Chemical and Physical Science (CAPS)

The new specification for Chemical and Physical Science was published recently.

This will replace the current subject, Physics and Chemistry (PhysChem), which will be examined for the last time in summer 2028.

The new subject will be examined for the first time in summer 2029, meaning that it will be introduced to schools for 5th years next autumn (2027)

It will be examined with a 60% final exam, alongside a 40% AAC.

Oide will roll out support for this spec in the spring.

I have met a large number of teachers in schools over the last few years who talk about how difficult it can be to keep both Physics and Chemistry in the school timetable. With competition between subjects for numbers, the introduction of new subjects, and the needs of a school to have a decent-sized class to maintain a subject, one or the other often gets dropped. And once a subject is dropped, it can be very hard to get it back in there in subsequent years. CAPS could well be a part of a solution to that problem in schools.

I've looked through this spec in some detail and really think it is very well put together: not a splicing of one subject wiht the other, but a genuine blending of the two into a cohesive whole, which would prepare a student well for 3rd level if that is their destination, or leave them with a good understanding of science if not.