The Training of Trainer programmes operated in Viet Nam were based on the extended period of consultancy delivered by Exscitec under the remit of the British Council Newton Fund and the Ministry Of Education and Training in Viet Nam (MOET).

Exscitec delivered a report on the year-long pilot STEM programme which engaged 14 public schools in the North of Viet Nam. Pilot schools were from Hanoi and surrounding provinces; rural and urban.

The report (Towards a STEM Curriculum Entitlement for all Vietnamese Students) recommended a training cascade for established teachers (ToT) as part of an implementation strategy.

This recommendation has been adopted in a number of provinces but notably in Ho Chi Minh City where Exscitec has been working to support a Department Of Education and Training (DOET) ToT initiative organised originally by by Saigon Scientists and now through STEMax supported through a partnership with Exscitec. Over 1000 teachers from public schools have received the 3-day training programme to March 2019.

Exscitec, supported by STEMax has rolled the ToT programme out to International School Groups including WASS (Western Australian School System) and notably Singapore International Schools – KinderWorld Group (SIS-KWG).

The SIS-KWG training supported teachers from all of the Group’s campuses, North and South in two sets of training workshops. Round 1 developed whole school thematic approached to the challenge of Plastics in the Environment. Round 2 focused on the introduction of CREST Awards to support Problem/Project Based Learning (PBL) alongside but in support of the KWG teaching model.

Plans for 2021/22 will take the ToT/CREST implementation programme into more school groups by providing a blend of Virtual and face-to-face support.

Working under a MoU with the British Science Association (BSA) Exscitec is exploring the operation of CREST Awards within public and international Schools in Viet Nam and potentially other ASEAN countries.

Whilst STEM is being introduced into the core curriculum of public schools in Viet Nam by MOET and implemented by provincial DOETs, it does not form part of the current testing systems in schools. Current pilot work in partnership with Saigon Scientists is exploring the potential of CREST as an internationally recognised system for accrediting STEM and STEAM activity.

Exscitec is working with Saigon Scientists to support a raft of school-based STEM programmes for students. Exscitec is also working to develop programmes outside of Viet Nam by building partnership links with schools offering good facilities for STEM activity. Work in progress included building STEM weeks to operate during the vacation periods and also STEM Club supported initiatives.

Exscitec with Saigon Scientists is working with universities in HCMC, Danang and other provinces of Viet Nam to build STEM links that will extend to school students and school teachers.

Work with universities also includes supporting through consultancy universities of education adapting their programmes to prepare future generations of teachers for the inclusion of STEM within the curriculum.

Exscitec has also worked to support university researchers in Indonesia through a British Council Newton Fund programme with LIPI (research council group in Indonesia). This programme was in several parts:
• Supporting communication about STEM for scientists
• Preparing schools students to communicate their projects through the LIPI national Science and Engineering fair
• Providing feedback on competition judging processes

Based on the extensive experience gained by Exscitec in supporting the development and operation of the Reach Out Lab at Imperial College London, Exscitec is supporting Saigon Scientists in advising on the development of STEM Lab and Maker Spaces within schools in HCMC.