STEME DAY 2019
Event date:
VinUni STEME Day, the first STEM (Science – Technology – Engineering – Mathematics) festival, was held yesterday in Hanoi by VinUni for technological lovers in high schools nationwide.
VinUni STEME Day, the inaugural STEM (Science – Technology – Engineering – Mathematics) and Entrepreneurship festival, was held yesterday in Hanoi by VinUni for technology lovers from high schools nationwide.
The program’s core goal is to equip students with knowledge and skills in science, engineering, and technology while developing and nurturing the necessary skills and virtues of global citizens of the 21st century: critical thinking, creativity, public speaking, and teamwork skills. VinGroup is rolling out the STEM curriculum teaching program for high schools nationwide. As part of this initiative, VinGroup will sponsor the S3 Innovation Academy to pilot the teaching of a STEM curriculum in 20 high schools through the introduction of STEM clubs for 10th and 11th graders. Students who participate will be provided with instructions by STEM-experienced university instructors. Students will also be introduced to lessons on Start-up culture by Start-up professionals.
Various renowned high schools such as Hanoi-Amsterdam High School for the Gifted, Chu Van An High School (Hanoi), Vinschool High School, Tran Phu High School (Hai Phong Province), Ha Tinh Province High School for the Gifted, Tran Dai Nghia High School for the Gifted (Ho Chi Minh City), and Nguyen Thuong Hien High School (HCMC) have introduced their own STEM projects.
These include a model to help high schoolers reduce waste disposal, a model for hydroponic vegetables in urban apartments, a tool to monitor dust pollution in cities, and smart seaweed growth to reduce the CO2 amount in the environment. The projects display the concern of today’s students toward environmental problems and their innovative solutions for addressing those issues.
From the twenty STEM teams from high schools in Vietnam, the five most outstanding ones entered the debate round in order to win the prize of a free 4-day tour of the Singaporean Scientific Center, the Google Company, and the Nanyang Technological University, along with a cash prize of VND30 million (approx. $1,300) per each team guide and member.
The STEM Club from Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted (Nghe An Province) won the contest with their idea of using cameras to analyze data for machines to learn and optimize the work of traffic lights.
The top-5 ideas include turning organic waste into arable land by Nguyen Thi Minh Khai High School (HCMC), the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to classify both organic and inorganic waste by the High School for the Gifted – Hanoi National University of Education, turning sewage into usable water via biotechnology by Vinschool High School, and mapping dust pollution for timely warning by Tran Dai Nghia High School for the Gifted (HCMC).
The contest also aimed at inspiring students at all levels to start up a real business in the future via practicing the skills to clearly present their ideas and convincingly persuade investors. A discussion on highly potential jobs for the future, predicted career prospects, and startup know-how was well received by parents and students alike.
According to Prof. Vu Ha Van from Yale University, the STEM program has been introduced to many high schools in Vietnam via the establishment of STEM Clubs, which present their students with real-world issues for them to discover feasible solutions.
6 months after its introduction to high schools nationwide, 20 STEM clubs have been formed with 500 tenth- and eleventh-graders participating.
This program to introduce STEM to high schoolers is a part of the Vingroup project ‘Training Scientific-Technological Human Resources for Vietnam’. Aimed at applying the most practical teaching methods in domestic schools, high school STEM Clubs will equip members with professional STEM knowledge in addition to the necessary soft skills they will need to become successful global citizens in the 21st century.
Adapted from Saigon Giai Phong News.