SEAMEO QITEP in Science (SEAQIS) welcomed six teachers from Sekolah Menengah Masin, Brunei Darussalam, on 18 August 2026 for an academic visit aimed at exploring opportunities for collaboration in STEM education. The visit opened with a welcome from Mr Reza Setiawan, followed by a discussion on potential areas of collaboration between SEAQIS and Sekolah Menengah Masin. The discussion provided an opportunity for both institutions to exchange ideas and explore possible initiatives to support STEM education and professional development.
The teachers also participated in a session on STEM Learning Implementation for the Secondary Level, focusing on approaches to implementing STEM learning and fostering problem-solving skills among students. The session also provided opportunities for participants to exchange experiences and discuss the challenges of implementing STEM education, particularly in preparing teachers to adopt a STEM-oriented mindset.
For the participants, the visit was a meaningful opportunity to gain new perspectives and practical ideas that could be adapted to their own school context.
“One of the main takeaways from today’s discussion was the engineering design process that has been implemented in Indonesia. We hope we can adopt and adapt it to suit our school in Brunei Darussalam,” said one of the teachers.
Another participant described the session as a very meaningful and fruitful discussion, particularly in relation to STEM learning. She highlighted the challenge of developing teachers’ problem-solving perspectives and emphasised the importance of teacher preparation as a foundation for introducing STEM to students.
“We received many ideas, and the hands-on activities were also very helpful. We will bring these ideas back to our school, and we hope to have more collaboration in the future.”
The participants also recognised that their STEM implementation journey is still at an early stage, with teachers’ perspectives and understanding of STEM being among the key challenges. They noted that strengthening teachers’ capacity should come first before introducing broader STEM initiatives to students.
Through this academic visit, SEAQIS and Sekolah Menengah Masin strengthened their connection and opened opportunities for continued knowledge exchange and collaboration. The visit also highlighted the importance of long-term STEM programmes and sustained teacher development in building meaningful STEM learning experiences for students.
Writer: Salsabila Nadhifah
