Coinciding with the new academic year, the Qatar University (QU) Young Scientists Center (YSC) launched the 10th cycle of the Science in Sports program for male sophomore and junior school students.
The YSC offers many specialized scientific and research programs in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) directed to school students of all academic levels.
Through programs such as this one, the YSC seeks to achieve several important goals based on the strategic vision of the center and the State of Qatar. The most important being, building youth competencies and capabilities and encouraging them to research and innovate to be the foundation for building a knowledge-based economy and to be the country's development leaders.
The program included six secondary schools from areas inside and outside Doha. It offered students practical workshops on various sports topics, with a focus on sports material science and its impact on performance, sports equipment design, and how to develop sports stadiums. During the workshops, students actively participate in activities and experiments, following an innovative methodology to present advanced scientific concepts in STEM, using the educational materials provided by the center.
Upon completion of the scientific workshops, the students continued their journey in the program by developing sports innovations to solve problems and difficulties facing players. It will then be presented in a final competition that the center will hold in November to enhance the positive spirit of competition among all participating students.
Prof. Noora Al-Thani, Director of the YSC, said, “In the YSC, we are keen to present the Science in Sports program every year in a new and different framework and achieve the strategic goals adopted by QU and the national vision of the country in an interesting and practical context for students.”
She added, “We aim through this program to expand students’ awareness of new sciences and fields, and we seek to create a spirit of challenge to come up with innovations and mathematical solutions in a competitive scientific environment.”
Prof. Noora thanked partners of the center, UNESCO - Doha Office and the Qatar National Commission for Education, Culture and Science.