KLESF: The Fair 2015

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education was promoted among students through the Kuala Lumpur Engineering Science Fair (KLESF): The Fair 2015 from 30 October to 1 November at the MINES International Exhibition and Convention Centre (MIECC).

Launch of KLESF: The Fair 2015

The fair was launched by the Science Advisor to the Prime Minister Prof Tan Sri Zakri Abdul Hamid. He was accompanied by the Chairman of Steering Committe on KLESF and ASEAN Academy of Engineering and Technology (AAET) President Ir Datuk Hong Lee Pee, Co-chairman of Steering Committee on KLESF and Malaysia Industry-Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT) President Datuk Dr Mohd Yusoff Sulaiman, Academy of Sciences Malaysia (ASM) President and MIGHT Joint Chairman Tan Sri Dr Ir Ahmad Tajuddin Ali, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) President Ir Prof Academician Dato’ Dr Chuah Hean Teik, Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (ACCCIM) President Datuk Ter Leong Yap, and Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Assistant Vice Chancellor President Prof Dato Dr Abu Bakar Abdul Jamid.

In his speech at the launch, Prof Tan Sri Zakri emphasised, “STEM is at the heart of modern life and provides the foundations for economic prosperity. The purpose of driving STEM education is not only to create economic opportunity for individuals, but also to provide the fuel needed to power a science and technology-driven economy. Science is everyday life and we have to see it as a catalyst to the country’s development. I’m glad to witness the partnership between industries and academia for the future generation of scientists and engineers.”

Also present at the launch were KLESF steering committee members, Institution of Engineers Malaysia (IEM) Immediate Past President Ir Choo Kok Beng and UTAR Vice President of R&D and Commercialisation Prof Ir Dr Lee Sze Wei; AAET fellows from Thailand, Cambodia and the Philippines; representatives from industries, sponsors, and the media; teachers and students from schools and higher learning institutions; as well as members of the public.

UTAR, AAET, MIGHT, and IEM jointly organised KLESF: The Fair 2015 with the primary goal to boost school students’ interest in STEM subjects. The fair also aimed to create awareness among Malaysians as well as the participation of industry players in promoting STEM education and development. It is also the aspiration of KLESF to raise awareness among students and the Malaysian community on STEM education’s role in Malaysia’s socio-economic well-being and sustainable development.

Prof Tan Sri Zakri (Second from left) shaking hand with a robot at the exhibition hall

“There is increasing concern of the waning interest of students towards sciences in recent years. Recent studies show Malaysia needs 60% of school and university students to pursue STEM for strong socio-economic development,” said Datuk Hong in his address. “Over the last 18 months, Ir Prof Dr Lee Sze Wei and I had visited many schools in East and West Malaysia to promote STEM education. It’s sad to have learnt that merely 30% or less of students are in science stream in most schools we visited.” He continued, “I have told students, teachers, and parents on many occasions: studying STEM doesn’t mean that you have to become a scientist or engineer. Studying STEM is the best way of developing your analytical capability and capacity, as well as logical thinking skills. Not just for a career in STEM, these are transferrable skills that are required in other fields.”

Datuk Dr Mohd Yusoff elaborated that many students and teachers are not fully aware of the importance of STEM education corresponding to the present and future industrial demands. “Currently, there are some 50,000 engineering vacancies in the industries. Many surveys also indicated that approximately 80% of jobs in the future require STEM knowledge and skills. In view of that, KLESF is one of the initiatives to encourage younger generations to love STEM subjects and be inspired by what STEM can do beyond STEM per se.”

Visitors waiting to enter the exhibition hall

“My children have been very excited about this fair as they have the chance to see and interact with robots in real life. They love the hands-on activities such as science experiments and programming workshops too. As a parent, I’m really happy to see them learning while having fun,” said Mandi, a visitor from the United States.

Schoolchildren conducting a science experiment

STEM-related activities at the fair: testing out virtual reality goggles, tapping a rubber tree, and walking on bamboo stilts

Learning through experience

The fair saw over 100 schools and universities’ participate. More excitingly, the fair welcomed the participation of ASEAN delegates from the Philippines, Cambodia, and Thailand to showcase their STEM projects and share their experience with Malaysians. An 11-year-old student from Cambodia, Hut Meylang said, “This is my first visit to Malaysia. Besides sharing the project outcomes of our team, I also made new friends at the fair. It’s really amazing that I can learn beyond reading a textbook and build a robot on the spot!”

“Many of the booths here exhibit things that I’ve seen from books or the internet. It’s really an eye-opening opportunity for me to explore more about Science,” said Premeetha Madnavan, a Form Four student. “An instructor taught me how to use latex to create an art craft just now. I’m very impressed by technological advancements and their application in the industries via innovation and creativity,” said Mohammad Farizuan, a student from SMK Tasek Utara 2, Johor Bahru.

One of the popular booths at the fair

Making art craft using latex

KLESF is part of the Science To Action (S2A) initiative announced by the Prime Minister in 2013 to mainstream the usage and understanding of science to society and promote innovation and technology as one of the strategic reform initiatives for national development. Under KLESF, other programmes such as the KLESF Mentorship Development (KMD) Programme, Symposium on Science Education (SoSE), and KLESF-Petrosains Workshop, have groomed educators to be more effective and efficient in teaching STEM to children.

“The Cambodian Government would like to emulate our Fair in Phnom Penh. The Deputy Prime Minister of Cambodia has appointed our AAET Fellow Dr Meas Sokhom, who is also the Chairman of AAET Cambodia Chapter, to organise the Phnom Penh Engineering Science Fair (PPESF),” Datuk Hong announced. Besides, KLESF will host the Asia Science Camp (ASC) in conjunction with KLESF 2017. The ASC is to enlighten science-talented youths through close interaction with top STEM scholars in the world, and to promote international friendship and cooperation among the best students of the next generation in Asia.

The fair culminated with the prize-giving ceremony to the winners of the KLESF International Challenge 2015 competition. KLESF: The Fair 2015 was supported by the Ministry of Education Malaysia (MOE), ASM, Majlis Profesor Negara (MPN), ACCCIM, Malaysia Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), and Institut Fizik Malaysia (IFM).

Students standing on the “floating concrete”, a lightweight concrete infill buoyant system which can be made into a floating platform

Students from different schools sharing about their projects

Child interacting with robots