‘Boolean Babes’ of SMK St Joseph Miri shine at Technovation Girls
MIRI: A group of Form 5 schoolgirls from SMK St Joseph Miri recently won the ‘Senior Category (Regional) of Technovation Girls 2021 – an international mobile app coding competition focusing on empowering young women in problem-solving skills via mobile applications.
Calling themselves the ‘Boolean Babes’, the team comprised Ellisa Ee Jia Xin, Fedelia Chan Wan Shin, Paige Kaite Aran and Azlinda Aryanshah Chin – all of whom devised their winning mobile app, the ‘Solace Sphere’ – an app disguised as a ‘Magic8Ball’ game, which could be used as a support system for victims and survivors of domestic violence.
The app is equipped with a journal and ‘take-a-test’ features that could help users identify and assess their current situation, acquire all the necessary information and feel supported.
By enabling contacts with counsellors and other survivors of domestic abuse, ‘Solace Sphere’ aims to help create a support system for all users.
“I am so grateful that once again, we’re able to empower our next generation to shine at a global stage, bringing pride to Miri, Sarawak, and Malaysia, especially in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) area.
“It has not been an easy journey for the girls. We had to do it all online due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and they had to manage their time wisely – juggling school work and their preparations for SPM (Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia) examinations at the same time.
“I’m glad that they did not give up, and made it through. I hope this award would encourage them more and that they would excel in their SPM examinations, as well as in their future endeavours,” said the team’s mentor, Teo Yuang Teck, in a press statement yesterday.
Teo is also the founder and director of Realfun Learning Centre.
The Technovation Girls is an international coding competition set at equipping girls aged between 10 and 18, to become ‘technopreneurs’ and leaders.
Under the guidance and support of volunteer mentors, the girls would work in teams to code mobile apps meant to address real-world problems.
For this year’s edition, 1,700 teams submitted their app-based solutions up for judging.
The entries represented almost 5,900 girls from over 60 countries.
No breakdown was shared, but it was estimated that 10 teams from Malaysia took part in Technovation Girls 2021.
The ‘Boolean Babes’ beat over 40 teams of semi-finalists from across Asia, which earned them an invitation to share their work at the App Expo World Summit – one of the event’s absolute highlights, scheduled for Aug 12 and 13 this year.
The Miri girls also shared their learning during the ‘GirlsCode’ virtual launch, broadcast via Realfun Learning Centre’s Facebook page (www.fb.me/ realfunlc) recently.
GirlsCode is a programme jointly run by Realfun Learning Centre and Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation Bhd (SDEC), in collaboration with Women In Tech Thailand Chapter and the Education Department of Sarawak.
It aims to empower more girls to be closely involved in STEM, as well as to be able to create mobile app solutions meant to solve real-life community problems.