Tribune News Network
Doha
Qatar University’s (QU) Young Scientists Center (YSC) has launched the ninth cycle of its successful Science in Sports programme, which follows the STEM curriculum in an innovative framework to attract school students to explore the science behind sports.
The programme will enable the students to understand the scientific fields such as sports engineering, and sports materials science and their impact on sports equipment and players’ efficiency.
The ninth cycle of the programme includes Omar bin Al Khattab Secondary School for Boys, Musab bin Omair Secondary Independent School for Boys, Hassan bin Thabet Secondary School for Boys, Hamad bin Abdullah Secondary School for Boys, Al Shamal Secondary School for Boys, Dukhan Secondary School for Boys and Al-Hayat International School.
The participating students attend scientific workshops and practical activities where they learn about important physical concepts, theories and laws for choosing the materials used in the designing of balls and sports equipment, in addition to studying the designing of stadiums and sports facilities and the importance of research in developing them to ensure high efficiency of players.
Students work collectively in groups, and they will attend a final competition to design an innovative football with new tools that improve its qualities. QU professors and members of the Qatar Olympic Committee will evaluate the participants.
The programme also introduced a technology track to teach students the basics of programming in different languages and new scientific trends to be applied in creating programmes and applications in the sports field. Several schools participated in this track such as the Mesaieed Secondary School for Boys, Zubaida School for Girls and Al-Jazeera Academy for Boys. The participants will be evaluated as well at a final competition, which will also be held at QU.
Prof Noora Al-Thani, director of the QU-YSC, said, “The interest in sports contributes to the progress and building of societies in a way that stimulates all aspects of the society. In order to improve and develop sports, institutions and research centres must publish and support scientific studies related to sports.
Therefore the centre has dedicated a programme to provide young people with the scientific knowledge and skills necessary to achieve leadership and innovation in the development of the sports sector, which has a fundamental and effective impact on the country’s renaissance.”
