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Engineering Village, an Omani enterprise managed by young professional Omanis specialised in STEM, in partnership with BP Oman, has officially launched the second version of the ‘Future Engineers’ programme. The launch took place in Nizwa, A’Dakhiliya Governorate, in the presence of representatives from the Ministry of Education, BP Oman, Engineering Village and the principals and teachers of the targeted schools.
It was part of a celebration and teachers get-together that took place on Sunday. The programme targets 15 government schools in the governorates of A’Dhahirah and A’Dakhiliya, with around 300 students in each school, benefiting a total number of 4,500 school students by the end of 2020. The program offers training workshops in science, technology, engineering and mathematics for school students in addition to setting up working stations in schools with relevant educational kits. The programme also includes training the trainer sessions for school teachers.
The meeting included a welcome speech by BP Oman and Engineering Village, followed by a note from the Ministry of Education. A set of introductory presentations about the programme was given by the teachers during the get-together. Ms Fatma Al-Yaaqubi from Al Rehab School representing of the schools of the A’Dhahirah Governorate and Ms Zainab Al Nidabi from Al Fayhaa school representing of the schools of the A’Dakhiliya Governorate presented a visual summary of the programme that was applied in the academic year 2018/2019. It is worth mentioning that the ‘Future Engineers’ Programme was implemented in 15 government schools last year, targeting more than 1500 students.
This programme comes as part of BP Oman social investment programmes, under the supervision of the Ministry of Education. The direction of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education, or what is known as STEM, is an integrated, multidisciplinary approach that helps to improve the outcomes of the outputs of the four disciplines: science, technology, engineering and mathematics, and also enhances the development of human resource capabilities in the specialized fields that support innovation and competitiveness. BP Oman through its support towards the Future Engineers Programme aims to enhance the competence of teachers in the fields of STEM, and increase the numbers of students benefiting from this programme.
On the importance of the Future Engineers Programme, Shamsa Al-Rawahiya, Social Investment Manager at BP Oman, commented saying: “We at BP Oman believe in the importance of achieving unity and the integration of knowledge by integrating disciplines in interdisciplinary way that helps the learner to understand the topics in a comprehensive and in-depth understanding, and enables him to understand the real world surrounding him, and enhance the curricula by focusing on the social aspect of science and the personal aspects of the learner. Hence our interest in supporting the Future Engineers programme which is supported for the next three years. The educational curriculum provided by the programme contribute to refining and developing the skills of the youth, and also to stimulate their creative side, thus creating a creative generation that contributes to advancing the future of the Sultanate in the technology sector. “
Fahd bin Saeed Al-Siyabi, CEO of Engineering Village, valued the joint cooperation for the success of the programme, saying: “We are pleased with the continuous support from BP Oman, and also in cooperation with the Ministry of Education. This programme comes as a result of cooperation and solidarity between governmental and private sector organisations to achieve a common goal – which is the supporting the capacity building of the young. The technology undoubtedly plays a pivotal role in the accelerating development the world is witnessing. Through this programme, we seek to keep pace with the world’s countries towards allowing technologies in the curriculum, and enhancing The Sultanate’s competitiveness in this field’.
Eng. Mohammed bin Abdullah Al-Wishahi, project manager from Engineering Village, added: “We were very pleased with the results achieved in the previous version of the programme, and the positive change that the programme has brought about, according to the evaluation of teachers, students and parents. We look forward to continuing implementing the programme for the next three years to reach a greater number of beneficiaries in the governorates of A’Dhahirah and A’Dakhiliya’.
Times of Oman
