Qatar Foundation brings science back to life

The Research and Development Division at Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development recently concluded a successful workshop that sought to enhance and diversify the training of independent science school teachers.

The four-day seminar, which was held at the Qatar National Convention Centre, was organised in collaboration with the Supreme Education Council, andover 90 teachers from 50 elementary and secondary schools participated.

Susan McGrath, a professional science communicator and director of Science2Life, led the workshop. Through a passionate and highly engaging format, McGrath demonstrated the importance of making science fun and achieving results by incorporating Science2Life’s innovativeapproach in itsdelivery of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education.

The main objective behind the ‘STEM Subject Knowledge Enhancement Courses’ that are delivered by McGrath is to make science simple, real, and relevant to everyday life experiences. The courses consist of entertaining and interactive physics and chemistry demonstrations that promote the development of a student’s critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

In keeping with Qatar Foundation’s mission to develop the skills of youth in science and research, Science2Life – a UK outreach education provider and consultancy – also shares its vision and aspires to engage future generations through inspiring and imaginative programmes that help incorporate STEM subjects into popular youth culture.

Dr Wyatt Hume, Director of Education, Training and Development from Qatar Foundation’s Research and Development Division said, “The management training and development arm at Qatar Foundation is eager to support science education because of its importance in building the future of the nation. Under the Qatar Science Leadership Program we offer training programs aimed at developing research skills at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.”

Dr Hume explained, “This course emerged from Qatar Foundation’s desire to improve the image of science and research among school students and we found the best way to reach them was through their teachers. Therefore, these courses were organised to offer teachers enjoyable and innovative ways of instruction, to make science more appealing to their students. To do this, we collaborated with UK specialist Susan McGrath, with the support of SEC, who kindly helped us facilitate school participation.”

Throughout the workshop, teachers were presented with a range of engaging science experiments, designed to help them better address topics important to Qatar’s independent school curriculum. They also focused on scientific fields that are aligned to Qatar’s Science Standards, including crucial topics such as forces, energy, chemical reactions and properties of materials.

Eman Taher Abdulnabi, Curriculum Science Specialistat the Supreme Education Council, commented on the importance of such training in the development of teaching skills. “Although the participants may be well versed with the facts, they have now been shown new, modern, and attractive ways to present themto their students.This workshop was indeed helpful to the participants, which was illustrated by the overwhelming response and the Supreme Education Council looks forward to future collaborations with Qatar Foundation in the development of the country’s teachers.”

McGrath, who is a Fellow of the Institute of Physics and holds a Master’s degree in Educational Studies, has been teaching physics, chemistry, and drama for more than 10 years. She fuses her artistic creativity with her scientific expertise to deliver hands-on workshops and interactive stage shows across the region.

“Students today are living in a fast-developing world in which most sectors are keeping pace except education, which remains mostly unchanged in its methods. It can sometimes be difficult to integrate education with fun and entertainment. However, it is important to realise that learning through play helps students learn and retain information better as they come to know the science that surrounds them in their lives,” said McGrath.

“These visionary and ambitious courses held by Qatar Foundation offered an opportunity to further conduct research on interactive teaching,” added McGrath. “Qatar is the first country in the Middle East to adopt methods that support teachers in their pedagogy development in terms of changing student attitudes towards science.”

Workshop participants received certificates of attendance and handbooks with information on all the experiments conducted in class. The teachers also went home with their very own science kit to allow them to share thelivelyand fun activities with their colleagues and students.

“It was a good idea to host this workshop as it has been very helpful. The most important element is that it makes science fun for children,” said Kenanah Kasim Al-Masarwa, Instructor at Al-Khaleej Al-Arabi Independent School. “The modern teaching aids appeal to young students because it allows them to actually experience science, which inevitably benefits their learning.”