Jan – March 2020 Inside this issue Vol 15 no 1 General President’s Message .... 1 Annual Sessions 2019 ...... 2 Council 2020 ...... 3 Section A ...... 4 Section B ...... 4 Section C ...... 5 Section D ...... 5 Section E2 ...... 6 Section E3 ...... 6 General Research Committee ... 6 Environment Committee ...... 7 SLAAS NEWS Committee for Popularization Newsletter of the Association for the of Science ...... 8 Advancement of Science The SLAAS Tower ...... 9

General President’s Message Special points of interest Scientists devote their careers and sacrifice their life towards serving humankind and to improve • Eco-friendly Pest Control the quality of life. Looking back at the last 100 years of human history, we have come a long way Products where science has developed exponentially beyond boundaries. The impact of science has infiltrat- ed society through Sri Lankan Scientists. What better organization to lead this endeavour than the • Industrial Pollution and Re- medial Measures Sri Lanka Association for the Advancement of Science – our own SLAAS where we have eight sec- tions plus committees covering all aspects of life as medical, social, economic, environmental and • Disruptive Thinking for Inno- applied sciences. vation • The Emergence of a Geospa- Improving the quality of life is a continuous process and requires the participation of multiple sec- tial Cloud tors, agencies and processes that must be transparent while embracing principles of equity. In Sri Lanka, we have an era under the present government ready to adopt innovative designs, principles and applications. Scientists have an added responsibility of advising governments and agencies to engage in ethical practices in science – emphasizing that scientists also need to work on monitoring, providing feedback and advocating policy changes where necessary.

We have recognized the need for new policies on areas such as agriculture and energy to reduce climate change, ultimately halting the compounding effects on human health. The solutions provid- ed through novel innovations and adaptation of traditional knowledge should have the capacity for sustainable integration to protect the island’s rich biodiversity. It is our responsibility to use the limited resources that we have prudently, to leave a better world for our future generations. It is going to be hard, but hard does not mean it is impossible!

I invite you to join hands with SLAAS for the development of science in our country for the wellbe- ing of society. Along with the theme of SLAAS 2020, “Science for Quality Life”, we have lined up goals to be achieved, some of which are, to i) Popularize Science among School Children and General Public, ii) Facilitate STEM Education, iii) Engage in National Research and Development and iv) Involve in Environmental activities. Prof Janitha A Liyanage General President of SLAAS Finally, I wish to pay homage to the following people who have shaped my life by their opinions: 2020 General Colin Powell - "There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, Senior Professor in Chemistry and learning from failure"

Conrad Hilton - "Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They Vice Chairperson, make mistakes, but they don't quit" University Grants Commission Thomas Jefferson - "I find that the harder I work the more luck I seem to have" Annual Sessions of SLAAS 2019

The 75th Annual Sessions of SLAAS was inaugurated on 8th December 2019 amidst a distinguished gathering and continued till 13th December at the University of . Prof. Sriyal Malik Peiris, Tam Wah-Ching Professor in Medical Science, Chair of Virology, The University of Hong Kong served as the Chief Guest, Dr. Lawrence Banks, Director General, ICGEB, Italy, served as Guest of Hon- or while State Minister of Science and Innovation Hon Thilanga Sumathipala graced the occasion. The Vidyabhiwardhana Keerthi Award was presented to five Senior Scientists for yeomen service to promote and advance science in Sri Lanka.

2 "Science for Quality Life" Council 2020

Name Position Name Position

Prof. Janitha Liyanage General President Prof. Jayantha Welihinda Elected Member

Prof. Sumedha Jayanetti General President - Elect Dr. R.D. Guneratne Elected Member

Prof. Preethi V Udagama Immediate Past General President Dr. M.N. Kaumal Elected Member

Dr. A.M. Mubarak Chairperson, BOT Dr. Kumudu Senevirathne Elected Member

Dr. Chinthaka De Silva General Secretary Dr. Inoka Sandanayake President, Section A

Dr. Rushan Abeygunawardana General Secretary Dr. R.M. Dharmadasa President, Section B

Dr. W.A.P.J. Premaratne Treasurer Dr. Shiromi Karunaratne President, Section C

Dr. Buddhika Gunawardana Asst. Treasurer Dr. Helani Munasinghe President, Section D

Dr. Theshini Perera Editor Dr. A.L.A.K. Ranaweera President, Section E1

Dr. Sajani Dias Asst. Editor Dr. Dilrukshi Wijayarathna President, Section E2

Prof. R.D. Wijesekera Secretary, Int. Relations Dr. Chathura Rajapaksha President, Section E3

Prof. K.P.S. Chandana Jayaratne Elected Member Dr. Wasanthi Wickramasinghe President, Section F

Dr. Jayantha Wattavidanage Elected Member Prof. B.C.L. Athapattu Chairperson , GRC

Prof. Mahesh Jayaweera Elected Member Dr. Nilanthi Wijewardena Chairperson, EC

Dr. Udeni Nawagamuwa Elected Member Dr. N.D. Amal Wageesha Chairman, CPS

Prof. Chamari Hettiarachchi Elected Member

Induction of General President 2020

Prof. Janitha A Liyanage, Senior Professor in Chemistry and Vice Chairperson of the University Grants Commission was inducted as the 79th General President of the Sri Lanka Association for the Advancement of Science at an elaborate ceremony held on 10th January 2020 at Hotel Ramada, Colombo. A Fellow of both the Royal Society of Chemistry as well as of the Institute of Chemistry Ceylon, she is also a Visit- ing Senior Professor of the College of Chemical Sciences of the Institute of Chemistry Ceylon.

"Science for Quality Life" 3 Section A

Several dental and oral health screening control" for around 30 elderly females of programmes were conducted by Dr. Nilan- the Moratuwa Elders Group. tha Rathnayake from January to March A public lecture and awareness pro- 2020 for children at weighing centers at gramme on “Dental Health” for members Wattegedara, Pamunuwa and Gidigamu- and their family members of the Malwatta wa as well as at Rainbow Pre-school, Mee- Road Welfare Society, Hokandara South goda. was conducted on 23rd February 2020 by A health-related awareness talk was deliv- Dr. Nilantha Rathnayake, Exhibits under ered by Dr. Hemali Jayakody on the topic, personalized medicine category for the “Update and health measures to prevent INNOTECH 2020 Exhibition were show- possible novel Coronavirus spread in the cased by Section A in collaboration with community”, at the Regional Director the Institute of Indigenous Medicine. The Health Services office on 1st February activity was coordinated by Dr. Kaumadi 2020. The audience comprised of around Karunagoda. 30 doctors and other health care workers in the Colombo district. Dr. Nilantha Rathnayake served as the resource person for a radio programme on “Scientific basis of dental myths” which was broadcast by Vidu Esa of SLBC on 6th March 2020. Dr. Shreenika Weliange delivered a talk on “Diabetes in the elderly: prevention and

Section B

Workshop on Introduction of Eco-friendly Pest Control Products A workshop on “Introduction of eco-friendly pest control products” organized by SLAAS Sec- tion B was held on 11th February 2020 at Provincial Director Office, Department of Agricul- ture, Gampaha. The workshop consisted of lectures and demonstration of eco-friendly pest control products. Fifty extension officers of the Department of Agriculture successfully com- pleted this workshop and Dr. R.M. Dharmadasa contributed as a resource person.

Seminar on Industrial Pollution and Remedial Measures

A seminar on “Industrial Pollution and Remedial Measures” orga- nized by SLAAS section B was held on 6th March 2020 at Sumana Balika Vidyalaya, Ratnapura. Around three hundred GCE Ad- vanced Level school children representing R/ Ferguson High School, R/ Sivali Central College, R/ St. Aloysius College and R/ Sumana Balika Vidyalaya participated while Dr. G.G.T. Chan- drathilake served as the resource person.

Workshop on “Patent and Innovations Related to Agriculture and Forestry”

A workshop on “Patent and Innovations Related to Agriculture and Forestry” organized by SLAAS Section B which was scheduled to be held in March was postponed until further notice due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

4 "Science for Quality Life" Section C

Guest Lecture at the Open

A guest lecture on “Disruptive thinking for innovation” organized by Section C was held at the Open University of Sri Lanka on 7th February 2020 with the participation of staff, undergraduate and post graduate students. It was conducted by Dr. Chulantha Kulasekara, Senior Lec- turer, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineer- ing, Faculty of Engineering, Sri Lanka Institute of Infor- mation Technology. The lecture, which was conducted through activities and discussion, highlighted how peo- ple who think differently can change the world for the betterment. Dr. Kulasekara emphasized the importance of disruptive thinking to the engineering students. This is especially important because students, as the next gener- ation innovators, need to realize how the power of dis- ruptive thinking can be harnessed to achieve the best possible results in their research as this is fast becoming a necessary attribute in a graduate seeking employment.

Section D

A guest talk was delivered by Prof. George Dias, Professor in Clinical Anatomy and Biomaterials at the University of Otago, New Zealand. The event was held at Faculty of Graduate Stud- ies, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, Ratmalana on 27th January 2020 and was coordinated and organized by Dr. K M G P Premadasa.

The Regional Science Association of Sri Lanka was estab- lished on 17th February 2020, at the SANASA Campus Sri Lanka in collaboration with Regional Science Association (International). The keynote address was delivered by Prof. Tomaz Ponce of the University of Azorer, Portugal. Dr. Helani Munasinghe (President SLAAS Section D) addressed the gathering explaining the contribution of SLAAS Section D for the success of the Regional Science Association in Sri Lanka. The represent- atives from the Regional Science Association (international and national), academics from Sri Lankan univer- sities and professionals participated at the occasion. Furthermore, Dr. E N C Perera delivered a guest speech on "The Emergence of a Geospatial Cloud" representing SLAAS Section D.

A GIS workshop for A/L Geography stu- dents was conducted on 7th March 2020, in collaboration with the Department of Geog- raphy, under the guidance of Prof. K.W.G. Rekha Nilanthi, Head of the Department of Geography, University of Peradeniya. The workshop was coordinated by Dr. Shyamantha Subasinghe from Department of Geography, University of Peradeniya. About 180 school children and teachers from Kandy district participated at the workshop. Dr. E N C Perera and Dr. Shyamantha Subasinghe served as resource persons for the event. In addition, Dr. E N C Perera explained the role of SLASS section D to the academics of the University of Peradeniya. The academics suggested seeing the feasi- bility of establishing a regional chapter of SLAAS at the University of Peradeniya.

A seminar was conducted for A/L Biology stream students and teachers of D. S. Senanayake College, Colombo on 10th March 2020 by Dr. Hiruni Harischandra of the Genetics and Molecular Biology Unit of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura. The seminar was conducted at the request of the teachers of the school to further clarify the material introduced under the syllabus revision last year. DNA replication, transcription and translation were the umbrella topics discussed during the seminar.

"Science for Quality Life" 5 Section E2 Guest lecture by Prof Ajith Karunarathne at Department of Chemistry,

Two guest lectures were organized by Section E2 during the first quarter of the year 2020. The first guest lecture titled "New Paradigms in Cellular Photo- chemistry” was conducted by Prof. Ajith Karunara- thne of the University of Toledo, USA on 3rd January 2020 at the Department of Chemistry, University of Colombo. The event was coordinated by Dr. C.D. Wi- jayarathna.

Guest lecture presented by Prof A P de Silva at Department of Chemistry, University of Colombo

The second guest lecture was held on 6th January 2020 at Department of Chemistry, University of Colombo, where Prof A. P. de Silva spoke on "Fluorescent Sensors and Logic Systems” followed by Dr. Chaoyi Yao on “Molecular Computational Identifica- tion (MCID) of small objects populations”. Both guest speakers were from Queens University of Belfast, UK. This activity was conducted by Section E2 in collaboration with the Chemical Society, Department of Chemistry, University of Colombo. The lec- ture was very well received and was coordinated by Prof. W R M de Silva.

Several seminars were conducted for GCE Advanced Level students during this first quarter of the year by Section E2. On 12th February 2020, a seminar was conducted by Dr. L. H R Perera on “Electrochemistry” followed by Mr. E C J Perera on “Career Opportunities for Science Graduates” to Grade 13 A/L Science students at Holy Cross College, Gampaha. Then a two-day seminar which was held on 19th and 26th Feb- ruary 2020 on “Industrial Chemistry” by Dr. Jeewantha Premaratna, “Chemical Equillibria” by Dr. N Abeysinghe “Biotechnology” by Dr. C D Wijayarathna and a practical session by Ms. W M N H Kumari for A/L students at Bandaranayake Maha Vidyalaya, Gampaha. These events were coordinated by Dr. C D Wijayarathna.

Two-day seminar for the A/L students at Banda- ranayake Maha Vidyalaya

On 28th February 2020, Dr. Jeewantha Pre- maratne conducted a seminar on “Industrial and Environmental Chemistry” for students at Musaeus College, Colombo 07. Another seminar was held for the Grade 13 A/L science students at St. Sebastian’s College, Mor- atuwa on “Electrochemistry” by Dr. L H R Pere- ra, followed by Mr. E C J Perera on “Career Opportunities for Science Graduates” on 2nd March 2020. More than 100 A/L students participat- ed at this event, which was coordinated by Dr. L H R Perera. On 2nd March, Dr. Jeewantha Premaratne conducted a seminar on industrial chemistry for the A/L students at Visakha Vidyalaya Colombo 05, coordinated by Dr. C .D. Wijayarathna.

Mini workshop on “Practical Essentials of Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy” held at Department of Chemistry, University of Sri Jayewardenepura A mini workshop was conducted on “Practical Essentials of Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy” on 27th February by Dr. Asitha Cooray at Department of Chemis- try, University of Sri Jayewardenepura. The targeted group for this mini work- shop was undergraduate and graduate students. This activity was coordinated by Dr. A. Cooray.

6 "Science for Quality Life" Section E3

A guest talk on 5G technology was held on 21st January 2020 at the SLAAS auditorium in collaboration with the Sri Lanka chapter of the Internet Socie- ty and the ISACA – University of Colombo. The talk was delivered by Mr. Indika Karunaratne, Co-Founder at X.O Concepts (Private) Limited and an alumnus of the Faculty of Engineering, in which 5G technology was explained in detail along with its opportunities and chal- lenges.

A guest talk titled “Surveillance for Smart Cities” was conducted on 27th February by the director of Police CCTV division, Mr. Thushara Gamlath where he explained the advantages of using CCTV systems for surveil- lance in Colombo city as well the current challenges with the system. The event was followed by a fruitful discussion on the possibility of doing col- laborative research with the police CCTV division. This event was jointly organized by SLAAS Section E3, the Internet Society - Sri Lanka Chapter and the ISACA student group of the University of Colombo School of Com- puting.

General Research Committee

During 2020, the GRC committee proposed and agreed upon various activities on diverse disciplines, representing all sections. The committee is planning to carry out a series of workshops, seminars and book publications aimed at raising funds for the GRC as part of the Activity Plan 2020. In addition, publications and serving as resource persons were considered as potential opportunities as fund raising activities.

Science Teachers Training Workshop The first event in the series of workshops on “Dissemination of research findings” for multiple disciplines: scientific writing, presenting data, publication ethics, patenting and commercialization was conducted on 24th February 2020 at St Peter’s College, Negombo in collaboration with the Science Directorate of Provincial and Zonal Education Department (Negombo Edu- cational Zone). This one-day workshop was collaboratively organized by Mrs. Naya- na Udugampola, Assistant Director of the Zonal Education Department, Negombo and Gen- eral Research Committee. The workshop was targeted to train Science teachers on Science and the guest speech on ‘Importance of Research in School Level’ was delivered by Emeritus Prof. Sarath Kotagama of the University of Colombo while Prof. Bandunee Athapattu, Dr. Mayuri Thammitiyagodage, Prof. Chamari Hettiarachchi, Dr M.N. Kaumal, Dr. Roshan Perera, Mr. Saminda Fernando and Dr. Sanchala Gallage delivered lectures targeting multidiscipli- nary research.

"Science for Quality Life" 7 General Research Committee

Seminar on “Artificial Intelligence”

The seminar on “Artificial Intelligence” was successfully conducted on 12th March 2020 at the SLAAS Auditorium. Resource persons were Dr Upeka Premaratne and Dr Prathapasinghe Dharmawansa from the University of Moratuwa. The knowledge contributed by the resource persons was com- mendable.

Chairperson GRC, Prof. Bandunee Athapattu has participated in the Science Research Conference of Hanguranketha Educational Zone -Blooming Scien- tists and delivered a speech for the School Science Community on 6th March 2020. She was also due to deliver the Keynote Address for the Science Re- search Conference of Negombo Education Zone representing the General Research Committee of SLAAS on 13th March 2020 which has been post- poned.

GRC is now in the process of revising the book ‘A Guide to Beginners in Re- search’ which was published by the GRC in 2014. The book will provide graduate students with a wide variety of information that would be useful to guide them through the early stages of their research, in conducting experi- ments and preparing their thesis. The new edition of the book will be pub- lished by GRC-SLAAS titled “Guide for Beginners in Research: (Revised Edi- tion 2020)” under the editorship of Prof. M. C. M. Iqbal.

Calling application for GRC Lifetime Award and Postgraduate Awards will be advertised in June and will appear on the SLAAS website from 1st June 2020. Discussions are underway to introduce a new SLAAS GRC award for innovations and commercialization from 2020 onwards.

Due to the pandemic outbreak and the emergency situation prevailing in the country, all of the planned activities for April and May were postponed. Several panel discussions as given below are scheduled via an online plat- form for which dates will be announced at the SLAAS website:

Panel discussion on “COVID-19 epidemic and how to overcome the situa- tion”. Panelists: Community medicine experts

Panel discussion on “Applications of Data Science in Multidisciplinary Re- search” with the collaboration of SLAAS Section E3

Environmental Committee

Continuation of marine conservation related events from the previ- ous year in collaboration with Oceanswell are being coordinated by Mr. Trishan Perera. The first Marine Conservation Session for 2020 was held on 14th January on “Depredation of toothfish off long lines by Southern elephant seals” followed by the second session on 11th February on “South Africa’s sardine run and the implications of climate change and their effect on fisheries, tourism and other pred- ators”. Both sessions were conducted by Dr. Asha De Vos.

The second activity of the 2020 "Sustainable Healthy Living through 3R with traditional medicine" was conducted on 14th February 2020 by Dr. Himalee de Silva, Senior Lecturer, Institute of Indige- nous Medicine (IIM), University of Colombo and Dr. Iresha Hari- shchandra, Senior Lecturer, USJ, and Dr. Swarna Hapuarachchi, Senior Lecturer, IIM, with the support of the students of IIM. The event was attended by about 250 participants. The event was host- ed in partnership with People’s Leasing Company and Wijaya news papers. A component of the Prize Giving was the awarding of prizes of the All Island Art Competition for Preschool to Advanced Level students which was organized to celebrate the World Environmen- tal day programme under the theme "Haritha Sithuvam" in 2019. In addition to serving traditional beverages to the audience, “Thippli” medicinal plants were donated to the participants.

8 "Science for Quality Life" Committee for Popularization of Science

The Committee for Popularization of Science is planning to con- duct ten School Science Day Programmes (SDPs) for the year 2020 throughout the country.

The first SDP for the year has been already conducted at Sena- nayake Central College – Thulhiriya in parallel with their Tech Day on 28th February with the participation of over 450 stu- dents from various schools in Kegalle District.

The members of CPS, along with a group of students from the Institute of Chemistry Ceylon contributed as resource persons to this program. The SDP comprised of a lecture on obesity, chemistry based magic show, practical component on DNA ex- traction and an IT session.

A science quiz programme “Vidu Jaya” was initiated with the intention of creating enthusi- asm among school children to further explore science outside of the school syllabus, tar- geting students of grade nine and above, with the collaboration of Vidusara newspaper. One quiz per month will be published and ten students with the correct answer will be selected per month to proceed to round two. A written exam on science will be conducted for the selected students from six such quizzes.

Journal of the Sri Lankan Association of the Advancement of Science

Submissions can now be made to the Journal of the Sri Lanka Association for the Advancement of Science. Visit https://www.slaas.lk/slaas-journal for more information.

The SLAAS Science Tower

The SLAAS Science Tower was ceremoniously declared open on 10th March 2020 by the Honourable Mahinda Rajapaksa, the Prime Min- ister of the Socialist Democratic Republic of Sri Lanka.

"Science for Quality Life" 9 Ministry of Higher Education, Technology and Innovation

Science and Technology is a key strategic driver in The main purpose of the Ministry’s collaboration with achieving national economic development. In this the Sri Lanka Association for the Advancement of Sci- context, the Ministry of Higher Education, Tech- ence (SLAAS) is to foster a science, technology and in- nology and Innovation is mandated with the for- novation culture effectively reaching all citizens and mulation of policies, programs and projects with mitigating social and economic barriers in the country, regard to Science, Technology and Innovations. through which Sri Lanka will gain the ability to enhance The primary focus of the Ministry is to ensure science, technology and innovation capacity for nation- compliance with the national and global objec- al development, apply technology and innovation in the tives to strengthen technology and Innovation areas of national importance and priority, acquire and targeting the economic advancement of the coun- adopt science, technology and innovation knowledge to try. Aligned with these objectives, the Ministry invests considerable modernization of all sectors and to enhance country’s competitive- amounts of funds annually for technology and innovation related ness in the world economy. projects and programmes, paving the way for a new era of sustaina- ble development through scientific perspectives in line with Vistas It is obvious that technology and innovation are essential for the of Prosperity & Splendor, the national policy framework and the future advancement of the country. Hence, through all these efforts Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s). Therefore the Ministry is the Ministry of Higher Education, Technology and Innovation at- entrusted with the development of technology and innovation for tempts to create a technology based society while empowering Sri the betterment of the country. Lanka as a technically equipped country ensuring its competitive- ness at all levels of the world economy.

SLAAS STEM Project

In the digital age that we currently live in, the kinds of skills stu- streams have suffered. Such trends are a direct consequence of the dents need to thrive in are quite different from the past. They are misalignment of teaching and learning activities practiced and the not the skills we associate with digital technology, although of summative type assessments used for evaluating students. Lack of course technology has contributed significantly to the changed edu- teachers as well as opportunities for them to be trained under spe- cational landscape we now occupy. Approaches to education have cial environments have also been a major hindrance and have con- shifted from a teacher centred approach to a student centred ap- tributed towards the current situation. In particular, it is observed proach. Contemporary pedagogical frameworks, such as construc- that the current school teachers are less aware of inquiry based tivism encourage learners to 'construct' their own knowledge indi- learning paradigms, partly due to developments such as STEM edu- vidually and collaboratively by making connections with prior cation paradigm being accepted and coming into mainstream edu- knowledge and experiences. Therefore, learning approaches that cation worldwide only in the recent past. develop higher order skills, encourage critical thinking, and the capacity to be agile, flexible and adaptable are critical for all stu- STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) simply dents. delivers the message that the promotion of these fields in the minds of young learners is essential. The STEM movement was started in It is observed that there is a general anxiety towards mathematics the USA in response to recognizing that students were rapidly mov- and science in the country. High failure rates in Science and Mathe- ing away from STEM fields due to reasons associated with difficulty matics subjects at the general certificate in ordinary level (GCE O/ of learning. Sri Lanka’s situation is no different. Sri Lanka is also L) examination stands witness to this claim. As a result, student facing a shortage of STEM workforce such that certain industries enrolments for advanced level (A/L) Mathematics and Science have started to import workforce from other countries especially

10 "Science for Quality Life" Continued.. SLAAS STEM Project from India and China. It is predicted that we need to increase our model of inquiry. The 5E model is an instructional model based on STEM skilled workforce by over ten- fold to reach the next develop- the constructivist approach to learning. Constructivists believe that ment stage with regards to the economy. learners build or construct new ideas on top of old ideas or prior knowledge. Each phase begins with the letter ‘E’. The five phases In response to this situation, Sri Lanka Association for the Advance- are Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate and Evaluate. ment of Science (SLAAS) has initiated the STEM clubs initiative for Concept roadmaps are developed by the mentors associated with schools to drive the interest of STEM. The aim of the proposed ac- the SLAAS STEM club initiative according to the instructional model tivities is to develop a platform to build capacity in teachers as Sci- based on the constructivist approach. Concepts in the roadmaps are ence, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics based education only introduced through 5E activities. The roadmaps will address facilitators. misconceptions and correct them as they occur and ensure the co- hesive development of concepts. It is the goal of the STEM clubs to change the way students learn. At the heart of the pedagogy of the STEM clubs is the mechanism of It is important to have measurable outcomes to evaluate the suc- Inquiry Based Learning (IBL). IBL methodology enables students to cess of STEM clubs. Students in STEM clubs are expected to exhibit construct their own knowledge through hands-on activity-based a measured increase in, the enjoyment of STEM subjects, confidence learning of concepts. In addition to IBL the pedagogy of STEM clubs in STEM subjects, knowledge and understanding of concepts in uses Concept Roadmaps to navigate the investigation of scientific STEM subjects, competency of 21st century skills, awareness of phenomenon and carry the students through a carefully guided tour STEM related careers and awareness of application of STEM con- of the underlying concepts. Concept roadmaps will help teachers to cepts in local industries. understand what the learning journey can look like in that line of inquiry. Each of the STEM club activities are designed within the 5E

"Science for Quality Life" 11 A heartfelt effort to trace 75 years of history of the Sri Lanka Association for the Advancement of Science, from its origins to the present, in the form of a coffee table book, available for purchase at the SLAAS office.

to

Sri Lanka Association for the Advancement of Science “Vidya Mandiraya” 120/10 Vijerama Mawatha Colombo 07