7.1 Introduction I now want to take forward the notion of a science curriculum for public understanding, identifying problems and opportunities. Our guide in what follows is the Beyond 2000Â document, which emerged from a working group led by UK-based science educators, working collaboratively with science teachers, education researchers, professional scientists within universities, indust
6 The public understanding of science The phrase ‘the public understanding of science’ touches on many of the arguments highlighted up to now. In its simplest form, this is the level of scientific knowledge and understanding displayed by lay members of the public – those who are not scientifically trained. In the next reading, there is a mention of the survey methods that have been used to gauge the level of public understanding of science. Many of these are in the form of short exam-style knowledge questions – typical ex
5 Education for democracy? We are surrounded by, and interact increasingly with, scientific and technological products – for example, electronic miracles such as DVDs, mobile phones or microwave ovens; what is debatable is the extent to which we need to know anything of their workings to co-exist happily with them (see, for example, Chapman, 1991). Perhaps knowing something about the workings of mobile phones, for example, will help users assess the extent of any health risk they pose. Arguments for disseminating sci
3.1.5 (E) Historical development of scientific knowledge Pupils should be taught some of the historical background to the development of scientific knowledge.
3.1.3 (C) Scientific methods and critical testing Pupils should be taught that science uses the experimental method to test ideas, and, in particular, about certain basic techniques such as the use of controls. It should be made clear that the outcome of a single experiment is rarely sufficient to establish a knowledge claim.
Europe and the law
This unit will give you a basic understanding of EU law and the interaction between EU and domestic law. It will provide a brief explanation of the European Convention on Human Rights and other European legislation, as well as the background to such institutions as the European Council, the European Commission, the European Parliament and the European Court of Justice. First publish
9.5 Tables Using a table or just a set of columns can help you to analyse information and ideas. You can vary the number of columns and rows as needed. The following activity provides an opportunity for you to summarise information in a table. 6 Judges Judges play a central role in our legal system. According to our unwritten constitution, judges, who are employed to hear legal cases, are expected to deliver their decisions (known as judgments) in a completely impartial manner. They are required to apply the law strictly without allowing any p 5.2 Barristers In 2008 there were approximately 12,000 barristers in independent practice known as the Bar. Their governing body is the Bar Council. It acts as their regulatory body and sets the requirements for training, qualification and professional development. The main role of a barrister is advocacy i 4 Key players in law enforcement If a law is broken, who has the responsibility for ensuring that the individual or company who has broken the law is ‘brought to justice’? 2.3 Public and private law Public law involves the state or government in some way. There are three main types of law that fall into this category. Constitutional law: this controls how the Author(s): 2.2 Civil and criminal law One of the most common classifications and one that is used by many legal systems, is the distinction between civil and criminal law. As civil and criminal law have different purposes, different systems for dealing with them have developed. Criminal law is about creating laws for the protection of society as a whole and providing punishment for those who break those laws. Criminal law sets out types of behaviour that are forbidden within society and if the behaviour occurs, then punishm 1.2 The growth of the legal system The legal system plays a significant and growing role in society as our lives become governed by an increasing number of laws. As our society has become more sophisticated, a greater number of laws have been required. This in turn has resulted in our legal system becoming increasingly more complex. Changes in technology, the way in which we live and the types of relationships we have are all reflected by the law. Society expects the law to reflect its ideas, values and culture, so the law has 1.1 The constitution The UK has a common law legal system. It is very difficult to give a simple definition of the legal system in the UK, but you may find it helps to think of it as the system that covers how all civil and criminal laws are made, used and enforced. A fundamental part of any legal system is its Author(s): Learning outcomes After completing this unit you will have a basic understanding of: how the legal system in the UK works; how laws are made in the UK; some of the key players in UK law enforcement; different ways of taking notes. Acknowledgements The content acknowledged below is Proprietary (see terms and conditions) and is made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 Licence Grateful acknowledgement is made to the following sources for permission to reproduce material in this unit: The content acknowledged below is P 6.1 Influences on the law-making process In Part E I will discuss the influence of pressure groups in the rule-making process and assess the role that citizens can have in influencing the laws Parliament makes. As you have seen already, most Acts of Parliament are the outcome of the policy decisions taken by Government and the actual policies pursued will depend upon the political goals of that Government. Most Acts result from Government Bills sponsored by the relevant Minister. Education legislation, for example, will be int 4.8 Professional regulations Certain professional bodies, such as The Solicitors Regulation Authority, have delegated authority under enabling legislation to regulate the conduct of their members. The Solicitors Regulation Authority has power to control the conduct of practising solicitors under the Solicitors Act 1974. The General Medical Council regulates the conduct of its members under the Medical Act of 1858. It has four main functions: to keep up-to-date registers of qualif 3,3,7 Royal Assent You have already seen references to Royal Assent in this unit. The monarch formally assents to a Bill in order for it to pass into law. Royal Assent has never been withheld in recent times. Queen Anne was the last monarch to withhold a Royal Assent, when she blocked a Scottish Militia Bill in 1707. The Queen feared a Scottish militia might be turned against the monarchy. Since the sixteenth century no monarch has actually signed a Bill themselves. Instead, the monarch signs what are kno 3.3.5 Third reading This is the final vote on the Bill. It is almost a formality since a Bill which has passed through all the stages above is unlikely to fail at this late stage. In fact, in the House of Commons there will only be a further debate on the Bill if at least six MPs request it. In the House of Lords amendments may sometimes be made at this stage.
Activity 7: Completing a table
Activity 5: Who enforces the law?
