Primary school pupils know very little about biology, nutrition and health, according to research conducted in 2010 by Cito and released on Wednesday.

Cito, which measures educational achievement, found that the level of biology taught was ‘very superficial’. For instance, pupils know that leaves fall from trees in the autumn but have no idea why this happens.
‘Children know some facts that concern their own experiences, but if you ask about function or importance, most have no idea,’ said a Cito spokesman.
On average, pupils get 45 minutes of biology lessons a week, a quarter less than ten years ago. Lessons on nutrition and health add up to eight hours in each school year on average, says Cito.