From purpose to impact
EDUCATION is instrumental in fostering innovation and growth, increasing livelihood, and boosting shared prosperity. Well-rounded students are more employable, productive, and cope with the needs of the ever-changing social and economic development better.
Tertiary education institutions prepare individuals not only by providing them with adequate and relevant job skills as well as academic intelligence, but also by preparing them to be active members of their communities and societies.
Today, varsities all around the world are taking note of ways to enhance reach and effectiveness, especially by the graduates they produce for the labour market.
Taylor’s University’s strategy of curriculum innovation and nimble response to the evolving education landscape in the pre- and postpandemic world has ensured its consistent success in this area.
These curriculum innovations and reforms the university has pursued includes a carefully curated Taylor’sphere ecosystem to nurture students based on three intelligences of intellect, craft and practical wisdom, in an atmosphere of creativity and collaboration.
In its ecosystem, students will have the benefit of attending life skills modules conducted by specialised facilitators, experience multidisciplinary projects, access to labs and facilities to facilitate a campus-wide Makerspace, and mix and match their subjects for broadbased learning, among others.
This is augmented with the introduction of degrees with multiple learning tracks, which include options to spend the final year in a work-based learning experience or the technopreneurship mode apart from the conventional internship.
Notably, every student will also take up a social innovation module to find solutions to real-world problems, have the opportunity to realise their entrepreneurial dreams, and receive guidance with ideation, prototyping, funding, and product commercialisation.
The Q’Bies, one of the winners in the 2022 Taylor’s Techstars Startup Weekend (TSSW) Sustainability Selangor, aspires to tackle Malaysia’s childhood obesity issue by reducing the sugar intake of children.
Candies such as gummies contribute to obesity statistics and serious health conditions.
As a solution, The Q’Bies offers a more wholesome and nourishing gummy alternative, which is sugar-free, vegan-friendly and contains multivitamins, omega-3, probiotics, and minerals.
With this product, The Q’Bies aims to produce a fast, simple, and convenient way for children to receive enough nutrition daily, without damaging their health.
From TSSW Sustainability Selangor, The Q’Bies won RM10,000 in funding to support their research and development, and marketing efforts. Aside from the funding, The Q’Bies is also part of Taylor’s Camp of Leaders, which pairs the team with an industry expert to learn soft skills and gain important start-up experience.
Another innovation born of Taylor’s best creative and entrepreneurial minds is known as 3D Printed Audible BraillePad.
According to Alantino Raven Daniel, a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) student, Taylor’s medical students had a chance to visit the Malaysian Association for the Blind and observe the process of producing traditional Braille books.
They realised to produce a Braille book that cost between RM900 and RM3,000 depending on the thickness and contents of the book, a handmade original copy must first be made before it can be printed out and duplicated. As it is costly, the quantity of books are usually limited and students are required to share the books at school.
“As a firm believer of education equity and privileged with the opportunity to work with different disciplines across the university, friends from the School of Engineering proposed using a 3D printer to produce lighter and cheaper Braille books and teamed up with a member from Taylor’s Business School to create a prototype. By understanding how the visually impaired use their sense of touch during my ophthalmology posting, we were able to manufacture a BraillePad that has fine Braille Printing, equipped together with a voice function which allows for efficient learning compared to dated Braille books,” said Alantino.
The team aptly named the Visionaries, recently took home second prize in the Nascent Category at the Medical Grand Challenge 2022, and hopes to contribute to the accessibility of education for the visually impaired and blind community by launching their product in the market soon.
Fellow team member Ng Yong Pong, Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) Mechanical Engineering, also won gold in the Engineering Innovation Challenge 2021, jointly organised by the Institution of Engineers Singapore and Singapore’s Ministry of Education for a project that he worked on with his U34 members.
The project which is an innovative customisable radiation shield, Bismuth-PETG Polymer Composite, supports Ng’s purpose to bring technological advancement for humanity one step at a time.
“Conventional radiation shields used in radiological departments consist of lead-based material to protect healthcare workers from excessive exposure to ionising radiation, which is toxic, heavy and non-environmentally friendly. After multiple efficacy tests and drawbacks, the Bismuth and Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol (PETG) material was recognised as non-toxic, inexpensive, and easily customisable via 3D printing for use in the healthcare industry – benefiting society at large in the near future locally and globally.”
Passionate about making an impact in the radiology field and eager to challenge his strengths and weaknesses with industrial standards of the engineering field, Ng elaborated that the chance Taylor’s University provides through its multidisciplinary projects and industry exposure is essential.
“The multidisciplinary projects showcase the differences in thinking processes of students from different disciplines. For example, engineering students are trained to think based on the educational framework of Conceive – Design – Implement – Operate to produce a solution. It is these experiences that prevent blind spots in thinking processes and brings a group of remarkable people from different fields to gain knowledge and produce a more rounded product or service,” added Ng.
Taylor’sphere is designed to ensure high-calibre graduates that are ready for the industry as the ecosystem allows students to develop the right life skills, and collaborate across disciplines to solve problems and create impact in their community, mimicking the way the industry operates.
In this day and age, academic intelligence alone is no longer sufficient for a graduate to succeed.
The beauty of the Taylor’sphere ecosystem allows students to create, experiment, fail and start again in a safe environment, while the university supports them in their journey.
■ For more information about Taylor’sphere, head over to the official website.