Congratulations: Fadhlina (back row, centre) posing for a photo with some of the award recipients. — SHAARI CHEMAT /The Star
HAD it not been for her parents’ support, Student Icon Award recipient Chuah Yee Jia may never have found her love for science, technology, mathematics and engineering (STEM).
Crediting them with her win, the 15-year-old student from SMK Seri Bintang Utara, Kuala Lumpur, said they even drove her all the way to Penang to buy the parts needed for her robots and innovations when she could not find them in the Klang Valley.
Her parents, a police officer and a Chinese Language teacher, have also supported her financially as the components “can be expensive”.
“My family, especially my parents, definitely played a part in my passion for STEM.
“I’ve faced many challenges but they always encouraged me,” she said.
Yee Jia was named the Digital Utilisation and Technology Awards (Duta) 2022 Student Icon winner in the engineering design category during the July 11 ceremony in Kuala Lumpur.
She received the award for her participation in a host of global innovation competitions and conferences, such as the International Conference of Young Scientists.
Organised by the Republic of Serbia, the conference featured individual competitions for 14- to 18-year-old students in STEM fields like physics, computer science and ecology.
Yee Jia had placed second for best poster presentation and won a bronze medal for HydroPure, a device she came up with to help with water pollution and ocean acidification.
Like Yee Jia, fellow Student Icon Award winner Yiek Siew Hao, 17, said his parents were the driving force for him to enter STEM competitions that had won him trips to the United States and the United Kingdom.
Siew Hao, who was the Student Icon in the software development category, said his parents, a beautician and an engineer, had nurtured his curiosity and problem-solving skills from a young age.
“I believe I inherited my problem-solving nature from my father,” the SMK Bintulu, Sarawak, student shared.
He was part of Team Malaysia in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) Space Challenge 2021, which won one of the top 10 prizes that included a trip to the Nasa headquarters in Washington D.C., United States.
Student Icon award recipient in the robotics category Jonas Loh Chia Yong, 17, from SMK Tinggi Batu Pahat, Johor, said his active involvement in STEM gave him an opportunity of a lifetime to participate in the World Robotics Competition 2022 in Dortmund, Germany, where he bagged the Silver Award in the future innovators category.
“Since Form One, I have been actively participating in robotics competitions, from district right up to international levels.
“Every single experience means a lot to me. These activities have given me an outstanding learning platform to broaden my knowledge and horizons beyond the syllabus, particularly in STEM,” the youngest of five siblings said, adding that STEM can improve the quality of life in Industry 5.0.
The trio took home a trophy, a certificate and RM500 cash prize each.
To inspire and motivate the digital generation, Teacher Icon Award recipient Hasnan Zakaria, 30, said teachers need to equip themselves with knowledge to make full use of information and communications technology (ICT).
“This win is not my solo effort. My fellow teachers worked together to improve the school’s digital learning capabilities, as did the parent-teacher association and generous donors,” said the SK Sungai Udang, Selangor, teacher.
Hasnan won a trophy, a certificate and an RM800 cash prize.
During the awards ceremony, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said the Digital Education Policy, drafted in 2021 to produce a competitive digitally-savvy generation, has received Cabinet approval.
With the policy, the ministry hopes to bridge the digital gap among schools nationwide, and eliminate digital and device poverty among students.
“Our children should enjoy access to these once the policy is implemented,” she said, adding that both students and teachers must be digitally-savvy.
