Since September 1999, preparations for the introduction of science, as part of social environment and scientific education in the revised primary school curriculum, have been under way. During the 1999-2000 school year, a number of supports were provided for schools: the science curriculum and teacher guidelines were disseminated to all primary teachers; a total of £1.7 million in the form of grants was made available to schools for the purchase of science equipment; a school development planning initiative was launched to assist schools in curriculum planning; and a comprehensive programme of courses for teachers in primary science was run during the summer of 2000.
In the current school year, as part of the work of the primary curriculum support programme, a developmental project in science has already been initiated with a representative sample of schools. This work will facilitate teachers in exploring the approaches and methodologies and the range of materials necessary for teaching science.