KUALA LUMPUR: Johary Mustapha, CEO of Forest Interactive, recently shared the importance of progressing forward as digital-forward nation through STEM, at a webinar organized by the Nasional STEM Association (NSA).
Titled ‘What’s Up with STEM – How Exciting Is It?’, the webinar was held virtually via Microsoft Teams and streamed live on Facebook on October 21. Alongside Johary as a panelist is Prof Dato’ Dr Noraini Idris from University of Malaya.
The webinar began with a preface from Dr Noraini as she shared the current predicament of the STEM field as a result of the pandemic. “Our young children, especially those who are in the primary schools, are not able to get the hands-on experience.”
She explained that this has become the crux of the issue, as the future generation of students do not have the necessary experience to be proficient in the field or the industry. This is especially so when most of the students in schools are undergoing online learning and lacking the hands-on approach of experiments or lab tests, which are musts for many STEM subjects.
“There are 220,000 graduates without a job. They have the certificates but they are not able to apply their knowledge in real life, which is what the industry requires,” she expresses.
Johary added: “There are a lot of undergraduates from this field but it has no connection to what the industry wants. The issue there is two-fold. On one side, the lack of hands-on-approach makes it hard for students to fully understand and utilize their skills for the industry because of online-based learning; and on the other hand, the curriculum itself is outdated when compared to what is available and needed by the industry right now.”
“The tech industry is constantly evolving and by the time these students graduate, they would already be left behind. That is why traditional learning does not work and there’s a need for one’s self-initiative when it comes to STEM learning.”
“Parents want to see results; that is how some of them value the worth of a profession,” continued Johary. “We must document and supply success stories of those that are in STEM so that students and parents can see what the future might bring for those who invest time and effort in the field. The potential of growth is there, we just need to show it to them.”
Johary also mentioned the need to inspire the youth for STEM. “Before we inspire them, we must first inspire the trainers. Some are quite strict with their traditional viewpoints, which attributes to the youths distancing themselves further from the field. The language that we use must be attuned to the times and culture of what the newer generation can identify with,” emphasizes Johary. “It is not only for the sake of promoting to a younger audience but also a necessity for the progression of the field. The tech around us never stops evolving and we have to catch up in order to contribute.”
STEM as a profession now includes a wide array of jobs that back then was fairly limited. Nowadays, people can become data analysts, software developers, cybersecurity experts, esports content creators, and user interface designers to name a few, as opposed to the conventional roles of engineers, IT specialists, and physical scientists 20 years ago.
With tech’s increased advancement, job scopes of STEM jobs have become significantly varied to manage the abundance of systems of today’s world.
“STEM must be the sport your child is playing, the show that they’re watching, and the hero that they are emulating,” noted Johary when detailing on how to develop future innovators in STEM.
The idea of the statement is to include STEM into the daily lives of the young, for them to maintain a consistent interest in STEM, as well as develop skills and knowledge in a natural environment. It isn’t enough to be only dependent on the classroom as technology continues to evolve every day.
“It’s not that the kids don’t have time or capacity for STEM, but rather the time needs to be reshaped to include STEM.”
Click here to rewatch the webinar.
-ENDS-
About Forest Interactive
Founded in 2006, Forest Interactive develops scalable mobile platforms to connect mobile operators, content providers, and game publishers with their subscribers. With over 15 years of industry experience, Forest Interactive has expanded to include a diverse workforce of 20+ nationalities in 17 regional offices.
Delivering content subscription services, digital voucher and e-commerce platforms, and mobile apps for all ages, Forest Interactive operates in more than 30 countries, servicing 90+ mobile operators and 100+ content partners with the capacity to reach over one billion subscribers worldwide. To learn more, visit forest-interactive.com.
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