Towards Effective Application of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education Research

M. U. AdikwuUniversity of Abuja, PMB 117, Abuja, FCT,

NigeriaPaper Presented at the Conference of

Science Teachers’ Association of Nigeria (STAN), Awka, 18-24, 2015

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IntroductionDefinitions Science is the intellectual and practical activity

encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behaviour of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment.

Technology is the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes, especially in industry.

Engineering is the branch of science and technology concerned with the design, building, and use of engines, machines, and structures.

Mathematics is the abstract science of number, quantity and space, either as abstract concepts (pure mathematics), or as applied to other disciplines such as physics and engineering (applied mathematics).

Education is the process of receiving or giving systematic instruction, especially at a school or university.

Whatever is researched into that is not translated into human use is a waste. 2

Information from literature shows (World University Newsletter):

Nigerian scientists produced 10,000 scientific papers (from 1998-2008)

Egyptian scientists produced 30,000 papers (1998-2008) South African scientists produced 47,000 papers (1998-

2008)Netherland scientists produced 47,000 papers in one

year Nigeria is more populous than these countries The more disturbing fact is that countries such as Kenya,

Tanzania, etc, with less number of papers have more of their research outputs hitting the market than Nigerian papers.

Most Nigerian industrialists prefer looking beyond the shores of this nation for their raw materials.

Talking to ourselves, we must also take a look at what we are presenting and see how they will catch the attention of the Nigerian industrialist.

The Current Situation

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STEM as Answer to Some StressorsWe are living in a dynamic world that

demands the need for complexity. The world is plagued by stressors such as: DiseasePoverty HungerLand degradation (the earth is aging)Regional and international conflictsHuman migrationIlliteracy

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STEM as Answer to Some Stressors Contd. Environmental pollutionWater scarcityTerrorismSocial inequity Energy insecurityClimate change, etc. The world in which we live in is changing more

rapidly than ever before and also demands that we change with this complex dynamic world.

Only a profound knowledge of STEM can address some of these stressors both locally and globally. 5

Federal Government EffortsNational Board for Technology Incubation

(NBTI) Institutional Mechanism for commercialization of

Research and Development (R & D) results.Designed to assist budding entrepreneurs in the

development of new technology-based firms both start-up and fledglings

Seeks to effectively link talent, technology, capital and know-how

Leverages entrepreneurial talent in order to accelerate development of new companies and speedy commercialization of R & D and innovation

Value reorientation by creating an environment for changing the attitude towards personal initiative and creativity

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Federal Government Efforts Contd.Has the vision to pursue the commercialization

of technologies and technical innovations Seeks to develop the necessary infrastructure

for nurturing technology start-ups Seeks to promote Nigeria’s indigenous

potentials through value-added and technology-related activities

Seeks to create enabling environment for effective linkage amongst technology providers, entrepreneurs and capital.

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Federal Government Efforts Contd.National Office for Technology Acquisition

and Promotion (NOTAP) Commercialization The Nigerian economy heavily depends on its

ability to acquire and apply technology indigenously to produce goods, processes, devices and provide services.

To achieve this, a well-focused National Innovation System (NIS) is necessary in which technology acquisition is well matched to the needs of the market and industry.

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Federal Government Efforts Contd.Commercial Idea: This phase begins with techno-

market insight to prove the concept of a technology and a market opportunity

Intellectual Property Rights: The procedure for granting patents, the requirements placed on the patentee

Funding: Identification of a Venture capitalist, access to risk/ research funds and technology transfer licensing are prerequisite for a successful commercialisation of research and development

Prototype: Technology development has great uncertainty as to whether a new design will perform as expected.

Research and Development: Establishing and refining the production process to meet market demand and regulatory specifications of products and services.

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Federal Government Efforts Contd.Business Plan: A three to five year business plan is

required since investors will look for their annual return in the three to five year duration

Technology Incubation: Definition of technical and product performance specifications; validation of technical capabilities in context of the performance specifications; and further validation of the market and related commercial concept and business plan.

Market Entry: Activities are those typically associated with an ongoing business – production, service, distribution, sales, and marketing.

Growth and Sustainability: The Growth and Sustainability Phase involves the execution of a comprehensive business plan to increase market share and/or total revenue and profit in context of a self-sustaining business.

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Activities Planned by NOTAPCoordinating the preparation of feasibility studies to

confirm economic viability of projects and provide relevant information for entrepreneurs and financiers

Coordinating the establishment of pilot projects to test/demonstrate the feasibility and economic viability of R&D results and inventions

Initiating plans and programmes for sourcing funds to implement commercialisation programmes

Promoting and marketing of commercialisable research results

Ensuring the participation of the office at all relevant trade fairs/exhibitions to gather technological information

Initiating programmes that will sustain linkages with national and international organisations;

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Activities Planned by NOTAP Contd. Disseminating viable information on R&D

results to the public through newsletters, journals and advertisement in both electronic and print media

Conducting Technology Foresight surveysOrganising Tech-Marts and other public

awareness programmesPromoting innovation and spur competitiveness

for national developmentConducting national technology needs

assessment12

Other Information on NOTAPCompendium Management Information System

(CMIS): The Compendium Management Information System is a computer database for the storage, processing, retrieval and dissemination of information on R&D results and inventions

Computerized Registry Information System (CORIS): The Computerised Registry Information System (CORIS) is a Window based application system designed  to store technology information obtained from technology agreements evaluated by the Office

Intellectual Property Technology Transfer Offices (IPTTOs): NOTAP has established thirty Intellectual Property Technology Transfer Offices (IPTTOs) in Universities, Polytechnics and Research Institutions

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Requirements for the Registration of Technology Transfer AgreementsTechnology contracts should include a provision whereby

the recipient enterprises in Nigeria acquires explicit rights for the use and exploitation of the technology in question, and the period covering these rights should be clearly specified in the contract

Provision for capacity building must be part of all Agreements signed, and details on the Nigerians understudying the experts should be readily available, to ensure that skill is domesticated

All contracts should make provision for deduction of appropriate local taxes, such as withholding tax, etc.

All agreements should incorporate research activities carried out in-house and also in collaboration with the Nigerian National Innovation System such as Universities, Research Institutes, private laboratories, Polytechnics,

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Requirements for the Registration of Technology Transfer Agreements Contd. Companies which sell imported products should

separate the net sales of the imported products from the net sales of the locally manufactured products

All Nigeria Government Projects must be governed by Nigerian Laws of Arbitration and the seat of arbitration should be in Nigeria

There would be no approval for agreement based on assembling of Completely Knocked Down (CKD) parts brought into the country except payment for short term technical services relating to such project.

The scope of services in technology transfer agreements should clearly state the services to be rendered by the transferor/licensor.

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Requirements for the Registration of Technology Transfer Agreements Contd. The technology content of the agreement should state

the methods for the domestication of technology, local raw material development, skills acquisition, etc.

A detailed plan for the local development and production of raw materials used in manufacture, as substitute for imported raw materials.

Companies sourcing over 75% of its raw materials from abroad will not enjoy enhanced technology transfer fees, in particular, if it has been in operation in Nigeria for more than 5years without making efforts to source its raw materials locally.

Evidence of registration of intellectual property e.g. trademark, patent, know-how

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Requirements for the Registration of Technology Transfer Agreements Contd.

Technology transfer agreements relating to food items such as bread, noodles, sausage, etc will no longer be approved because there is no technology content.

All fees for technology transfer agreements relating to packaging using state of the art technology should be tied to profit before tax.

Details of expatriates including entry visas and other immigration documents should be submitted along with evidence of non – availability of skills in Nigeria.

Submission of Shareholders agreement that the Management of Company can enter into a Management or any other Technology Transfer Agreement with foreign technical partner on its behalf.

Trade Marks that are not generating exports cannot be approved.(s) Original copies of Annual Accounts should be submitted to the Office (not photocopies).

In the telecom sector, no Trademark License Agreement is allowed as the reputation of the service provider has been considered by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) before License is granted for provision of such services. 17

University-Industry Linkages

The University-Industry system needs to be worked out in the following ways:

Need to Support the Establishment of Intermediary Organization. The university and industry exist for different purposes.

Need to Establish University Research Centre Oriented for Industrial Technology.

Need to Delegate Intellectual Property Rights. Need for Universities to Setup Patenting &

Licensing office. Need to Assess the Performance of University Incubators

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The Need for Effective Teaching of STEM

To produce research that has meaningful outcomes and the ability to improve the teaching and learning of science, research and practice should be linked and should support compatible goals.

Researchers must also learn that the product of such research must translate into the industry

Students also learn better when the real world is used in teaching and research than the abstract world.

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Methods of Teaching STEM

There is no hard and fast rule of teaching and learning STEM.

Scientists study learning in a variety of settings – not only the more formal learning of school classrooms, but also the more informal learning that takes place at home, on the job, and among peers

There is the need to develop new scientific approaches that go beyond what single discipline could offer, and to collaborate with other disciplines.

Teachers must understand that knowledge must go beyond the narrow field which they teach and research in

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ConclusionIn dealing with the effective use of STEM

research, the society stands to gain if properly harnessed

There must be strong institution-industry linkage if the products from our research facilities are to be adequately harnessed

Risk undertakers must be available if some of the products of research are to be tried out at the pilot level.

On the whole the teaching and learning of science must be done using science tools.

The curriculum must be multi-faceted; that is draw from different fields. 21

Thank You for Listening !

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