The College of Computing, Informatics and Media (KPPIM) of UiTM Shah Alam, through the School of Mathematical Sciences, has successfully organized six series of the ‘Malaysia-Uzbekistan STEM Webinar Series’. The webinar series which was co-organized with the Agency for Presidential Education Institutions of Uzbekistan and the Malaysian Mathematical Sciences Association (PERSAMA) came to a conclusion on 23rd of February 2023. The program’s closing ceremony was graced with a closing speech by Prof Ts Dr Haryani Haron, Assistant Vice Chancellor, KPPIM UiTM, as well as a brief speech by the representative of the Presidential Education Institutions of Uzbekistan, Mr. Mannanov Nazirulla, who is the Head of the International Cooperation Department of the agency involved.
The Malaysia-Uzbekistan STEM Webinar Series was a noble effort by the Uzbekistan embassy in Malaysia, which proposed a collaborative knowledge-sharing activity with KPPIM UiTM on STEM education in Malaysia. The objective was to provide global exposure to high school students in Uzbekistan on best practices in learning and teaching STEM subjects in Malaysia that may be practiced or adapted. In light of this goal, the School of Mathematical Sciences, KPPIM embraced the challenge by organizing interesting webinar slots that covered various aspects of STEM Education.
This webinar was conducted online for six weeks, from 13th of January 2023 to 23rd of February 2023. To ensure wide knowledge penetration, these webinars were conducted online through Webex as well as broadcasted live through the official School of Mathematical Sciences, KPPIM YouTube channel. All webinar series received an overwhelmingly positive response from students in Uzbekistan, as well as students, educators, and the general public in Malaysia. The webinar was a resounding success, with over 100 participants tuning in weekly and nearly 4,000 cumulative views on the official YouTube channel.
High-quality STEM education is a global pre-requisite in facing the challenges of the fourth industrial revolution, which demands the education system to produce a creative, innovative, and competitive generation. This is achievable by utilizing technology as the main instrument in teaching and learning. Therefore, the webinar has highlighted topics that emphasize the use of Science and Technology in STEM subjects such as Mathematics, Physics, Biology, and Computer Science.
The Malaysia-Uzbekistan STEM Webinar Series commenced with a webinar session entitled ‘STEM in Malaysian Education’, delivered by Associate Professor Ts Dr Sharipah Ruzaina Syed Aris, Dean of the Faculty of Education UiTM. Her lecture includes the aims, objectives, and necessities of integrating STEM into the education system, particularly in Malaysia. She also shared various initiatives that the faculty has done to empower STEM education among school and university students. Emphasis was also given to the implementation of STEM education among students and future educators in line with Malaysia’s Education Development Plan 2013-2025.
The organizers also invited two teachers from the MARA Junior Science College (MRSM), namely Mr. Mohamad Syafiq Mohamad Sulaiman, a physics teacher from MRSM Kuala Klawang, and Pn. Noorzakiah Buang, a biology teacher from MRSM Tun Ghafar Baba. Their webinars focused on the implementation of interactive teaching in science subjects. The effective use of technology aids and multimedia elements in the classroom provide students with a more engaging learning environment as well as motivate self-learning among students. This method was discussed in detail by the fourth speaker, Mr. Mohd Razif Shamsuddin, a Computer Science lecturer at KPPIM UiTM. He discussed how Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a disruptive technology can improve human abilities, despite having a crucial impact on the conventional workforce and programmers.
The webinar organizers were also fortunate to have three speakers, Pn. Maisarah Abdul Manas, a teacher from Kolej Tunku Kurshiah, Mr. Nurul Akmal Md Nasir, a lecturer from the Faculty of Education, UiTM, and Dr. Roselah Osman, a lecturer from KPPIM to provide insight on technology in Mathematics teaching. With the title “Unleashing the Power of Mathematics in STEM Education”, their talks covered the application of Higher-Order Thinking skills (HOTs), the use of interactive games at schools, as well as exhibitions of students’ and academicians’ work. The last webinar session was delivered by PERSAMA, representative, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Azmin Sham Rambely, lecturer of the Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). Entitled “Having fun with PRISMatik. Are you?”, she introduced the activities and modules available under the Prismatik UKM group in creating a sustainable STEM culture ecosystem. Among the activities are SifirA, Origami, Jom Kripto, Fractal, and many more.
The sharing of knowledge and experience throughout the webinar series is expected to help increase the interest of students, particularly in Uzbekistan, towards STEM subjects which are considered challenging. In addition to that, it can also strengthen the cooperation between Universiti Teknologi MARA and educational institutions in Uzbekistan. Via this webinar, KPPIM UiTM has achieved the 17th agenda in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is KPPIM’s inspiration to proceed with this webinar as it has been proven that knowledge discourse is an effective community empowerment initiative.