Primary Science Enhancement Award for Early Career Teachers

Here you will find a helpful document with step-by-step instructions for early career teachers on how to register for the PSEA Portal, including details on entering personal information and confirming registration. Once you’re ready, simply follow the registration link to get started.

• PSEA ECT Instructions TO REGISTER
• ECT registration link

This document provides step-by-step instructions for ECTs on how to log in to the PSEA ECT Portal, including guidance on email verification and secure access procedures.

• PSEA ECT Instructions TO LOG IN
• ECT log in link

Here you can download essential resources, including the Primary Science Enhancement Scheme (PSEA) handbook, as well as a portfolio exemplar.

• PSTT Primary Science Enhancement Scheme for ECTs HANDBOOK 2025-26

This handbook is designed for both tutors running the award and the early career teachers taking part. It offers a comprehensive explanation of the scheme’s aims, principles, and expectations. It provides a detailed overview of the PSEA process, from start to completion, and includes clear instructions on how to complete the portfolio. Additionally, it offers guidance on accessing the portal, uploading required information, and submitting the completed portfolio.

• PSEA Portfolio Exemplar Z

This document is an anonymised portfolio from a previous applicant (assessed as meeting the standard) to give you a clear idea of the expectations for your own portfolio. Annotations have been added to support you to develop your own reflective writing and to construct a portfolio that demonstrates how your knowledge, skills, practice and attitudes have changed over the course of the PSEA scheme.

Choose an article from the Association for Science Education publication, Primary Science, that describes a particular strategy or approach. Try this with a group/class of children. Reflect on the outcomes, with reference to the article.

Teachers are encouraged to look for an article themselves; any article that presents an approach or strategy for teaching science can be chosen, and scheme tutors will be able to provide advice about whether or not a particular article would be suitable. Alternatively, the list of articles included here would be suitable for this task and are available to download.

Primary Science (2020) 1590, 12-16

This article outlines different techniques to develop talk and higher order thinking within science lessons including Odd One Out, What if…?, True or False, Cloze text, Ordering a text, and Meet the expert.

Primary Science (2020) 1590, 47-51

This article explains what floorbooks are and how using them to record children’s learning in science can support effective teacher assessment of practical science skills and conceptual understanding, and models the collaborative nature of science.

Primary Science (2019) 159, 9-13

This article discusses some of the possible pitfalls of commonly used wow moments in science such as making a volcano, making a larva lamp, squealing balloons, dancing raisins, and floating ping-pong balls. For each activity there are suggestions for how to ensure meaningful learning.

Primary Science (2019) 159, 29-31

This article introduces the Frames for Focus approach (placing an object in the centre of a paper A3 frame and adding instructions in the corners). The benefits for children with special learning requirements are discussed.

Primary Science (2020) 161, 33-35

This article describes Bucket School as an approach for exciting outdoor learning.

Primary Science (2020) 163, 14-16

This article explains how drama and role-play can provide a context for children’s learning in science and broaden their awareness of STEM careers.

Choose a free PSTT resource from the list below and try it with a group/class of children. Reflect on the learning outcomes and in particular on the questioning you used.

• A Why and How? Challenge from the PSTT Newsletters – practical science challenges that can be done with a small group or whole class.
• An activity from Science for One – these use minimal easy to obtain resources. They were originally designed for doing practical science while maintaining social distancing but are equally good for collaborative enquiry.
  
• An investigation from Starters for Science – these are short videos that introduce a science enquiry through a real world context. We suggest you choose from (1) Paper Towers, (4) Shadow Puppets, (5) Falling Paper, or (15) Making Music.
  
• An activity from City Science Stars – Lesson ideas that are linked to football and to space (many can be done outside).
• An activity from EYFS (Play, Observe & Ask) – Activities, strategies, provision and examples of children (3-5) learning science.
• An activity or approach from ‘Inclusive approaches for Primary Science: a guidance booklet’ produced by Sheffield Hallam University following their curriculum development project, Primary Science for All.

Interview a science subject leader who has recently completed the Primary Science Quality Mark (PSQM) to find out how they identified the priorities for their school and the steps they undertook to address these.

It is expected that this activity will be carried out near the end of the programme after most or all of the other activities have been completed. Scheme tutors and PSTT will liaise with PSQM to make the arrangements for interviews which could be face to face or virtual. Interviews might also be done as a group where teachers work together to carry out the interview.

If you have questions, please visit our ECT Tutor FAQs page.