SEAToday.com, Jakarta-The 4th Ki Hajar Dewantara Award was successfully held on November 5 to 6 at the Mason Pine Hotel in Bandung. Organized by SEAMOE QITEP in Science (SEAQIS), this event provides an appreciation forum where outstanding teachers across Southeast Asia celebrate the achievements they made.

On the first day, eight exceptional teachers from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Timor-Leste shared their knowledge on how they make science class come to life in today’s digital world, which aligned with this years’ theme “Future-Ready Classrooms: Strategies for Digital Science Teaching.”

Meanwhile on the second day, a conference named “SEAQIS International Conference on Science Education (SICSE) 2024” was held as a preemptive celebration of the Indonesian National Teachers’ Day, where three well-known education experts—Dr. Simone Blom PhD, Professor Xiang-Ping Wu, and Professor Dr. Kang Zhang—presented their latest findings in science education in the digital age, followed by various parallel sessions exploring topics like STEM/STEAM education, digital tools optimization, and 21st-century skills development.

The event reached its peak at the grand Awarding Night on November 6, when awardee teachers were announced with following result:

Ki Hajar Dewantara Award main winners

(1) Mr. Chan Sau Siong (Singapore) 

(2) Mr. Hafiz Anshari from (Indonesia) 

(3) Dayang Suzanah binti Haji Kurus (Brunei Darussalam)

Most favorite nominees based on the audience’s votes

 Mr. Zainudin bin Zainal Abidin (Malaysia)

 Mr. Sutipong Jaikaew (Thailand)

On November 7, all participants were invited to experience Indonesian culture by visiting Batik Komar and Saung Angklung Udjo where they learned how batik was made and tried playing the angklung. 

Appreciation for this event was widely expressed, one of which came from awardee Mr. Zainudin bin Zainal Abidin who said,

“I think this award is actually very good. And it’s given us, as a teacher, to work hard to become the best for the students. And I hope that this award will be continued next year.”

Through this event, SEAQIS has provided a regional collaboration platform for Southeast Asian teachers, which is expected to liven up more science classes by inspiring more teachers across the region.

Writer: Adilah Izzatuddiny