The quality of relationships between pupils and teachers continued to be a significant strength of primary schools and secondary science departments. In the best schools and science departments, all staff worked very effectively as a team. They contributed to policies and development tasks and set high standards in all aspects of their work. A key factor in this was the way in which all staff applied strategies consistently. This allowed them to establish an effective working environment which motivated, supported and encouraged pupils to work to the best of their abilities. Pupils, regardless of their prior attainment or the courses or programmes they were following, were equally valued and expected to achieve.

Effective features of ethos

Pupils worked best in an environment which was interesting and challenging and where there was a feeling of mutual respect between teacher and pupils. Many teachers worked hard to make their classroom or laboratory environment stimulating through, for example, the display of interesting scientific artefacts, pupils' best work, topical newspaper or magazine articles and photographs. This worked best where displays were changed regularly to reflect current topics and where pupils were involved in creating or displaying materials. Where classes had carried out fieldwork in the local environment or visited other places of scientific interest, this often provided them with additional resources and ideas which they could follow up in class, thus making a better link with the world outside the school. Artefacts or displays were linked to purposeful and appropriately challenging tasks which required pupils to observe, discuss and answer questions.

Teachers who were interested in pupils as individuals, used praise appropriately, and who were seen to be supportive and fair, gained the respect of their pupils. Where pupils were given positive and constructive feedback, whether oral or written, they gained in confidence since they were clear about what they had done well and what they needed to do to improve. During questioning, effective teachers matched questions well to individual pupil's needs. This allowed them to give positive feedback to pupils, all of whom gained some degree of success. Many schools had adopted a range of measures to recognise and reward pupils' efforts and achievements and to promote positive behaviour. In many classrooms and laboratories, pupils had discussed and agreed sensible measures to ensure a safe and healthy working environment in which the rights of other learners were respected. In some science departments, pupils and teachers had signed contracts or partnership agreements which acknowledged each other's expectations and commitments.

Where teachers made lessons interesting, relevant and challenging, pupils were motivated to learn and to perform well. From the moment pupils arrived in class, time was valued and teachers explained what had to be achieved and reinforced the standards of work which were expected. These values were transmitted to, and accepted by, pupils who responded by remaining on task and by producing high quality written work. In these situations, it was rare to find any signs of graffiti on jotters or furniture. Teachers regularly monitored pupils' classwork and homework, both to acknowledge good standards and to make suggestions for improvement. Headteachers and principal teachers often used this approach successfully to ensure consistency of standards across classes and over time.

In primary schools, where the class teacher was responsible for co-ordinating pupils' learning across the curriculum, it was easier to ensure that pupils were treated fairly and consistently, and that provision met their needs. This included those pupils with additional support needs and from different cultural backgrounds. In secondary schools, it was more difficult to ensure that pupils were treated fairly and consistently across the much wider variety of subjects and teachers. This was particularly true in S1/S2 science, where there was usually only a single course, often with little differentiation, for all pupils to follow. The situation was better at S3 to S6 where a wide range of science courses at different levels was available to meet the needs of almost all pupils. In schools where teachers valued all pupils and courses equally, pupils' expectations were uniformly high as were standards of achievement.

In both primary schools and secondary science departments, many teachers were committed to working with pupils outwith the formal classroom setting. For example, teachers ran or helped with extra-curricular activities, including science clubs, sporting activities, visits to science centres, and field trips, including visits overseas. This approach, which allowed pupils and teachers to work together in a less formal situation, had many benefits which carried over to the more formal work of the classroom. Teachers gained additional insight into the often unrecognised strengths, needs and talents of individual pupils. Similarly, pupils saw their teachers in a different light. On return to the classroom, teachers and pupils benefited from the improved working relationship.

In both primary schools and science departments, teachers sometimes invited parents or other guests to come and talk to their classes about aspects of science and the environment.

Main areas for improvement in ethos

Unmotivating coursework and over-concentration on mundane and unchallenging tasks, particularly in S1-S4 Science classes, often contributed to pupils' poor behaviour and attitude to work. In a significant number of schools, mainly secondary, this resulted in the behaviour of a small minority of pupils in particular classes sometimes disrupting the learning of other pupils. This was mainly confined to S1-S4 Science classes, and was particularly evident amongst boys in some S2 classes. In these classes, pupils were frequently not working purposefully on task, showed insufficient respect for teachers and other pupils and were often inappropriately dressed to work in a science laboratory. In some cases, teachers did not deal effectively with indiscipline in order to minimise disruption to other pupils.

Situations of indiscipline were most common where there was a lack of consistency in how teachers responded to their classes and where there was insufficient focus on promoting and rewarding positive behaviour. In these cases, there were often weaknesses in basic classroom management. These included a failure to establish how and when pupils entered and left classrooms, allowing pupils to shout out answers indiscriminately and ignoring pupils when they were not working on the tasks set for them. This was often compounded by learning and teaching which lacked relevance, rigour and challenge.