An educational programme that has already inspired almost 2000 students across the UAE has launched again for a third year, aiming to reach the next generation of innovators, explorers and inventors.
The iMatter Year 3 programme, first designed and introduced in 2017 by Taqeef, the leading cooling solutions provider in the region, will feature a more climate-focused curriculum for 2019-2020. The Year 3 students will be asked to find ways of reducing the environmental impact of cooling through building design, innovation and engineering, with the advent of STEM resources, interactive learning and VR technology.
Following the UAE’s celebration of Green Week to further raise awareness of environmental sustainability, this year’s iMatter theme, ‘Keep Your Cool’, links to the region’s key sustainability targets alongside an iMatter Ideas hackathon where students are tasked with finding solutions to real-world climate issues.
‘Keep Your Cool’ will see an engineering and construction challenge given to the students with thermal energy transfer as the key topic. Supported by immersive learning through virtual reality (VR), students will be asked to visualize, collect and examine data, and build their own thermal energy project to make connections between the real-life context of their home and school to global environmental issues.
As part of its ongoing commitment towards social responsibility and youth empowerment, Taqeef aims to cater to over 1000 students with this year’s edition, especially supporting charity and less well-resourced schools across the country.
Tariq Al Ghussein, CEO of Taqeef, commented: “The UAE government has been instrumental in motivating the younger generation and instilling a belief that they can bring about a positive change for the country. We wanted to play our part too, and since introducing iMatter to schools back in 2017, we have seen how rewarding it is to cater to the leaders of tomorrow with the technology of today. With STEM resources and learning at their disposal, we’ve been able to inspire young minds, break down gender barriers, and widen horizons through hands-on experiential learning.”
“By exposing students to STEM education, we’re encouraging them to question logic and use their reason to reach some new conclusions. Through iMatter, students can create the ideas that will help revolutionise the future and showcase the talent of tomorrow. It’s today’s students who will not only drive growth and stability in the economy but also project the UAE into the future.”
With an emphasis on English and Arabic translation, iMatter also encourages bilingual proficiency which is part of the UAE vision 2021 and directly underlines UN Sustainable Development goals for Quality Education, Gender Equality, Reducing Inequality, and Climate Action. The Year 3 programme will culminate with the ‘iMatter Ideas’ exhibition, where students will have the chance to showcase their outstanding concepts for positive change.
The iMatter programme will also provide participating schools with STEM kits comprised of educational resources and equipment that support the science and math curriculums taught throughout the year.
