SWAT: Swat students showcased their innovative projects at an expo held here on Sunday, emphasising the importance of enhancing soft skills through coding, artificial intelligence, machine learning and data science.

The event featured a diverse range of student-developed projects, including Arduino-based creations, games, and mobile apps, highlighting the growing talent and interest in technology among the youth.

The expo titled ‘Shaping Minds for Society 5.0, Maker Fair 21’ was organised by SKOOL21 – a company facilitating schools to link their learning content with sustainable development goals through STEM projects – in collaboration with SPS College. Students showcased a variety of innovative projects featuring working sensors, threat alerts, fire and smoke detection systems. They also presented a range of science projects in working condition, as well as the development of computer and mobile phone apps.

Parents and tech industry experts also attended the expo, showing keen interest in the displays.

Experts call for replacing rote-learning with technical education

The students highlighted the importance of focusing their energies on modern tech-based projects such as machine learning, coding, app development, data science, and robotics, especially in the era of AI and digital technology. They emphasised that these fields were more valuable than traditional, theory-based learning reliant on rote memorisation.

Maheen Javed and Zahida Iqbal, two grade six students who developed a weight-lifting project, expressed their satisfaction in creating the project and their enthusiasm for working with new technologies to bring their ideas to life.

Ada Rahman, another grade six student, explained her ‘self-sustaining indoor plants ecosystem’ project to visitors. She suggested that growing indoor plants, including vegetables, flowers, and other useful plants, was an easy and practical initiative that can be implemented with minimal effort.

Ghani Khan and Mohammad Safwan, two other students, showcased their distance sensor project, a model designed to inform owners of houses, shops, offices, and other sensitive buildings about potential threats approaching their premises.

Some students also presented models aimed at empowering women through STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) in Pakistan.

Banafsha Arif, a grade six student, shared her research on women, who have made significant contributions to computer science and other scientific fields. She highlighted that STEM would be incomplete without the work of women.

The students and educational experts stressed the need for Pakistan’s education syllabus to align with modern technology, computer science, STEM and AI.

They called for a shift away from the outdated rote-learning system in favour of an education system that fostered innovation and technical skills.

PRESS CLUB ELECTION: Niaz Ahmad Khan was elected president of the Swat Press Club, and Syed Shahabuddin president of the Swat Union of Journalists, respectively, here on Sunday.

They were elected unopposed after elections for the press club, union of journalists, and the governing body were completed. Mohammad Shafiullah was elected general secretary of the press club and Asmat Ali Akhun general secretary of the union. Other office-bearers of the press club include Javed Iqbal Mir Khan Khel senior vice-president, Shaukat Ali vice-president, Murad Ali deputy general secretary, Adnan Bacha joint secretary and Iftikhar Ali finance secretary.

The Swat Union of Journalists’ newly-elected members are Umar Farooq senior vice-president, Waqar Ahmad vice-president, Abdullah Shirin deputy general secretary, Mohammad Khaleq Sagar joint secretary, and Mohammad Zubair Khan finance secretary.

The governing body members are Fazal Rahim Khan, Ghfoor Khan Adil, Shehzad Alam, Hazrat Ali Bacha and Mohammad Hayat Chaman.

Published in Dawn, December 30th, 2024