Department of Education Undersecretary Nepomuceno Malaluan during a press conference at the National Science and Technology Fair 2020 at the Novotel Hotel in Cubao, Quezon City. (PNA Photo by Ma. Teresa P. Montemayor)
MANILA – To promote science and technology consciousness and a culture of innovation among the youth, the Department of Education opened on Tuesday the National Science and Technology Fair (NSTF) 2020 in Cubao, Quezon City.
"The purpose of this event, NSTF, is identifying the most creative and innovative student researches from junior and senior high school that will represent our country in international science research fairs," Department of Education (DepEd) Undersecretary Nepomuceno Malaluan said in a press conference during the launch.
DepEd Bureau of Curriculum Development director Jocelyn Andaya said a total of 161 student-researchers participated in the fair.
"Five of the delegates are from private schools and the rest are from public schools. There are only 39 schools all over the country that participated because you will have to go through the course of winning at different levels - from schools to division," Andaya added.
The research projects made by learners from the junior and senior high school levels nationwide will be judged in four categories – life science, physical science, robotics, and intelligent machines—in the science innovation expo.
"On Thursday, we'll know the winners but not all of them will go to the United States of America (USA). I think that there will still be vetted by our board of judges to finally determine how many from the winners will go to the USA probably during the first week of April because the competition is in May," Andaya said.
Jeramae Etac from Region 5 (Bicol), Sheena Krista Rufila from Region 13 (Caraga), Maria Isabel Lim Layson from Region 6 (Western Visayas), Eisen Gabriel Francisco from the National Capital Region, and Jannah Sarvida from Calabarzon were among the representatives of the research teams with the highest number of delegates who joined the press conference.
Francisco's team worked on the Coco-Lisap Project which focused on an environment-friendly solution to eliminate the pest problem affecting coconut trees.
Francisco said coco-lisap is a problem of farmers in many provinces nationwide, not just in Luzon and Visayas.
"One of my teammates went to Basilan last summer and he saw how devastating coco-lisap is to the farmers and to the industry. Right now, hindi lang sa coconut ang problema pati na rin po sa (the problem is not just with coconut but also with) lanzones and mangosteen," he added.
The NSTF 2020 is a four-day event that includes other activities like TUKLAS, Innovation Expo, Science Academy, and AGHAMBayaNiJuan.
TUKLAS is a science and math research fair and competition providing participants opportunities to showcase their research projects based on issues and problems in their communities.
Meanwhile, the Innovation Expo is an innovative technology competition that recognizes the most creative and market-viable project addressing major issues in agriculture, energy, water, health, and environment.
Participants who want to learn more about innovation, creativity, and excellence in science and research may join the Science Academy.
AGHAMBayaNiJuan, on the other hand, is a public community exhibition of partners in science, technology, research, and innovation to showcase the latest innovative products, technologies, and services in various areas of society. (PNA)
