What will be the impact of the (proposed) new GCSE in Natural History and how can academics help?
Author and journalist Mary Colwell is an inspiration. For 10 years she has politely and tenaciously pushed for a new GCSE in Natural History and now it actually looks as if it is going to happen – teaching is hopefully going to start in September 2023. The Junior Oxford English Dictionary had to remove words such as bramble and acorn because they were no longer being used by today’s young, and the race is on to get them back in. But more than that – this GCSE is a challenge to our siloed education system because it draws on natural sciences, history, anthropology, economics and much more. This could be a game changer for education and for the understanding of biodiversity by tomorrow’s voters.

Mary has kindly agreed to join us for this discuss of the potential of this new GCSE, and I would like to discuss how academics can get involved to support it. Can your research be distilled into a resource that will find a niche in a GCSE Natural History classroom in 2023? And remember, if you can convince the kids, the journalists are easy.

More about Mary and her latest book, ‘Beak, Tooth and Claw Living with Predators in Britain’ here: www.nhbs.com/beak-tooth-and-claw-book?bkfno=251026&ad_id=3842
Date: 27 October 2021, 10:00 (Wednesday, 3rd week, Michaelmas 2021)
Venue: Venue to be announced
Speaker: Mary Colwell
Organising department: School of Geography and the Environment
Organisers: Dr. Cecile Girardin (School of Geography), Carlyn Samuel (University of Oxford)
Hosts: Dr. Cecile Girardin (School of Geography), Carlyn Samuel (University of Oxford)
Part of: Biodiversity Network Coffee Seminar Series
Booking required?: Required
Booking url: https://bookwhen.com/oxfordbiodiversitynetwork/e/ev-sml7-20211027100000
Audience: Members of the University only
Editor: Carlyn Samuel