The open STEM exploration platform "Junior KAIST," which is accessible to all elementary, middle, and high school students, is being launched.
On August 27, KAIST announced that its Science Gifted Education Center will operate "Junior KAIST," an upgraded version of the online gifted education program "KAIST Cyber Gifted Education."
"Junior KAIST" is structured as a step-by-step, inquiry-based online curriculum. It is designed to help participating students develop an interest in science and technology and deepen their knowledge in their areas of interest.
In the long term, the goal is to identify outstanding STEM talent and strengthen connections to further education and career pathways.
In particular, the program offers a customized learning track for each grade from 4th grade in elementary school to 2nd year in high school, consisting of "Enjoy-Dive-Challenge-Boost-ACE," to support learning tailored to individual levels and interests.
The focus is also on intensively strengthening core STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) competencies, including mathematics, science, future technology, AI, and data-driven problem solving.
The Science Gifted Education Center also plans to expand the use of a Question-Based Learning (QBL) model, which encourages students to generate their own questions and explore them independently, as part of the Junior KAIST program.
Outstanding students will have opportunities for real-world career experience, including mentoring by KAIST professors and university (and graduate) students, participation in lab-based projects, and presenting their research achievements.
Through this initiative, KAIST aims to establish a virtuous cycle of nurturing talent that leads to admissions to science high schools, gifted high schools, and ultimately KAIST itself.
In the second semester of this year, subjects such as "Enjoy Mathematics," "Enjoy Robotics," and "Enjoy AI" will be offered. Course registration is available on the official website until August 31.
Kwak Sijong, Director of the Science Gifted Education Research Institute, stated, "Junior KAIST is more than just a gifted education program; it is a platform to nurture future science and technology talent based on curiosity, inquiry, and creativity. We will do our utmost to ensure that KAIST becomes the leading model for nurturing national science and technology talent through the operation of Junior KAIST."
Meanwhile, the Science Gifted Education Center is operating Junior KAIST to proactively discover future science and technology talent and support their systematic development in response to a declining school-age population, avoidance of STEM fields, and the accelerating digital transformation. Through this, the aim is to expand the base of science and technology talent and reduce regional and social educational gaps, thereby enabling inclusive science and technology education.
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