By Brad Rantayy
MIRI, Aug 25: Yu Cai Foundation has launched its School 4.0 STEM Programme in Sarawak at the TEGAS Digital Innovation Hub in a smart partnership with the Sarawak State Education Department today.
The launch marks Yu Cai Foundation’s aim to leapfrog the country’s education capability into the digital era.
The Yu Cai Foundation Schools 4.0 STEM Programme is developed to enable rural primary schools to integrate STEM learning into their curriculum systematically.
The holistic framework covers three elements: learning content suited for primary and secondary schools, capacity building for teachers and thirdly, opportunities for students to apply their learnings and gain hands-on experience.
With the nation forging ahead to achieve a 60:40 STEM to non-STEM students ratio and the Sarawak state’s goal of 60 per cent of students in STEM under the PostCovid Development Strategy (PCDS) 2030, smart partnerships such as this brings multifold benefit from the enhancement of skills, knowledge and expertise, to bridging educational gaps.
Mariam Monek, who representing Sarawak Education Department director Datu Dr Azhar Ahmad, highlighted the important role which private organisations can play in strengthening national education.
She congratulated Yu Cai Foundation for the initiative and called on the 16 primary schools to leverage the opportunity and to ensure their teachers and students gain the most from the programme.
These schools are SJK Sungai Jaong Marudi, SK Long Bedian, SK Long Kevok, SK Long Panai, SK Long Sobeng, SK Poyut, SK Sungai Entulang, SK Sungai Biar, Bakong, SK Rumah Goyang, SK Suai 1, SK Batu Tellingai, SK Kampung Tegageng, SK Kelapa Sawit No 1, SK Kpg Iran, SK Sungai Manong and SK Sungai Tangap are the inaugaral batch of schools.
Among the attendees are 32 teachers who will be equipped with a comprehensive tech curriculum as well as open-source tools.
It is expected that a total of 1,200 students from the 16 inaugural schools will benefit from this programme sponsored by Yu Cai Foundation.
Meanwhile, Yu Cai Foundation Board of Trustee member Ngooi Chiu Ing expressed that the programme aims to bridge the digital divide in rural schools, and the Foundation hopes to see children will consequently develop stronger life skills by taking advantage of new technologies, even before their tertiary education.
“The Yu Cai Foundation School 4.0 Programme initiative is reflective of the Foundation’s name ‘Yu Cai’ which means ‘to nurture talent’ in Chinese,” he said. — DayakDaily
