New Perspectives in Science Education

In Thailand, the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), in close collaboration with 10 universities, has been supporting altogether 150 high schools and vocational colleges under the Fabrication Laboratory project to help develop these students to become innovators through creation activities.
In 2020, NSTDA and its partners launched a national contest under the topic “STEM Project for Strengthening Agriculture for Sustainable Development.”
In the contest, four enterprising and outstanding STEM projects out of a choice of 55 were unanimously chosen by the selection committee: Automatic Crab Molting Warning Application, Farmer Bot, Aueng Sae Green House and Solar Herbs, all of which incorporated local wisdom and powerful ideas for application to agriculture.
Based on the observation, there were three principal contributing factors playing a viral role in the successful implementation of the STEM projects for sustainable agricultural development: firstly, its suitability for local areas and practicality in solving real problems affecting the community; secondly, multiple on-site experiments, not in a laboratory, with results’ adjustments and improvements as required to be most practical for the community; and thirdly,  full support of required equipment and devices from the Fabrication Laboratory such as sensors, 3D printers, and laser cutters for implementation of the  STEM projects conveniently.
These selected outstanding STEM projects are good examples of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), as they can motivate and stimulate students to acquire new knowledge and to develop new skills, proper attitudes, and values necessary for shaping a sustainable future from their own local contexts. Furthermore,  these STEM projects can teach students to take action and be resourceful through critical thinking, imagining future scenarios, and making decisions collaboratively—the skills they developed from their creation of these STEM projects which can significantly help them achieve actual sustainable development in any specific area in the future, not only in agriculture.

Keywords: local context, powerful idea, STEM project, sustainable development, Fabrication Laboratory.