Tharparkar's Largest Science Festival Starts

A two-day science festival for schoolchildren started Wednesday at Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Cultural Complex in Mithi, Tharparkar aimed at triggering a spark for science and discovery among students in the region

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th Feb, 2018 ) :A two-day science festival for schoolchildren started Wednesday at Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Cultural Complex in Mithi, Tharparkar aimed at triggering a spark for science and discovery among students in the region.

The festival was organized and inaugurated by Chief Monitoring Officer Samiullah Sanjrani and Deputy Commissioner Dr Hafeez Siyal, in collaboration with Alif Ailaan, Thar Education Alliance, and Pakistan Alliance for Maths and Science, said a press release issued here.' The first day of the festival attracted a massive attendance of 6,000 students from more than 100 government and private schools of Thar district.

Teachers, entrepreneurs, science specialists, government officials and local political leaders attended the festival where students exhibited more than 120 science models displaying their passion for science and technology, and introduced innovative concepts to the visitors.' Interactive displays and live experiments, some of which involved lunar and solar observatories, robotics, and 3D printing, were conducted by six science organisations from across the country.

The latest Standardized Achievement Test conducted in Sindh reflects a poor state of maths and science education in Tharparkar, with Class V students scoring 27.38 in science and 30.04 in maths, while Class VIII students scored 26.8 in science and 25.6 in maths.

This calls for a greater focus by the political and local district government in Thar to organize interventions such as these to sustain their interest in these subjects. During his media talk, District Commissioner Dr Hafeez Siyal invited all children in Thar to attend the festival with their parents and termed the event a learning opportunity for Thar's youth.

Chief Monitoring Officer Samiullah Sanjrani also organized a maths and science test for grades 4 to 12 in which over 4000 students participated.