EDUCATION – A slight increase in the number of students enrolled in science courses

Orientations towards scientific fields have increased. Nevertheless, the gap with literary series remains significantt.

Numbers in science series in public high schools in Antananarivo are on the rise again. “This school year we have four sections of the Première Scientifique (S) class, compared to three previously. As for the First Literary (L), it went from seven to five”, emphasizes the head of the high school Gallieni Andohalo during the official opening of the Ny Asako Rahampitso event, a professional orientation for high school students, organized by the Rotary Club. .

The principal of Lycée Jean Joseph Rabearivelo (LJJR) in Analakely, Holy Rakotomalala Rabarison, confirms this slight increase in those enrolled in science series within his institution. Several projects implemented in public high schools have given students a taste for science subjects again. “They can now make informed decisions thanks to events such as Ny Asako Rahampitso, which detail the educational paths to follow in order to pursue a certain profession,” explains a source from Andoharanofotsy High School, also a beneficiary of the project, where more than half of the students are thousand two hundred students are scientists.

In this project launched by the Rotary Club of Antananarivo Ainga, in close collaboration with the Ministry of National Education, experts share their school, university and professional careers with second-year students. The goal is to help them better choose a direction for their future studies. Other projects are also implemented in high schools, such as the improvement of science teaching through better use of ICT or the cooperation of Lycée LJJR with the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) association, which encourages high school students to be more interested in science. “Girls, who are still a minority in science classes, are the main targets of this STEM project,” adds Holy Rakotomalala Rabarison.

guidance

Although in secondary schools in Antananarivo there is an increase in the share of science series, the number of students in these series is still very low compared to those in literature series. “Science subjects, especially mathematics, are the bane of students,” says Lelahy Oneph Miraut Tsimiheloky, assistant principal at LJJR. It is a misconception for teachers that literature subjects are more accessible than science subjects. “It is easier to get good grades in scientific subjects, exact sciences, than in literary subjects,” explains Holy Rakotomalala Rabarison. He adds that to enroll in a science class, a student must have good grades in three basic subjects, namely mathematics, physics and natural sciences.

But how can we reverse this trend so that there are as many scientists as there are writers? For these principals, it is crucial to strengthen the skills of teachers, especially those in scientific subjects, to develop academic orientations, to explain more to students the exit profiles of each batch, as this initiative of the Rotary Club does, and above all to equip schools with laboratories and media libraries, to encourage young people to interest in science.

Here one of the students raised his hand to ask a question during the sharing session.

Students pay attention to this policewoman’s explanations.

Rotary Club of Antananarivo Ainga immortalizes the event of Ny Asako Rahampitso.

It has been 16 years since the Ny Asako Rahampitso event, jointly organized by the Rotary Club of Antananarivo Ainga and the Ministry of National Education, returns every year to public secondary schools. Since then, tens of thousands of high school students, at a rate of nearly five thousand goals per year, have benefited from this project aimed at guiding their study choices with an eye to their future careers. Many of them were inspired by the careers of the professionals the club invited.

Some became judges, others doctors, gendarmes, policemen, etc. In this 16th edition, the organizer invited experts from new professions. “In addition to firefighters, there will also be architects, doctors, young experts in environmental protection and digital technology who will share their journey with students. The goal is that at the end of this event they can make informed decisions,” explains Serge Andriantseheno, a member of the Rotary Club of Antananarivo Ainga.

Almost two hundred speakers participated in this 16th edition of Ny Asako Rahampitso, during which students from six high schools of the city of Antananarivo and Andoharanofotsy High School were able to discover almost one hundred and twenty occupations. This annual meeting of high school students with experts will surely return in 2025, with even more speakers.

The Rotary Club of Antananarivo Ainga has conducted several social actions since the mandate of Viraj Vibakar, the president of this service club for the year 2023-2024. Along with Ny Asako Rahampitso, the club renovated the Preschool building of Antaneticely Arivonimamo Public Primary School. Added to this is the water supply through the installation of a water tower, which gives students access to drinking water. In the field of health, the National Blood Transfusion Center in Ampefiloha collected almost five hundred bags of blood during the blood donation campaign organized by the club in September. And this year, in partnership with the American School, the second edition was organized. The Rotary Club of Antananarivo Ainga also participated in the rehabilitation of the operating room of the hospital in Antsohihy. In the field of peace promotion, thanks to the support and assistance of the Rotary Club of Antananarivo Ainga, a student from Madagascar received a Rotary Peace Scholarship. He was selected by the Rotary Club International Fellowship in Uganda. He is the first scholar of the club, the first scholar of Madagascar and even district 9220 in this area. He is currently studying at the Rotary Peace Center in Uganda.