Ministries of Education, Sports and Youth, QSC launch school innovation incubators initiative

The Ministry of Education and Higher Education, the Ministry of Sports and Youth, and the Qatar Scientific Club launched the school innovation incubators initiative.The launch took place at the Qatar Scientific Club (QSC) headquarters Tuesday.The event was attended by HE the Minister of Communications and Information Technology Mohammed bin Ali bin Mohammed al-Mannai, HE the Minister of Sports and Youth Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa bin Ahmed al-Thani, HE the Minister of Education and Higher Education Lolwah bint Rashid bin Mohammed AlKhater, as well as several senior officials and representatives of partner entities. The ceremony began with a panel discussion featuring the ministers and senior officials. An introductory video about the joint projects was also presented, along with honouring schools and partners.The initiative, which is supported by the Social and Sport Contribution Fund (DAAM) aims to create a school environment that encourages innovation and scientific thinking, and enables students to develop their skills in science, technology, and research, enhancing their future contribution to building a sustainable knowledge economy.Director of the Youth Affairs Department at the Ministry of Sports and Youth Fawaz Abdullah al-Musaifri said that the school innovation incubators initiative includes eight innovation incubators distributed across eight schools across the country. The incubators were designed and implemented under the supervision of the Qatar Scientific Club. Faculty members at the participating schools, who operate innovation incubators, underwent specialised training courses, which will later contribute to the qualification and training of students using the incubators, both during the summer and during the upcoming academic year.He pointed out that this initiative fulfils both the Qatar National Vision 2030 and the Ministry of Sports and Youth’s vision of an active and responsible youth with a sense of patriotism, and a society that practices sports. He emphasised the Club’s commitment to nurturing outstanding students, enabling them to play a significant role in its activities and events, as well as involving them in its various external participations, whether through the Ministry of Sports and Youth or the Ministry of Education and Higher Education.Director of Administrative and Financial Affairs at the Qatar Scientific Club, Fatima al-Mohannadi, said the participation was distributed across eight schools, four for boys and four for girls. The aim, she explained, is to develop students’ skills in various fields of science, including technology, engineering, and mathematics.Al-Mohannadi added that the initiative aims to provide an environment similar to the digital manufacturing labs located at the Qatar Scientific Club, which contain the latest technical equipment, in addition to other educational materials, including tools for robotics and artificial intelligence applications.Assistant Director of the Educational Guidance Department at MoEHE and Director of the STEM Project at the ministry, said that the key feature of the school innovation incubators initiative is that it seeks to promote the concept of creative learning among students, in addition to moving away from traditional methods, especially in various aspects of innovation. Furthermore, the initiative encompassed eight municipalities across the country through the eight participating schools.The school innovation incubators were equipped with specialised laboratories for digital manufacturing, 3D printing, robotics, artificial intelligence, electronics, and communications. They also provided dedicated spaces for project design and implementation, as well as technology libraries containing advanced tools and materials that enable students to transform their ideas into viable prototypes. The science club oversaw the preparation of these facilities and provided necessary technical training to teaching staff.During the event, the students showcased their innovative projects, which reflected the extent of their benefit from the experience and the opportunities it provided for them to apply and develop their ideas.The Ministry of Education and Higher Education invited parents who wish to have their children participate in innovation programmes to visit the Maarif portal, summer clubs section, on the ministry’s website, and select the innovation programme from among the available activities.