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Science Education
Science and Technology literacy is nowadays a must in order for one to comprehend the world and be able to contribute positively to its development. Furthermore, with the increasing importance of ICT and realising that one can not develop competent ICT skills without a good science foundation and particularly mathematics, the teaching and learning of science becomes a prime consideration for the development of human capital.
It is therefore essential that in order to make informed choices and to live and contribute in this ever-growing technological world our young people should have competencies and skills in science and technology.
With a view to assessing the status of science and technology in Mauritius, in general, and more specifically in the educational sector, the Mauritius Research Council, in its capacity as the adviser to Government on matters pertaining to science and technology, undertook a number of studies. The findings of these studies call for concern, as increasingly science is becoming less attractive in the schools; a trend that is reflected worldwide. As a result, fewer than 30% of ‘O’ level students would actually opt for science subjects in the secondary schools. Many reasons were advanced as to why students shy away from science. These range from the subject being perceived as difficult and meant only for the bright ones to a perceived lack of job opportunities. The findings also indicate that Public Understanding of Science is on the decline.
It was in the wake of these studies and following the submission of a Draft Action Plan for Science Education that the Ministry of Education & Scientific Research mandated the Council to Chair a Steering Committee to make recommendations, in the light of the findings of the reports. Subsequently, two Task Forces, one for the primary sector and one for the secondary sector, were set up. These committees comprised of all stakeholders, including teachers, trainers, inspectors, head teachers, rectors and trade union representatives. The committees met on numerous occasions and deliberated on matters centred around the issues of – What kind of science should we be teaching in the Mauritian context? How should that science be taught? Who should do the teaching? And finally how should the teaching and learning of science be assessed?
In addition to the above studies, the Council commissioned a number of surveys to further assess the teaching and learning of science at schools. In particular, the views of the general public was sought through advertisements in the local papers and through the Council’s website.
The recommendations and Action Plan presented in Volume I of the report emanate mostly from the findings of the studies and surveys carried out and from the many deliberations of the Steering Committee and the Task Forces. We are also grateful to the inputs and analysis from our overseas consultants, namely Prof. Robert Parfitt of the University of Bath, UK, and Prof. Michel Demazure of the Cité des Sciences et de L’Industrie, Paris, France. The detail findings of the studies are found in Volume II of the report.
These recommendations have also been validated by a sample of the stakeholders, namely teachers, head teachers, rectors, inspectors and representatives of trade unions, among others, and have been adopted.
In line with the recommendations and the action plan the Mauritius Research Council is initiating preliminary work on the following projects.
- Refurbishment of a 20’ X 8’ container to be used as a semi-mobile science laboratory prototype for primary schools
- Creation of a model science room in the primary schools having additional room space
- Investigating use of Low Cost Equipment for scientific experiments
- Investigating links with Indian institutes regarding training in writing of science and mathematics curriculum
- Organising a workshop for training of laboratory assistants
- Setting-up of the Mauritius Association of Science and Technology Educators (MASTE) under the aegis of MRC
- Investigating the use of Internet based Teaching and Learning resources for the promotion of Science and Mathematics in schools
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