STEAM

Choi Wan St Joseph's Primary SchoolOver the years, we have kept pace with the needs of the times, made full use of the advantages of scientific and technological development, continued to keep pace with the times in terms of curriculum system and hardware supporting facilities, and are committed to cultivating innovative scientific and technological talents. Principal Zhu Jialiang actively promotes popularization of STEAM education and gifted training, creates a development platform for students, and cooperates with the policy of "rejuvenating the country through science and education" to cultivate innovative, technological and thinking talents needed by the country. Therefore, the school not only promotes STEAM education, but also integrates it with multiple fields and adopts an interdisciplinary collaboration model to integrate different disciplines into a diverse learning process, giving students more opportunities to learn, display and perform.

STEAM+R interdisciplinary course knowledge combined with values education

By integrating cross-curricular learning elements, the school breaks down traditional subject barriers and adds the core value of Catholicism - "R" - to STEAM education. Principal Zhu pointed out: “‘R’ actually stands for values education. Through the philosophy of the school sponsoring group, values education is integrated into cross-curricular learning to cultivate students’ empathy and benevolent attitude. Therefore, in the ST‘R’EAM interdisciplinary course, students not only design works, but start from charity, identify problems with care and empathy, and use design thinking to solve them.”

Through STEAM project learning, students learn to solve problems and practice positive values, making education more warm and meaningful. For example, the fifth-grade smart traffic light group project study is based on concern for the safety hazards of passers-by and drivers, using design thinking combined with visual arts and computer programming elements to try to design traffic lights that can improve the problem; the sixth-grade smart home group project study is based on design thinking, computational thinking and programming, adding digital literacy and the five elements of European Digital Compass 2.0, focusing on solving the life difficulties of the elderly, using mathematics, visual arts and other subject knowledge and artificial intelligence voice recognition technology to design smart homes.

Create a science and technology learning atmosphere to further develop innovation and technology talents

The school emphasizes equal emphasis on science and technology, and provides popular, interesting, and diversified teaching in line with the policy of "rejuvenating the country through science and education" and cultivates talents with innovative, collaborative thinking, and problem-solving abilities. Its science and technology teaching is led by computer science, with unplugged teaching starting from the lower grades. Students in the second and third grades are first exposed to Scratch Junior; students in the fourth grade begin to use Scratch programming, laying a foundation for students' scientific and technological knowledge and skills from the junior primary stage.

The school also launched a fourth-grade 3D printing course, which combines technology with visual arts, allowing students to do 3D drawing and print out their own works. In addition, the "One Micro:bit per person" program is implemented starting from the fifth grade, giving every student the opportunity to learn programming and creating an atmosphere of technology learning in the school.

Science is led by General Studies, which arranges interesting science experiments for grades one to six, and introduces microscope teaching to stimulate students' interest in science through experiments and microscopic observation of organisms and plants. This series of popular courses gives all students the opportunity to be exposed to science and technology, explore their interests and potential in the STEAM field, and allow talented students to further develop.

Introducing external resources to provide more exploration opportunities

In order to broaden students' knowledge horizons, the school actively uses external resources to promote STEAM education and provide students with more opportunities to explore. For example, we participate in the "Fun IT Learn More" program implemented by the government to optimize the scientific development of science and technology in schools. In addition, the school introduced the Jockey Club Cool Think program to teach potential sixth grade students to write mobile applications and encourage students to design works for competition.

With the support of abundant resources, students used AI, AR and other technologies to design works with both creative and practical value. For example, the “Dr. Fish” app allows users to learn about different fish species and explore marine ecology; the “Ethnic Trend” app promotes traditional Chinese clothing; and the “Acupoint Heritage” app uses acupoint massage to relieve health problems, promote traditional Chinese medicine, and build national identity.

Li Yaolin, Director of STEAM Education Coordinator, said: "The concept of 'charity' is implemented behind every work, starting from love to help others. This consolidates students' interdisciplinary knowledge, cultivates skills such as programming and design, and at the same time plays a key role in shaping value, opening the way for students' all-round development in the future."

Diverse learning experiences, creating a platform to practice and seek knowledge

The school is committed to organizing STEAM gifted training classes through diverse learning experiences, arranging outstanding students to participate in pull-out learning, such as drone courses, metaverse exploration classes and AI artificial intelligence mechanical classes, providing a variety of teaching methods to expose students to STEAM knowledge outside of the curriculum. Principal Zhu believes that technology should inspire children’s ability to seek knowledge, explore and solve problems. Therefore, for STEAM elite students, the school arranges for them to participate in various competitions and overseas exchanges to practice technology application skills and open up the vast world of STEAM. For example, the school has established sister schools with two schools in Jiangmen and Shanghai that emphasize scientific and technological innovation, creating exchange opportunities for elite students, such as participating in the Shanghai Science Popularization Summer Camp to improve their learning level.

Every year, the school also leads students to participate in the International Greater Bay Area Four-wheel-Drive Competition, allowing students to showcase their talents and gain more insights through experience and exchanges. Earlier, students won the Bronze Award in the 2023 Hong Kong Information and Communications Technology Awards (Student Innovation Award) planned by the Digital Office for their "Dr. Fish" program. They participated in the Innovation and Technology Exhibition at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center to introduce this meaningful program to the public. They also represented Hong Kong in Shanghai to share reports and communicate with the mainland. During the competition, students can not only apply what they have learned, but also build team spirit and self-confidence, and promote personal development. This is also a good opportunity to hone their expression skills and expand their horizons.

Students’ STEAM feelings

6A Mai Yinglin

Thanks to the school for designing all aspects of STEAM courses and environment, allowing us to have more time and equipment to explore STEAM content. In the "Metaverse Exploration" class, I designed a four-wheel drive vehicle through programming and was able to represent our school in the competition.

6A Cai Peichen

Last year, I was fortunate enough to go to Shanghai to participate in a summer camp with classmates from the STEAM group. I was able to share my programming designs with students from other schools, communicate with each other, and explore improvement solutions, which enriched my growth experience.

6A Ling Xunuo

I am very interested in STEAM. Under the guidance of my first teacher, Director Li, my classmates and I designed a program "Dr Fish" to let everyone know about different fish. We introduced this program to different people, and it was eventually widely recognized, which also established my determination to develop in STEAM.

6AZou Ziqi

A few years ago, I learned that the area near the school was a high-risk spot for traffic accidents, so I took "intelligent traffic lights" as the direction of my group's project study. Under the professional guidance of the teacher, I began to understand the concept of "STEAM". With the use of Micro-bit, the smart traffic light model was completed. When the model was completed, it was also the starting point of my interest in "STEAM".

5A Liu Ziying

The school's general knowledge and computer science subjects focus on "STEAM", which allowed me to learn basic programming skills, such as adding sound sensors and infrared sensors. These activities made me very interested in STEAM.

5A Liao Wenxuan
Thanks to the school for allowing me to participate in the "Underwater Robot" competition, which inspired my interest in "STEAM" during the process. Although I only won the "Most Creative Award" in the competition, it did not hinder my pursuit of "STEAM".

5A Wu Jiaqian

This year I participated in the "Underwater Robot" competition. In order to give us a place to experiment, the school specially added a pool for us. Through this competition, I have a deeper understanding of "STEAM".