The STEM Career Expo was developed by Esplora’s STEM Engagement Team with the intention of being offered as a school outing every year in January.
The aim of the Expo is that of gently introducing children to occupations in science, technology, engineering and mathematics that are available locally, for them to glean an insight into the wide variety of fascinating opportunities that await them should they choose the STEM pathway. Via the Expo, we also acknowledge and honour the contribution of Maltese and Malta-based STEM professionals to society at large, thus proposing potential role models to the children.
From 21 to 26 January 2020, Esplora hosted its first Career Expo dedicated to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), aimed at children in late primary (ages 8 to 10).
More than 1,200 school children from different state, church and independent schools across the island visited the Expo with their teachers from Tuesday to Friday. They visited over thirty stands manned by STEM professionals from private companies, government departments and NGOs. What made this Expo different from traditional fairs is the fact that at every stand the children took part in a hands-on STEM activity organised by the STEM professionals themselves. These included VR experiences, games, quizzes, experiments, coding exercises and tinkering activities.
While this first edition of the STEM Career Expo was very successful, the international health situation made it impossible for us to host another similar event in 2021. However, the STEM Engagement Team still wanted to honour its January appointment with STEM careers and offer some materials aimed at keeping the children’s natural curiosity about future occupations alive.
From 22nd January to 31st March 2021, Esplora hosted a small poster exhibition in the Orientation area of the interactive science centre as well as at Esplora Café. These sixteen posters featured STEM professionals from very diverse STEM sectors at their place of work, together with a small message in the form of a quotation. Care was taken to ensure gender and qualification diversity. The team purposely chose some occupations that children may be less familiar with, and occupations that combine different disciplines, including the Arts.
These different professions are explained in more detail in interviews presented in a small booklet accessible here
As part of the activities this year, professionals in STEM fields were interviewed and a video was created to give further insight into various careers. You may view this video here.
You may also wish to use the resources prepared by Esplora and its international partners in the framework of the Erasmus+ project RAISE (Raising Awareness and Interest in STEAM Employment).
Should you have any feedback for us, please do not hesitate to contact the STEM Engagement Team at stemengagement.esplora@esplora.org.mt
Esplora would like to thank educators at all levels, for stimulating our children’s interest and curiosity and encouraging them to take the path they feel most attracted to.
We would also like to thank the STEM Engagement Working Group for their commitment and support. This Working Group, chaired by Esplora, brings together members from the Ministry of Education and Employment, University of Malta, the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology, JobsPlus, National Skills Council, Institute of Education and Tech.mt.
Thank you also to the National School Support Services at the Ministry of Education and all guidance teachers for their continued cooperation.
And finally, a heartfelt thank you goes out to the following organisations for giving us their time and sharing their insights with us so generously: The National Statistics Office (NSO), Heritage Malta, Aurobindo, Medavia, PARKs (formerly Ambjent Malta), Malta Information Technology Agency (MITA), National Blood Transfusion Service, Ministry for Health, Melita, ST Microelectronics, Simonds Farsons Cisk plc, University of Malta, AquaBioTech Group, Water Services Corporation and Carlo Gavazzi Ltd.
