Alistair Moore
Research Fellow in Science Education

Profile

Biography

• Specialist in research-informed curriculum development and assessment
• Co-Director of the Best Evidence Science Teaching (BEST) project
• Science curriculum partner for Oak National Academy (Science Curriculum Development Lead)

I joined the Department of Education in 2013 as a science education researcher and curriculum specialist in the University of York Science Education Group (UYSEG). I have extensive experience in the development of research-informed curricula, assessments, teaching resources and training for the teaching and learning of science in schools.

I regularly collaborate with teachers to undertake research in schools, including as a lead researcher for the Practical Assessment in School Science (PASS) research project on the relationship between pedagogy and assessment in the development of practical skills and disciplinary knowledge in GCSE science.

I believe very strongly in applying the findings of science education research to transform evidence into teaching practice, and am the Co-Director of the Best Evidence Science Teaching (BEST) project which has published hundreds of free, research-informed teaching resources for science teachers. BEST was named a "Brand that Rules the Classroom" in the results of a national poll by Teacher Tapp in 2023. The BEST team was selected to be the science curriculum partner for Oak National Academy in 2023, to develop their science curriculum for national rollout based upon the research and approaches of BEST.

Over the years I have also worked on projects focused on effective interdisciplinary teaching at age 16-19, developing scientific literacy at age 13-16, and teaching & learning about genomics in schools. I have been a member of the Curriculum Committee at the Royal Society of Biology (RSB) since 2014, and was one of the lead authors of the RSB’s Evolving 5-19 Biology curriculum policy and framework document published in 2021. I am a senior examiner for GCSE Biology.

I have collaborated with numerous external stakeholders in school science education to develop research-informed resources and teacher training for school biology, including STEM Learning, the Association for Science Education (ASE), the Salters’ Institute, Science and Plants for Schools (SAPS), the Food and Environment Research Agency (FERA) and Oxford University Press (OUP).

I have worked in school science education since 2006, including a stint at one of the big three awarding organisations in England, where I led the development and implementation of new specifications for A-Level Biology and GCSE Sciences. I studied for a BSc in biology at the University of Durham and a PhD in immunology and biotechnology at the University of Cambridge.

Research

Research group(s)

• University of York Science Education Group (UYSEG)

Research projects

• Practical Assessment in School Science (PASS), funded by Wellcome, the Gatsby Foundation and the Royal Society
• Science Beyond the Boundaries, funded by the Templeton World Charity Foundation
• BEST in Action – evaluating the impact of the Best Evidence Science Teaching (BEST) resources in schools, funded by the Department of Education
• Genomics teaching in schools, funded by the Wellcome Genome Campus Public Engagement Team

Major research-informed curriculum development projects

• Oak National Academy science curriculum development, funded by the DfE
• Best Evidence Science Teaching (BEST), funded by the Salters’ Institute
• Twenty First Century Science, in collaboration with OCR, the Nuffield Foundation and Oxford University Press

External activities

Overview

Work on national science curricula, and curriculum policy

• OCR GCSE Natural History development (2023-present)
• Consultant to Ofqual on the use of selected response items in GCSE science assessments (2023)
• Lead author, "Evolving 5-19 Biology: Recommendations and framework for 5-19 biology curricula" policy position document (Royal Society of Biology, 2021)
• Invited to consult on government-funded Advanced Mathematics Support Programme (AMSP) project on maths for post-16 biology (2021)
• Contributed to the education section of the UK Plant Science Federation’s “Growing the Future” report; represented the University of York at the launch event at the House of Commons (2019)
• Consultant to the DfE and the RSB during reform of GCSE subject content criteria, assessment arrangements and KS4 national curriculum (2013-2014)
• Lead developer, GCSE Twenty First Century Science (2012, 2016)
• Lead developer, OCR A level Biology (2008)
• Consultant, GCSE Twenty First Century Science (2006)

Leading roles in assessment at national and international level

• Chief Examiner, question paper author, lead marker, specification writer (GCSE Biology)
• Question paper reviser (GCSE Combined Science)
• Question paper vetter (International O Level Science)
• KS2 Science Test Review Group, Standards and Testing Agency (STA)

Memberships

• Education and Science Policy Committee, Royal Society of Biology
• Curriculum Committee, Royal Society of Biology
• Biology Education Research Group, Royal Society of Biology
• Research Committee, Association for Science Education (ASE)
• Science Consultative Forum, Cambridge Assessment
• Natural History Consultative Forum, Cambridge Assessment

Selected keynotes, panels and seminars 

• Keynote speaker: "Evidence from research: Effective practical work and responding to the COVID deficit in practical skills" (PiXL Science Conference for 450 Heads of Science, February 2024)
• Keynote speaker: "Evidence from research: How can we ensure practical work best supports learning?" (South East England Secondary Science Festival, July 2023)
• Keynote speaker: "Evidence from research: How can we ensure practical work best supports learning?"  (Science Learning Partnership Conference, June 2023)
• Keynote speaker: "Mind the GAP! Lessons for science practical work and its assessment" (ASE National Conference, January 2022)
• Panellist: "How does science learning straddle the primary to secondary school transition?" (ASE National Conference, January 2022)
• Guest speaker: "Science practical work in a COVID-19 world: are teacher demonstrations, videos and textbooks effective replacements for hands-on practical activities?" (University of Southampton Education School seminar series, April 2021)
• Featured guest: "View from the Lab podcast: aiming to inform, engage and entertain with the help of thought leaders in science education", Pearson Edexcel (episode 12, autumn 2021)
• Panellist: "Beyond outreach: building students' understanding of what chemistry can do for them" (Royal Society of Chemistry, November 2020)
• Keynote speaker: "Making evidence-based practice happen in science classrooms" (ASE National Conference, January 2020)
• Presenter: "Invisible minorities: exploring the experiences of LGBT+ people in school STEM education" (LGBT STEMinar, January 2018)

Teacher training sessions presented

• Over 100 sessions on transforming research evidence into classroom practice, effective practical work, teaching plant science, teaching genomics, and effective formative assessment (including for ASE, STEM Learning, Science Learning Partnerships, British Schools in the Middle East (BSME) network, Royal Society of Chemistry, Coastal Schools Network, and the Salters’ Festivals of Chemistry, 2016-present)