Shell NXplorers: Nurturing future innovators

Afiqah (left) and Sai Natth represent two sides of the same Shell NXplorers journey – one as a mentor, and the other as a mentee-turned-scholar. Pictures by RAJA FAISAL HISHAN/The Star.

A CHANCE remark at a Shell NXplorers Malaysia event once seemed an unlikely prospect to Sai Natth Rau Gopinath Rao.

When told that only a few participants typically go on to become Shell Scholars, he recalls thinking, “I can’t be that one in a million.”

Today, the 19-year-old is a Shell Scholar.

Now undertaking the A-Level programme at Kolej Yayasan UEM, that transition, from being part of a Shell NXplorers runner-up team to Shell Scholar recipient, reflects what the programme sets out to achieve: equipping young Malaysians with the tools, exposure and confidence to go further than they imagined.

From runner-up to scholar

Sai Natth’s own journey began at SMK Aminuddin Baki in Kuala Lumpur, where he and his team – Team JAM – built an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered attendance system.

He said that the project was born from noticing a simple, everyday problem, utilising vehicle registration recognition technology to enhance attendance tracking, school safety and communication channels.

“We started observing problems around us, specifically the congestion outside our school gates after hours,” he recalled.

“I asked my own transport driver whether this was a problem for him and whether a solution to it would be beneficial, and he was so excited to hear that we were working on something to address it.”

Sai Natth: Looking back on my transition from a Shell NXplorer to a Shell Scholar, it’s such a magical thing.

Team JAM went on to place as first runner-up at the Shell NXplorers 2023 Peninsular Malaysia Challenge, a result that, in hindsight, was only the beginning for Sai Natth.

He credited the programme with sharpening his skills beyond mere technical competency.

“I’m a strong believer that ‘good ideas are only good if people believe in them’, and the way to make people believe is through communication,” he said.

“Shell NXplorers exposed me to pitching ideas to industry-level judges who are experts in their fields, so I had to learn to be more persuasive and articulate my ideas.”

Those skills helped carry him to national and international recognition in debate and public speaking, including a place on Malaysia’s World Individual Debate and Public Speaking Championships team.

Last year, that journey came full circle when Sai Natth was awarded the Shell Scholarship, joining the next generation of youth innovators supported by the company.

“Honestly, it means the world to me (receiving the scholarship). I remember a programme staff member telling me, ‘I want to see you as a Shell Scholar one day’, and I just laughed it off, thinking I wouldn’t get it,” he said.

“Looking back on my transition from a Shell NXplorer to a Shell Scholar, it’s such a magical thing.”

As he looks ahead, Sai Natth hopes to work at the intersection of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and communication, leveraging his technical expertise and creativity alongside his exceptional communication skills.

“So many great ideas are left to die because the people behind them aren’t able to present them in a way others can believe in. With my STEM knowledge and ability to communicate effectively, I hope to bridge that gap,” he said.

He added that students hoping to break into STEM should not get bogged down in technicalities, but rather focus on the discovery aspect of innovation.

Building confidence, one step at a time

Behind every Shell NXplorers success story is a teacher willing to make the space for it.

At SMK Vivekananda in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur, Physics and Mathematics teacher Afiqah Khalid has spent two years guiding students through the Shell NXplorers programme and has watched them transform into more confident young individuals.

“At first, I felt like my students were not really confident in speaking or presenting their ideas – they always depended on me to help them.

“Now, in their second year taking part in the programme, I can see that those same students can work independently to solve problems with confidence. Some of their ideas are even better than mine!” she quipped.

Exposure beyond the classroom, Afiqah believes, gives students the opportunity and space to explore.

Afiqah, who also heads her school’s STEM club, said Shell NXplorers stands out because its ambitions extend beyond the classroom.

“Shell NXplorers has a lot of tools, and they are not just for critical thinking and problem-solving.

“They also highlight how students should present their ideas and communicate better. As I entered the working world, I realised how important these skills really are for their holistic development,” she said.

With many of her students coming from B40 households, she added that the programme also acts as a rare bridge to the world outside of the classroom.

“In the modern era, a lot of other students are already very advanced. My students need this type of exposure to the outside world, and I believe that every student should have the opportunity and space to explore,” she said.

Shell NXplorers Malaysia

Shell NXplorers is an education programme by Shell Malaysia under the company’s global STEM education and social investment initiative.

Backed by the Education Ministry, the programme challenges secondary school students to solve real-world problems by applying STEM principles.

They are guided by Shell personnel to identify problems in their own communities, develop innovative solutions to address them and pitch those ideas to industry judges against their peers from across the country.

From a student participant turning into a prominent scholar, to a teacher watching her students find their voice one project at a time, Shell NXplorers continues to prove that its real currency isn’t the innovative prototype, but the person it helps build.

For more information, visit https://www.shell.com.my/about-us/sustainability/communities/shell-stem-programme.html .

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阿菲卡（左）和赛·纳特代表了壳牌NXplorers项目旅程的两面——一位是导师，另一位是从学员成长为学者。图片由RAJA FAISAL HISHAN/《星报》提供。

Sai Natth Rau Gopinath Rao 曾经认为，在 Shell NXplorers Malaysia 活动上的一次偶然发言不太可能发生。

当被告知通常只有少数参与者能成为壳牌学者时，他回忆说，当时他想：“我不可能成为那百万分之一的幸运儿。”

如今，这位19岁的年轻人是壳牌奖学金获得者。

如今，他正在 UEM 基金会学院攻读 A-Level 课程。从壳牌 NXplorers 亚军团队成员到壳牌奖学金获得者，这一转变体现了该计划的目标：为马来西亚青年提供工具、机会和信心，让他们走得比想象中更远。

从亚军到学者

Sai Natth 的创业之旅始于吉隆坡的 SMK Aminuddin Baki 中学，在那里他和他的团队——Team JAM——构建了一个人工智能 (AI) 驱动的考勤系统。

他表示，该项目源于注意到一个简单、日常的问题，即利用车辆登记识别技术来加强考勤跟踪、学校安全和沟通渠道。

“我们开始注意到周围的问题，特别是放学后学校大门外的拥堵情况，”他回忆道。

“我问我的运输司机，这对他来说是否是个问题，以及解决这个问题是否会有好处。他听说我们正在努力解决这个问题，非常兴奋。”

Sai Natth：回想我从壳牌NXplorer到壳牌学者的转变，这真是一件神奇的事情。

Team JAM 在 2023 年 Shell NXplorers 马来西亚半岛挑战赛中获得亚军，事后看来，这仅仅是 Sai Natth 的开始。

他认为该项目使他的技能得到了提升，不仅仅局限于技术能力。

他说：“我坚信‘好的想法只有当人们相信它时才是好的想法’，而让人们相信它的方法就是通过沟通。”

“壳牌NXplorers项目让我有机会向行业专家组成的评审团推介我的想法，所以我不得不学习如何更有说服力地表达我的想法。”

这些技能帮助他在辩论和公共演讲领域获得了国内和国际认可，包括入选马来西亚世界个人辩论和公共演讲锦标赛代表队。

去年，Sai Natth 获得了壳牌奖学金，成为该公司支持的下一代青年创新者之一，这段旅程也因此画上了圆满的句号。

“说实话，获得奖学金对我意义重大。我记得当时一位项目工作人员对我说，‘我希望有一天你能成为壳牌奖学金获得者’，我当时只是笑了笑，觉得我肯定拿不到，”他说。

“回首我从壳牌NXplorer到壳牌学者的转变，这真是一件神奇的事情。”

展望未来，Sai Natth 希望在科学、技术、工程和数学 (STEM) 与传播的交叉领域工作，充分发挥他的技术专长和创造力以及他卓越的沟通技巧。

“很多伟大的想法最终都胎死腹中，因为提出想法的人无法以他人能够接受的方式表达出来。凭借我的STEM知识和有效的沟通能力，我希望能够弥合这一差距，”他说。

他还补充说，希望进入 STEM 领域的学生不应该过于纠结技术细节，而应该专注于创新的发现方面。

建立自信，一步一步来。

每一个 Shell NXplorers 成功故事的背后，都有一位愿意为此创造空间的老师。

在吉隆坡 Brickfields 的 SMK Vivekananda 中学，物理和数学老师 Afiqah Khalid 花了两年时间指导学生们参加 Shell NXplorers 计划，并见证了他们蜕变为更加自信的年轻人。

“起初，我觉得我的学生们在发言或表达自己的想法方面缺乏自信——他们总是依赖我来帮助他们。

“现在，这些学生参加这个项目已经进入第二年了，我发现他们能够独立自信地解决问题。他们的一些想法甚至比我的还好！”她打趣道。

阿菲卡认为，课堂之外的接触能给学生提供探索的机会和空间。

Afiqah 同时也是学校 STEM 俱乐部的负责人，她说 Shell NXplorers 之所以脱颖而出，是因为它的目标超越了课堂。

“Shell NXplorers 拥有很多工具，它们不仅用于批判性思维和解决问题。

“他们还强调了学生应该如何更好地表达自己的想法和进行沟通。当我进入职场后，我意识到这些技能对他们的全面发展是多么重要，”她说。

她补充说，由于她的许多学生来自低收入家庭（B40家庭），该课程也成为了连接课堂之外世界的难得桥梁。

“在当今时代，很多其他学生的水平已经很高了。我的学生需要这种接触外部世界的机会，我相信每个学生都应该有机会和空间去探索，”她说。

壳牌马来西亚探索者计划

Shell NXplorers 是壳牌马来西亚公司在全球 STEM 教育和社会投资计划下推出的一项教育项目。

该计划由教育部支持，旨在挑战中学生运用 STEM 原理解决现实世界的问题。

在壳牌公司员工的指导下，他们找出自己社区中的问题，制定创新的解决方案来解决这些问题，并将这些想法提交给行业评委，与来自全国各地的同行进行比拼。

从学生参与者成长为杰出学者，到老师看着学生们通过一个个项目找到自己的声音，Shell NXplorers 不断证明，它真正的价值不在于创新的原型，而在于它帮助培养的人。

欲了解更多信息，请访问 https://www.shell.com.my/about-us/sustainability/communities/shell-stem-programme.html 。

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