Science education experts are calling for a revamp of science curriculum to prevent young people falling behind on the skills their future depends on.
In a new report, the Australasian Science Education Research Association (ASERA) makes a number of practical recommendations, including incorporating AI into science curriculum, having dedicated science specialist teachers in early childhood and primary school settings, and improved professional learning so generalist classroom teachers are better equipped to teach science.
The Science Education: Fit for the Future White Paper – prepared by experts from Flinders University, Deakin University and other Australian and New Zealand academics – provides direction for the development of a new ‘National Science Education Strategy’ in Australia and New Zealand across all levels of schooling. The recommendations cover policy, practice and research.
Flinders University lecturer Dr Carol Aldous, who chaired the ASERA working group, says the report stresses the need to foster and grow a ‘science identity’ within the community from early childhood through to adulthood.
“We need science curricula, resources and teachers that effectively prepare young people as both science-informed citizens and future professionals who can engage authentically with contemporary scientific thinking, practices and values,” Dr Aldous says.
The recommendations for science learning and teaching aim to address the 21st century challenges, including the rise of AI, climate change, global health crises, biodiversity loss, energy transition, changing perspectives on Indigenous knowledges, and the concerning rise in misinformation about science, especially on social media.
President and Managing Director of ASERA, Deakin University’s Professor Linda Hobbs, says the recommendations seek to future-proof science education by helping students connect science to their personal lives and the wider world.
“We know that prospering nations are those whose citizens understand and value scientific knowledge and can apply it in community decision-making and in pursuing science-related careers,” she says.
“That’s why we need to address the continued decline in student interest and enrolment in senior secondary science subjects and university science.
“The flow-on effect is a decline in the number of students pursuing careers in science teaching, which in turn affects the overall quality and availability of science education.”
Other recommendations in the report include:
- Incorporating critical and emerging technologies, including AI and future scientific advancements, into the curriculum
- Integration of cross-disciplinary studies in the science curriculum, moving beyond siloed subject offerings
- Implementing policies that build teachers’ disciplinary backgrounds and strengths by incentivising pathways for non-science teachers to re-specialise in a science discipline
- Ensuring science teachers have targeted access to professional learning associated with contemporary curriculum developments, including the use of AI
- Ensuring that teachers of senior secondary science receive preparation in pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), as well as content knowledge, since PCK for a given science discipline can make discipline content more accessible to students
- Creating stronger links between schools and universities, business and industry including mentorship programs, ongoing professional development and collaborative projects
- Representing science as future-oriented in the science curriculum, with modelling and prediction as essential to science, especially for issues like climate change
- Conducting research to investigate the relationships between science degrees, science education preparation, and the conditions teachers face once employed, to identify effective practices, gaps, and targeted strategies.
The White Paper, Science Education: Fit for the Future (2026) was prepared by C Aldous (Flinders), R Tytler (Deakin), V Dawson (University of WA), D Treagust (Curtin University), L Hobbs (Deakin), Tanya Doyle (JCU), C Swanson (Auckland University of Technology) and T Spiteri (Monash University) was released on 1 July 2026.