In collaboration with the National Institute of Education, Maldives, CEMCA organised an online capacity-building training on virtual labs for teachers and teacher educators in February 2021. The three-day event brought together 194 specialists from the country in the areas of physics, chemistry, biology and mathematics.

Welcoming participants, The Honourable Fathimath Naseer, Maldives Minister of State for Education, emphasised the usefulness of virtual labs in reaching teachers and students across diverse geographies in the country.

The training included research insights on the effectiveness of online labs and demonstrations of online experiments and simulations for school-level Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Mathematics. Participants welcomed the opportunity to learn how to access, use, and integrate virtual labs in teaching and learning.

One of the participants, Mr. Zaidulla Mohamed, GN Atoll Education Centre, said the training has equipped him “to deliver lessons and conduct interesting activities which, in turn, will help students learn and develop.”

According to CEMCA Director Professor Madhu Parhar, one of the reasons for low “pass rates” in schools is that students find science subjects very difficult. “Virtual labs can create interest in students, thus enhancing science education.”

In the coming months, CEMCA plans to conduct various other capacity building programmes for teachers and teacher educators of Maldives.