INNOVATORS with solutions to improve the effectiveness of teaching and learning in hybrid mode will be able to make use of the newly launched High-Tech Education Sandbox at Multimedia University (MMU).
Aimed at boosting the usage of local technology in the education sector, the sandbox is the product of a collaboration between MMU and the Malaysian Global Innovation and Creativity Centre (MaGIC), the lead secretariat of the National Technology and Innovation Sandbox (NTIS).
The collaboration agreement (CA) was inked at the launch of the Research Innovation Commercialisation and Entrepreneurship Showcase 2021 officiated by Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba.
The CA is in line with the National Policy on Science, Technology and Innovation 2021-2030 that aims to intensify local technology development and application efforts to transform the country from being technology users to technology developers, according to an MMU press release.
MMU president Prof Datuk Dr Mazliham Mohd Su’ud said the move is parallel with the university’s goal of helping to transform society through innovation, and fits the current national and global situations very well.
“This collaboration will strengthen innovation and entrepreneurship among students where they can maximise technology’s potential to transform the way of teaching and learning in the country,” he said.
“It will enhance students’ interest in learning, improve collaboration between students and teachers, increase teachers’ productivity and prepare students for the digital future,” he added.
Technology Park Malaysia (TPM) group chief executive officer Dzuleira Abu Bakar, who represented MRANTI – the merged entity comprising TPM and MaGIC – and the NTIS secretariat, said with the launch of the High-Tech Education Sandbox, innovators are welcome to make use of MMU’s facilities as test beds to accelerate the commercialisation of their innovative ideas to impact.
“For this sandbox, we will be focusing on the solutions that can contribute to improving the effectiveness of hybrid learning pedagogy, as well as preparing a highly competent and productive workforce with strong leadership, critical thinking and hands-on technological skills,” she said.
She added that the platform will bring about meaningful social and economic impact, especially given the repercussions of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We provide an opportunity for local innovations’ commercialisation to be fast-tracked through funding, regulatory facilitation and a live environment where these innovations can be stress tested before going to the market,” she said.
Through the NTIS, four National Sandbox test sites have been established across the country, namely, the Agriculture Sandbox in Felda Mempaga, Pahang; the Robotics and Automation Sandbox in the Iskandar Drone and Robotics Zone in Johor; the Sandbox Logistics for urban delivery drones in Cyberjaya; and Area 57, which is the first one-stop centre for unmanned aerial vehicle and unmanned aircraft systems innovation at TPM, Bukit Jalil.
The High-Tech Education Sandbox is a fast-tracking innovation programme that champions local innovation and creates a smoother pathway for Malaysian technology to get to market. This project creates a test bed for disruptive technologies related to educational activities that would enable Malaysia to solve some of the challenges that have been exacerbated by the pandemic.
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