SELANGOR CALLS ON PRIVATE SECTOR, INDUSTRY TO DRIVE STEM EMPOWERMENT IN SCHOOLS - MB

SHAH ALAM, Nov 24 (Bernama) -- The Selangor government is encouraging greater participation and collaboration from the private sector and industry in its ongoing efforts to accelerate the empowerment of school students in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).

Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari said that industry involvement could expedite the process and support the state’s initiatives to strengthen technical and vocational exposure among school students.

“I agree that there must be involvement from the private sector and industry to ensure that the shift in understanding towards science, technology, automation and digitalisation can be accelerated.

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“This is especially important as these institutions are able to offer a clearer pathway for students to pursue science, technology, as well as technical and vocational fields related to engineering and mathematics,” he said.

He said this in response to a supplementary question from Datuk Dr Ahmad Yunus Hairi (PN-Sijangkang) on efforts to strengthen STEM education in schools, during the Selangor State Assembly sitting here today.

Amirudin, who is also the state Education and Human Capital Development Committee chairman, said the Selangor Technical Skills Development Centre (STDC), a state government agency, will begin reaching out to secondary schools starting next year to identify and nurture students with an interest in the field.

He said the new initiative will help ease the process and provide better preparation for the students involved, compared to the previous practice of applying for admission only after sitting for the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM).

“Previously, we would wait for them to finish SPM. Now, we want to start engaging with students at the upper secondary level, and if possible, even at the lower secondary level.

“This is where we create a pathway to ensure these students are better prepared, interested, and able to venture into and explore science and technology, or what we refer to as high-performance technical and vocational fields,” he said.

-- BERNAMA