The Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE) has signed a partnership agreement with ExxonMobil Qatar to sponsor energy laboratories at two new science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) schools during a signing ceremony, whereby ExxonMobil Qatar becomes the exclusive sponsor of the energy laboratories at the two schools.
The ceremony was attended by HE Dr Ibrahim al-Nuaimi, undersecretary of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education; Fawziya Abdulaziz al-Khater, assistant undersecretary for Educational Affairs, MoEHE; Dominic Genetti, president and general manager for ExxonMobil Qatar; and Saleh al-Mana, vice-president and director of Public and Government Affairs, ExxonMobil Qatar.
“The Ministry of Education and Higher Education considers increasing of the number of students who are enrolled in STEM subjects at government schools among its list of strategic priorities. The science and technology schools initiative was established to directly support this mission, and will be key to fulfilling the Qatar National Vision 2030 objective of building a knowledge economy and a generation of scientists, researchers and thinkers,” said HE Dr al-Nuaimi.
“The partnership between the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and ExxonMobil Qatar is one of our strongest, and has led to several successful and fruitful projects," said al-Khater during the signing ceremony. “I am very proud of this co-operation that has the interests of Qatar’s students at its core, and I applaud ExxonMobil’s commitment to the educational projects it supports. We share the same goal of developing student skills in science, technology and scientific research.
“I hope that this strong and solid partnership continues for many years to come.”
Speaking during the ceremony, Genetti confirmed that ExxonMobil Qatar would be the exclusive sponsor of an energy lab at each school, similar to its contribution to the first STEM school.
“ExxonMobil Qatar is committed to supporting STEM learning, and this agreement with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education is one example of how we work with our partners to provide quality STEM learning experiences. We’re proud of our longstanding and successful relationship with the ministry, which extends over more than two decades, and this milestone highlights the next level in our partnership,” said Genetti.
“Today’s students need to be empowered with access to the right tools, experiences and learning opportunities to build the skills necessary to fuel the future. We’re pleased that our partnership with the ministry is contributing to this, and meeting the objectives of Qatar National Vision 2030 and its human development pillar,” he added.
“The signing of the agreement is an important step in our longstanding partnership with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and the work we have been doing to support STEM teaching and learning in Qatar,” said al-Mana. “I look forward to a highly successful outcome that will benefit future generations and our communities."
The schools are part of a ministry-led initiative developed to build STEM-literate employees for Qatar’s workforce and are projected to be unveiled in 2023. Classrooms will be fitted with robotics, energy, fabrication, IT, virtual reality and augmented reality labs. The launch follows the success of the ministry’s first STEM school – the Qatar School for Science and Technology for Boys, which was inaugurated in August 2018, a press statement noted.
The MoEHE established the Qatar School of Science and Technology for Boys to enrol students who are outstanding in STEM subjects, and equipped the facility with specialised laboratories, such as the energy lab sponsored by ExxonMobil Qatar. Efforts are currently underway to establish the two new schools: one for boys and for girls. The schools will have capacity for 1,000 students and develop highly skilled graduates from distinguished government schools that are capable of meeting the country’s requirements, the statement pointed out.
The mission of these schools is to prepare a generation of graduates who are able to strike a balance between Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and languages while applying higher-order thinking and critical analysis skills and employing technology to solve problems with due confidence. Such a profile will ensure that the graduates secure a place in the 21st century information economy, it added.
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