Well done: Muhammad Khawarizmi (right) and Wan Nayli Adriana posing with their award.
TO encourage students to pursue science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), schools can organise engaging competitions.
This, says young rocketeer Muhammad Khawarizmi Muhamad Kamalrul Zaman, can highlight the importance of STEM in students’ lives and demonstrate the excitement of STEM fields.
“Additionally, supporting students’ innovation by funding projects, mentoring them, ensuring they are on the right path, and allowing them to explore their ideas can be very beneficial,” the 15-year-old told StarEdu.
Muhammad Khawarizmi can vouch for the efficacy of these initiatives, having reaped their benefits firsthand.
Most recently, the SMK Dato’ Syed Omar, Kedah, student – along with his schoolmate Wan Nayli Adriana Wan Anisham – emerged as the champion in the Inovasi Kreatif Reka Edukit category, open to secondary school students, at the My Robotic Challenge (MYRC) 2024.
The duo received a trophy and a cash prize of RM2,000 for their efforts in the nationwide contest organised by the Education Ministry and Micro Concept Tech Sdn Bhd during an award presentation ceremony on Oct 14.
According to Muhammad Khawarizmi, the category he competed in challenged participants to apply their Internet of things (IoT) and coding skills.
“The project we submitted to the competition is MyRocket2, which can be used to launch model rockets anywhere in the world as long as the launcher and controller are connected to the Internet.
“Besides that, MyRocket2 has additional sensors that can provide vital information about the launch site to assist the rocketeer. I wrote more than 7,800 lines of code to achieve these objectives,” he said.
Muhammad Khawarizmi’s recent triumph is another feather in his cap in his STEM journey, which began in 2019.
At just nine years old, he joined his father Muhamad Kamalrul Zaman Zainol – an assistant science officer at the Kedah Chemistry Department branch – in building their first solid-fuel model rocket.
“We spent time together learning how to use computer-aided design software and three-dimensional (3D) printing technology.
“I saw my father firsthand doing various experiments to get the model rocket to work safely. Inspired by this, I decided to design my own model rocket airframe,” he shared.
Writing text code for Muhammad Khawarizmi began during the Covid-19 pandemic when, confined at home, he and his brother Muhammad Khazini developed an interest in creating their own video game.
Over time, Muhammad Khawarizmi developed his skills through online tutorials, creating software, participating in competitions and working on projects.
Among the projects he was involved in included recreating a highly sophisticated mobile laboratory in a virtual reality environment at the Chemistry Department of Malaysia.
“For the first time, I had the opportunity to collaborate with my younger brothers, Khazini and Al-Amin.
“My father took on the role of creative director and project leader, while Khazini and Al-Amin worked as 3D designers, and I handled the programming, visuals and texturing.
“We completed the project within a month this year, exceeding the expectations of the officers who gave us the project,” he said.
He added that his family team was subsequently invited to partner with a defence company, where he was given the role of an extended reality developer.
“Another unexpected opportunity that came earlier was from a satellite and space technology company, where I was offered a retainer role as an embedded programmer. The tasks required me to write code for hardware components, primarily in C/C++,” he said.
On his future plans, Muhammad Khawarizmi, who aspires to become an innovator and establish a company focusing on Malaysia’s defence and security, said he and his father have “various projects we would like to work on”.
“If a competition aligns with our project’s problem statement, I might participate, as we have done so far. However, our focus is not just on competitions; we aim to innovate for the benefit of the community as well,” he said.
For students aspiring to excel in STEM, he offered this advice: “Don’t hesitate to try something that piques your interest, even if it’s hard and takes time. Remember, good things take time. Keep learning and trust yourself to master the skills you want to learn.”
Charis, 21, a student in Kuala Lumpur, is a participant of the BRATs Young Journalist Programme run by The Star’s Newspaper-in-Education (Star-NiE) team.
For updates on the BRATs programme, go to facebook.com/niebrats.
With the theme of the article in mind, carry out the following English language activities.
1 Personalities like Muhammad Khawarizmi often share inspiring quotes. Choose a quotable quote from the article or another one in today’s newspaper, and include it in a bookmark you design. Once you are done, gift the bookmark to a friend.
2 Search today’s newspaper for another exemplary STEM personality. Compare this individual with Muhammad Khawarizmi. How are they similar or different in terms of characteristics and contributions? What key lessons can you learn from their journeys? Discuss in class.
The Star’s Newspaper-in-Education (Star-NiE) programme promotes the use of English language in primary and secondary schools nationwide.
For Star-NiE enquiries, email starnie@thestar.com.my.
