October 2026 International Science Qualification News
Hello colleagues,
Welcome to your October update for International Science teachers.
For teachers of our IAL Science courses there's some news in this update regarding our new specifications which will be for first teaching in September 2027 - do get involved in our consultation on these if you are interested! We've also got news of free online resources and upcoming CPD opportunities, including new 'mark like an examiner' self-paced courses for International GCSE science teachers!
As ever, don't hesitate to get in touch if I can help in any way - why not book a Teams call with me (follow the link below) if it would be helpful to talk something over?
Best wishes,
Tim Lawrence
Pearson Edexcel Subject Advisor for International Science Qualifications
| Date | Activity |
|---|---|
| 16 October | January IAL exam entry deadline |
| 11 December | Deadline for Access to Scripts for May/June exam series |
Final exam timetables for the summer 2027 exam series are available on our webpage linked below.
Our redeveloped Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level qualifications in Biology, Chemistry and Physics will be available for first teaching in September 2027. They are being designed to provide a more coherent teaching, learning and assessment experience. Closer alignment across the specification, assessments and support resources including textbooks will help teachers plan with confidence and enable students to understand what is expected. Improved accessibility for learners using English as an additional language, alongside clearer guidance on breadth and depth, will support progression to university-level STEM study.
What isn't changing?
- The modular structure with three examination series, giving learners flexibility to sit units when they are ready
- Practical skills assessed through written papers, avoiding an additional live practical examination burden for schools
- Access to a full package of support services including training, subject experts, examWizard (test and exam generator), ResultsPlus (results analysis) and free access to scripts.
More information coming soon
An email to Exams Officers is scheduled to be sent later in October. The new specifications are due to be published in the first half of 2027.
You can use the link below to register for direct updates.
We're grateful for the input we've already received from teachers as we develop our new IAL specifications and resources. It's not too late to get involved if you'd like to share your views and haven't yet joined our teacher advisory group! You can be involved as much or as little as your time allows and activities could range from simple surveys to more detailed focus groups, as we explore ways to improve these qualifications.
If you are keen to be involved and provide feedback through multiple research opportunities, we want to hear from you! If this sounds like something you would like to be a part of, please fill in the form below to indicate your interest.
A reminder that the scientific articles for the October series for IAL Biology Unit 5 (WBI15) have been published on the 'teaching and learning materials' page - see link below, and a link to our FAQ document on how teachers should use the article to help students prepare for this exam.
As for the May/June series there are two scientific articles, the standard WBI15_01 article and the WBI15_01A article which is for candidates taking the new regional paper. This is only available in a specific region – most countries covered by the regional International GCSE papers are not included in this. If in doubt, please check with your Exams Officer who will receive official confirmation covering which article you should use., or feel free to contact me on teachingscience@pearson.com FAO Tim Lawrence.
You may need to scroll to the bottom of the list of scientific articles to find the current October 2026 articles.
See below for recommended resources.
This free resource is relevant to our IAL heart dissection practical as well as those of other boards. It covers the purpose of the practical, the full dissection procedure for
both external and internal structures, a complete risk assessment table with hazards and control measures, and guidance on the biological drawing. There are also key terms, recall questions and exam-style questions with mark schemes, plus a short explainer video.
The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) has some excellent virtual practical resources, in collaboration with PhET Interactive Simulations - try the link below for examples and to explore more of these.
STEM Learning have a set of free video resources aimed at A Level and Physics students which cover many of the key practical techniques of our IAL Physics course.
PhET Interactive Simulations is a free, open source project from the University of Coloardo, Boulder - there's plenty relevant to each of our International GCSE Science courses.
There are also a number of free animations and quizes available from Footprint Science (a subscription is needed to unlock the full library of resources).
Free online 'self-paced' courses for International GCSE Biology, Chemistry and Physics are now available. These use our new interactive training platform to deliver course content and assess understanding.
Register for our International GCSE 'Mark like an Examiner' self-paced courses.
In addition to face-to-face training in a number of countries, we also have a range of live online courses for International GCSE and IAL Biology available to book onto now. The first of these is 'Getting Ready to Teach' for IG Biology Modular on 26 October. Live online training for Chemistry and Physics teachers will launch shortly and when they are live you can search for them using the 'all coruses' link below.
View upcoming live online Biology events.
View all International Science courses available and book your places.
We also provide centre-based training opportunities. If this is something you would like to explore, please visit our training page below.
The questions below have been asked during training events recently, in our Facebook group or in emails to teachingscience@pearson.com:
The equations for the statistical tests (Spearman's rank, chi squared and t-test) will be given in the exam, so there is no need to learn these. However students should learn the simple equations which capture relationships such as cardiac output, stroke volume and heart rate.
In short, there is no requirement that students carry out practical work themselves for either Pearson Edexcel International GCSEs or IAL courses, however it is strongly recommended that they carry them out if possible as the best way to prepare themselves for the exam questions which will assess their knowledge of the core preacticals in the specification, and for future study and work in science.
You can read more about the assessment of practical work in these courses in this article.
Yes, as long as bilingual translation dictionaries have simple translations of words and not definitions, and they are confirmed to be 'clean copies' with no additional notes in them, they can be used by students whose first language is not English while sitting their exams.
Subject advisor
Irine Muhiuddin and Tim Lawrence
UK and International Science
