KUCHING: The STEM Catalyst-Raspberry Pi 2025 programme is set to make a major impact this year, reaching over 6,000 primary school pupils across 18 District Education Office (PPDs) in Sarawak.
Minister for Education, Innovation, and Talent Development Datuk Seri Roland Sagah Wee Inn said the initiative, which runs from April to July, will cover more than 130 schools, spanning from Lundu in the south to Kanowit in central Sarawak and Baram in the north.
He also said the expansion follows the success of last year’s pilot programme.
“We experimented with Catalysts in 2024 with schools in Kota Samarahan, Serian and Sri Aman. It was a great success.
“We reached out to over 1,000 pupils in 12 schools. The main feedback we received was that schools had never seen such a deep level of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) engagement before, at least not at primary school level,” he said.
He said this during a press conference on Stem Catalysts-Raspberry Pi 2025 at the Sarawak Skills premises here today.
On the programme, Sagah said the STEM Catalyst programme, designed as a touring STEM carnival, will include a range of interactive exhibits and activities led by Sarawak Skills and the University of Technology Sarawak.
“Students will get hands-on experience with different types of sensors and actuators for students to use in their Reka Bentuk dan Teknologi classes in scho, using pulley and hydraulic to lift heavy objects, calculating the speed of dropping ball in a vacuum, generating hydrogen and lighting it up, controlling robotic arm manually and using AI as well as drone racing and many more,” he said.
With STEM Catalyst-Raspberry Pi 2025, Sagah said the ministry hopes to build on its progress and inspire more young Sarawakians to embrace STEM, ensuring that learning is not a sprint, nor even a marathon, but a lifelong journey.
Sagah said Sarawak is committed to strengthening STEM education, with a target of 60 percent student enrolment in STEM by 2030, up from the current 45.7 percent.
“We are determined to inculcate a deep interest in STEM, not just among our young ones but even among adults,” he said.
