Education on sustainability with We Care We Act programme

Achieving sustainability requires a concerted effort, and taking that effort further was the Department of Soft Skills Competency (DSSC) of Sungai Long Campus, with the help from a group of UTAR students, who organised two virtual events on 30 October 2021 to educate primary schoolchildren on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) outlined by the United Nations.

The virtual motivational campaign focused on educating students of San Hao Xue Tang, Jenjarom, Selangor about SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy. The virtual campaign was led by DSSC staff Choon Wen Kie, with the assistance from UTAR students, namely Ang Lin, Ngu Jing Wen, Lee Xin Ci, Tan Tze Yi, Ashely Ong Wan Zhen, Charis Yee Eng Hui, Thulasini Balachandran, Tan Kian Yew, Lim Jeng Jack, and Lim Tian He.

After giving a brief introduction on SDG 7, the student had the opportunity to share their experience on planting, their feelings while taking care of plants, and the lesson they learnt from planting. The gist of the planting project is to educate and raise awareness of the importance of taking care of one’s mental and physical health and well-being. Another activity saw the students drawing a mandala. It provided a platform for them to express their creativity and cultivate their patience.

School student Liew Hong Yi expressed that he was happy to participate in the campaign and that he enjoyed the planting project, while sisters Seh Qiao Yu and Seh Qiao Ying commented that the campaign was meaningful as they learnt a lot. They were especially happy was to be able to learn the mandala drawing.

Meanwhile, the virtual STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) learning workshop focused on educating SJKC Chung Hua Mantin & SJKC Kuo Min Nilai, Negeri Sembilan, primary schoolchildren about SDG 4: Quality Education and cultivate their interest towards STEM subjects through fun STEM activities.

The virtual workshop was led by Choon, with the assistance of ten UTAR students, namely Lai Kah Wei, Chin Man Fai, Ong Ji Wern, Jasmine Loke Hui Xia, Lee Jaslyn, Georgina Ko Fang Ning, Ting Li Han, Kok Wei Jin, Aqila Alya binti Syamrin and Soo Wan Qi.

The virtual workshop kick-started with an ice-breaking session titled “This or That”, which required the students and the committee to work in pairs while selecting either one of the choices presented. Followed after were the STEM activities, which saw the students testing their memories and eye coordination, conducting an experiment using dish soap, pepper and water, and finally conducting an experiment using two cups of different sizes, tissue, and a plate. The virtual workshop also taught the students the importance of teamwork and saw the students enjoying the activities.

School student Yong Yi Xuen commented that she had fun conducting the experiments and the games helped improve her memory, while Tan Zhi How said he enjoyed the mathematic session and learnt the importance of hygiene. Felicia Tan Li Hsia felt thankful to the organising committee for providing a platform to engage students’ learning on STEM subjects.