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(Date Posted:04/05/2008 17:05:01)
The Rajiv Gandhi Science Centre launched a science project-based competition, Junior Science Adventure 2008, this morning at Bell Village. This competition, organised for the first time, targets pupils of Standards IV and V and aims at encouraging creativity and innovation among young people. The theme chosen for this year is "Me and My Environment" and the objective is to create an interest in the environment among young pupils and initiate them to the investigation of contextual environmental problems encountered in daily life. Pupils will need to observe the immediate environment at their school and identify an important problem that is causing prejudice to the environment. Then the whole team will devise a strategy to deal with the problem. The team will follow the scientific method: stating the purpose of the project, crafting a hypothesis, devising and performing experiments, recording data and observations and finally writing a report and preparing a presentation. In his address at the launching ceremony, Mr. Dharam Gokhool, Minister of Education and Human Resources, highlighted that education should not be limited to the formal curriculum and that instead, it should aim at the development of the full potential of every learner. The Minister announced that his ministry has identified a broad spectrum of literary, sports and health-promoting projects. And that significant measures are being taken to transform teaching and learning in classrooms at primary level by going beyond the talk, chalk and board. ICT mediated technology is being promoted as part of the strategy for pedagogical innovation in teaching and learning. "It is through competitions like these that we will be able to reach out to our young pupils and explain to them why it is critical for all of us to protect our environment. They need to understand that actions which may appear trivial, such as throwing away pieces of paper or switching off a lamp, can make a big difference to the quality of our environment.", said Mr. Gokhool. He also recalled that to gauge and assess the status of Science and Technology in Mauritius, the Mauritius Research Council carried out a Science and Innovation Audit and it was found that: - At O'Level, less than 25% of students take up Science subjects, 16% take up Computer Studies and 4% take up Technical Studies
- At A'Level 35% take up Mathematics and Science and only 7% take up Computer Studies
- The figures also revealed that fewer girls take up Science subjects.
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