Assoc Prof Ts Dr Tew demonstrating the live human skeleton detection technology and its practical applications in everyday life.
In the nation’s quest to become a high technology nation by 2030, the government has been continuously implementing policies such as the Five Technology Roadmaps and encouraging the nurturing of future-proof talents in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) as outlined in the Malaysian Education Blueprint (2013 - 2025).
As STEM-driven talents are in high demand and imperative in shifting Malaysia towards IR 4.0, education institutions play a very huge role in igniting curiosity in STEM and at the same time setting students on an academic track towards STEM-related studies at the tertiary level. This sentiment is echoed by our country's Ministry of Higher Education, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, who called for more creative and innovative approaches in teaching to cultivate serious interest towards STEM subjects.
As one of the nation’s Premier Digital Tech Universities, TAR UMT has taken STEM education beyond its campus and into schools to target students at the grassroots level.
The most recent example is through the Pin Hwa High School Science Camp on 3 June 2023, where TAR UMT’s academic staff from the Faculty of Computing and Information Technology (FOCS) conducted a series of sharing sessions and workshops for over 300 Pin Hwa High School students. Designed to be an immersive and experiential learning process, the workshops titled “New Opportunities in the Digital Age: Exploring the Applications of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Data Science, and the Internet of Things (IoT)” exposed the students to future potentials and career prospects of AI, Data Science, and IoT under the guidance of renowned experts from TAR UMT’s academic team.
Ts Dr Sean Tan Chi Wee, FOCS lecturer of TAR UMT led the AI workshop where students were introduced to the fundamentals behind AI, including concepts like machine learning, neural networks and natural language processing. The Data Science workshop was led by Dr Chin Wan Yoke, who took the students on a tour of Big Data through its many practical applications, insights into data analytics tools and extraction of meaningful insights from vast datasets. Finally, the IoT workshop was conducted by Assoc Prof Ts Dr Tew Yiqi who exposed students to how IoT can create an interconnected ecosystem and generate real-world solutions through imagination, innovation and practical implementations.
A live dance performance by a robot led by Dr Sean Tan, demonstrating the fundamentals of AI.
“It is our honour to be invited to share our insights in the field of IT knowledge and play a key role in cultivating the passion for STEM-related subjects among high school students. We hope our efforts will help boost the participants’ long-term interest in AI, Data Science and IoT,” said Dr Sean Tan.
The workshops proved to be a success after receiving overwhelming positive response from the high school students, who demonstrated enthusiasm during their participation in the many engaging presentations, interactive sessions, hands-on experiments and creative exercises. Many participants have expressed their desire to further their studies and careers in AI, Data Science and IoT after being inspired by the insight and knowledge gained during the workshops.
“The workshops have improved our understanding of AI, Data Science and IoT applications, and matched our interest in the field of IT and computer knowledge. We are thankful to TAR UMT’s lecturers for sharing their expertise with us,” said one of the participating students.
Dr Chin (in front) introducing participants to Big Data during her workshop segment.
