford Education Deanery - a CPD opportunity

The Oxford Education Deanery Climate & Nature Collaborative is a two-day professional development course for school teachers, based at the University of Oxford’s Department of Education.

Bringing together leading experts and dedicated educators, the Collaborative offers seven focused sessions designed to deepen your practice and broaden your impact:

• Natural history approaches, including a session at Oxford’s Museum of Natural History
• Cross-curricular frameworks with an expert from the UCL Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability Education
• Research-informed pedagogies for climate and nature education
• Climate emotions and student well-being
• Student voices in climate and nature education
• Subject-specific working groups, culminating in a showcase of participants’ projects and ideas
• Oxford’s leading Net Zero research and what it means for the classroom

Rooted in the latest research, the Collaborative foregrounds hope, solution-focused thinking, and emotional awareness — equipping teachers with practical strategies that carry directly into classrooms, schools, and communities.

The two days include a dinner at Trinity College, Oxford, lunch on Friday, and time at the historic Museum of Natural History — making this as much a celebration of Oxford’s intellectual and cultural life as it is a professional learning experience.

Booking, programme and all the details here.

#585: Access to the stones

A cross posting with my World of Music blog.

There are a few locations where the labours of people from prehistory can still be seen.

The idea of following the story of human impact on natural history is part of the draft specification and one would assume it might follow through into the next iteration of the specification as one of the particular aspects of the new qualification.

Historic Environment Scotland (HES) is apparently considering charging to access some of the more well known locations they manage, including the stones of Callanish / Callanais on the Isle of Harris/Lewis. I visited many years ago.

One programme which is behind the increased interest in the area is a time-travel fantasy called 'Outlander'. This has proved very popular.

Cruise ships can arrive at some of these fragile locations in large numbers, which adds additional pressures onto fragile environments.

This album was recorded by the New Zealand musician Jon Mark in 1988 and is named after the ring at Callanish.

And here's a slightly different stone-circle related song...

#584: Springwatch 2026

It's always good to have Springwatch back... although that means another spring from the ones that I have left to see...

This time round the team are in Northern Ireland.

Last night's episode was a good opener, and you can see them on BBC and iPlayer. You can keep up with the action on the live wildlife cameras too.

One would hope that someone like Chris Packham or Michaela Strachan might be persuaded to work as ambassadors for the new specification once it gets to the stage where it is introduced into schools.

#583: New Climate Change film

Michael Sheen has narrated a new film on climate change.

A cross posting from my Passed the Point of No Return blog.

This story came through via the BBC News Norfolk page.

It's about a film which was filmed on the West Acre estate, a few miles from where I live.

It was written in collaboration with young farmers and it questions why discussions about the weather are so common, in contrast to discussions about climate change.

Environmental campaign group the Climate Majority Project hopes the five-minute film will help pupils and teachers speak "honestly and sensitively" about the issue.

It was written by King's Lynn-born playwright Emma-Louise Howell, who spent time speaking to young farmers in the county about their experience of climate change.

She said: "They really were engaged in it and they were almost shouting into a void saying 'we have got a bit of an answer, working with nature'.

"You can't control the weather, but they are having to adjust every single day to the shift in climate.

"It's not conceptual to them."

The Climate Majority project provides more details about their work.

The film is narrated by Michael Sheen, who lends his distinctive voice to the film.

More details on the Substack here.

In the past 6 hours, 94% of Brits have spoken about the weather.

In the past 5 years, 7000 Brits have been arrested for speaking out about the climate crisis.

Now we’re asking: how can we change small-talk into a conversation for meaningful change?

Watch the film here:

#582: Otter Valley Association

The Otter Valley Association was founded in 1979.

The OVA is a civic society founded to interest residents and visitors in the history, geography, natural history and architecture of this area of Devon. The OVA covers the area of East Devon from Newton Poppleford and Harpford to Budleigh Salterton following the River Otter down to the sea.

We visit the River Otter every summer during our holidays down to Devon, where we always end up in either Otterton or Budleigh Salterton or some other location along the river's course.

#581: Natural History Reading List:#27 Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds and Shape Our Futures

I have this book as an Audible copy, and it is excellent. 

It is also available to purchase in paperback and hardback, or loan from your local library.

If you haven't already got a copy then it may be worth going for the illustrated version which has some wonderful images of fungi.

A film of the book has also been made, with narration by Björk.

#580: Nature's Heartbeat

Ben Hennig has produced a range of maps on the Worldmapper website and also on his own blog.

Some of them are animated.

Nature's heartbeat visualises the Earth "breathing in and out" through the year.

See the cartogram here (PDF download) from Geographical magazine.

#579: Natural History Reading List #26: Fenland Nature

A cross-posting from my GeoLibrary blog, which currently features over 700 books.

This was picked up in Topping Books just before the summer 2025. It's a really detailed and comprehensive guide to the nature to be found in the Fens. It's a book to dip into rather than read cover to cover, with chapters exploring different aspects of the Fenland landscape.

There are lots of excellent photographs, mostly taken by the authors themselves, who have certainly put in the legwork and mileage to cover the region they are writing about.

Publisher's description:

This book showcases the natural history and landscape of the Fens, an area now responsible for a third of Britain’s food production and worth over £3 billion to the economy every year. It describes the geology and geography across the Fenland Basin over the last 14,000 years, a period dominated by the flux of wetlands and movement of water. The human relationship with this landscape is traced through history: from Mesolithic hunters to the prosperity of a medieval economy based on the currency of eels, through the taming and draining of the vast wetlands, to modern farming on an industrial scale.

While recognising that only a fraction of the Fens is left, Fenland Nature celebrates the breadth of wildlife still to be found in the region, from vast flocks of visiting wildfowl in the winter months, to rare and specialised plants and insects – all illustrated with detailed and evocative photographs.

The book concludes by contemplating an uncertain future where there are possibilities for a sustainable agricultural industry alongside increasing biodiversity, requiring new ways of thinking and working with the land. The fenland landscape is a microcosm of the huge global challenges caused by habitat loss, ecological degradation and climate change. If solutions can be found to these complex issues in the Fens, then there is hope that these can also apply to similar places across the world.

It's written by two local authors who really know their local patch well. A great coffee table / browsing book.

A good review by Mark Avery.

It sits nicely with my other Fenland books - dipped into to inform my teaching about the local area.

My copy was published by Pelagic Publishing.

Paperback, 376pp

ISBN: 9781784274108

#578: Deepdale Podcast

I am fortunate enough to live close to the North Norfolk coast. I used to live on the coast itself at Snettisham for 12 years which allowed me to cycle to the beach. 

On the edge of the village is Ken Hill, which has latterly become a venue for Springwatch and a regenerative farm.

The Deepdale Podcast is now live, and there are several posts which would be of interest.

#577: Natural History Reading List #25: 'How to read a Tree'

Another really useful book by navigation expert Tristan Gooley.

I have a signed copy of his previous book: 'The Natural Explorer'

This book explores what a tree can tell us about the landscape. It says a great deal about the value of trees and how they interact with the soil, atmosphere, weather and biodiversity. They influence the drainage and fertility of the soil, and can also tell us a lot about where we are, and how the landscape is changing.

The loss of a tree can touch millions, as we saw with the felling of the Sycamore Gap tree.

It would make a useful book to add to the library for those who are considering work in local woodlands for fieldwork. We are still waiting to see to what extent woodlands are featured in the final specification.

My thinking would be that the final specification would involve students investigating a range of ecosystems and the value of a tree is something which students should certainly be asked to consider, perhaps when thinking about the wider 'value' of nature in our lives and landscapes.

Published by Hodder Press

Paperback, 320pp

ISBN: 978-1529339628