Welcome to the March issue of SSR! You will notice that there has been a refresh of the journal design, which has been redesigned to make SSR more engaging and accessible and to support the digital offering of the journal, including longer articles, further reading, resources and multimedia content. 

With the curriculum and assessment review underway in the UK, in this issue Jeremy Thomas evaluates whether the current science curriculum adequately accommodates space-related topics. Additionally, Jon Hale, Katie Nash and Kaela Jones reflect on how they reorganised the GCSE Biology for Combined Science curriculum, positioning ecology at the beginning. In her Presidential Address, Professor Louise Archer discusses factors influencing students’ desire to study STEM subjects post-16, including science identity, capital and field, and how these affect their perception and engagement with science. Hélène Doerflinger and Natalie Walls discuss CRISPR and their online game, Unlock CRISPR, which introduces post-16 biology students to genetic editing techniques linked to modern research.

Maureen Wade presents a microscale experiment designed to enhance understanding of bonding and conductivity. Naomi Hennah examines how incorporating oracy into practical science can facilitate both hands-on and minds-on activities. Further, Lisa Niven demonstrates how a straightforward experiment combined with thoughtful questioning can foster synoptic links across different areas of the curriculum. Chris Graham contributes another beautifully illustrated microscopy article, offering insights on specimen preparation.