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Posted on December 18th 2023
Science Reading Week 2023 – Technology, Biomedicine, Astrophysics
This year's Year 8 reading week in November focused on technology, biomedicine and astrophysics. Students were immersed in the world of technology by investigating the use of robotic arms. The biomedical article focused on recreating extinct species, while in astrophysics they read about experiments on carbon from Mars.
The students were eager to read during the sessions and enthusiastic during the peer-led discussions on each article. A number of questions arose about the extinct animals and how we can recreate them. There were some very thoughtful and passionate debates in class.
In the subsequent student survey, around 90% of respondents liked all three articles. This shows that the students found the topics interesting and appealing. Over 90% of the students did not find the articles too difficult to read. Each topic was accompanied by a glossary of terms and key phrases or words were highlighted.
We found that 80% of the cohort found the material relevant to their own context. A significant number of students were able to recall the meanings of some of the more complex terms used in the texts. This is a strong indication of the impact of the activity on literacy.
The following week, students came in and asked if we were going to do more literacy activities like the last one. There is a clear desire for more reading sessions and materials that extend their knowledge of the natural world.
Mr Tate, Science Teacher
