Gnvq science your questions answered, second edition Pounds 11.99. - 0435 632574.

Although Nuffield has done well to produce GNVQ Science Advanced in such a short time, there are some drawbacks to the book - there is insufficient underpinning knowledge to support its information. Some of the reference section topics would have been better and more helpful if they were included in the main text.

This is a book for general national vocational qualification advanced science, covering the mandatory units. Each unit is divided into chapters, then sub- divided into topics. The book looks attractive, has an imaginative use of colour and is easy to follow.

It has plenty of examples from research fields and everyday life showing what scientists do. It also contains some useful diagrams and tables, but some diagrams are so small that they give rise to inaccurate information. This is probably due to the fact that a lot of information is condensed into a few pages and clarity is lost. Similarly some tables do not include any units, which make the information meaningless.

The section on Thoughts and Actions includes a variety of activities that provide a framework for portfolio building and also give ideas to teachers for assignments.

The book is well worth buying especially for teachers who are new to vocational courses. At the same time it includes some of the more recent findings that are not available in conventional books.

The book contains some good chapters and references with information which will be useful for both teachers and students and for this reason I recommend that every library should have a copy.

GNVQ Science - Your questions answered is based on the experience of many of the teachers and lecturers who piloted the GNVQ science course over the past two years. It covers many issues which have to be addressed before starting the new course and includes up-to-date information on grading and on foundation GNVQ science course.

There is information on how the centres have modified some of their programmes following the pilot programmes. The book gives first-hand information on setting up the courses and there are examples of the centres that have set up such courses without any prior knowledge of vocational science.

It gives guidance on how to timetable and use staff to teach such courses together with information on induction, assessment and record keeping. There are a number of case studies in the book that are useful in giving guidance on programming the GNVQ course and approaching teaching it.

There are suggestions on planning and use of record sheets together with an induction programme. There is also a chapter on recruitment and progression to higher education.

I found the first edition very useful during the pilot scheme and feel the second edition will be even more valuable as it is the product of many teachers and lecturers who have spent many hours in developing the GNVQ in science with the help of Nuffield Foundation.

This is a very useful book and I would recommend to anyone who is thinking of setting up or is running the GNVQ in science course. It should be on the desks of every GNVQ science co-ordinator.