In the current climate of educational reform, where changes to the national curriculum are accused of being focused on knowledge acquisition (Coughlan, 2013), much debate has arisen on the importance of learning practical scientific inquiry as a tool for promoting scholarship (Wellcome Trust, 2013: ASDC, 2013). Through the course of school inspections, carried out in both primary and secondary schools between 2007 and 2010, OfSTED (2011:1) found that the development of scientific inquiry skills were key factors in promoting engagement, learning and the progress of pupils. ' Therefore, in accordance with new curriculum guidelines (Department for Education, 2013:144), teaching science through a combination of acquiring new knowledge and applying that knowledge in the context of inquiry-based learning will support learning and progress while addressing the problematic concerns of critics. Scientific inquiry involves the development of pattern-finding skills, the ability to test and explain ideas, identify and classify properties of elements, the use of technology and fair testing (Howe, et al, 2013:xi). It is the teaching of fair tests, where only one (independent) variable can influence another (dependent) (Williams, 2011), which often forms the basis for much practical work in primary schools (Goldsworthy, et al, 2000). One of the process skills for developing investigative inquiry (Murphy, 2003:11), fair testing enables pupils to understand the need to test scientific phenomena or questions in a reliable way that will result in scientifically valid data (McMacIntyre & Lewthwaite , 2005). As a result of this need for accuracy, teaching the concept of fair testing can prove challenging for both teachers and...... half of the paper ...... the role of ICT in developing good practice in primary science ', In: Teaching and learning primary science with ICT. Warwick, P., Wilson, E. and Winterbottom, M. (eds), Maidenhead: Open University Press.Wellcome Trust, (2013). Department for Education: Reform of the National Curriculum in England, Wellcome Trust Response, [Online], available at: http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/stellent/groups/corporatesite/@policy_communications/documents/web_document / wtp052330.pdf, accessed: 10/17/2013. Williams, D. (2011). How Science Works: Teaching and Learning in the Science Classroom, United States: Continuum Publishing Corporation.Williams, J. & Easingwood, N. (2003). ICT and Primary Science: A Teacher's Guide, London: Taylor & Francis Ltd.Woodley, E. (2009). “Practical Work in School Science: Why Does It Matter?”, In: School Science Review, Association for Science Education.