Making Tyrol a MINT federal state and implementing educational regions across the board by 2025 – this is the goal the state has set itself. In the middle school in Kematen it was explained how this should happen.
The shortage of skilled workers continues to affect all sectors. Well-trained workers are urgently needed, especially in the so-called MINT area – the abbreviation stands for mathematics, computer science, natural sciences and technology, as the “Krone” has reported several times. In order to attract more people to these areas, politicians want to make Tyrol a MINT federal state by next year. Specifically, appropriate educational regions should be implemented across the board. This year, the expansion is being funded with 470,000 euros in the regions of Innsbruck-Land West, Imst, Kitzbühel, Landeck, Kufstein, East Tyrol and Schwaz. In 2025, projects will also be funded in the other regions. The heart of this is the so-called MINT LABs. “Create the prerequisites for optimal training.” “In play and experiment rooms, children and young people can build and program robots, experiment with the 3D printer or work with the CNC milling machine,” explained am Tuesday State Governor Anton Mattle (ÖVP) visiting the Kematen middle school. There has been a dedicated MINT class there for a long time (see interview below) and one of the LABs is currently being set up. The educational institution is currently one of five pilot schools across Tyrol and is therefore a pioneer. “With the expansion we are awakening interest and curiosity, but above all we are creating the conditions for optimal training for our children and young people,” LH Mattle is convinced. “MINT is Essential for economic success,” State Education Councilor Cornelia Hagele (ÖVP) adds: “We also want to motivate teachers and carers to strengthen teaching in the MINT area in schools and childcare facilities. Because they are the ones who can promote and support children and young people in their technical and scientific talents in the best possible way.” Simon Meinschad, managing director of hollu Systemhygiene GmbH and chairman of the economic development association sal.zi, has been campaigning for young talent in this area for several years . He says: “MINT is essential for economic success. The power of the Asian market in this area is so great that countermeasures are needed. The Corona pandemic has shown us how important independence is. By investing in future-oriented training, young people benefit from the highest quality of training and a wide range of employment opportunities in the Tyrol business and industrial location.”Linking the content with other subjectsThe responsible MINT coordinator at the middle school in Kematen is Thomas Flatscher. “We are committed to teaching our students how to deal with digitalization competently and to arousing joy in the topics,” he says. To do this, the content is also linked to other subjects. “Thanks to the state’s funding, we can implement various projects or take advantage of extracurricular activities, for example through excursions to companies or universities,” says the educator happily. Thomas Flatscher spoke to “Krone” about the fascination with MINT subjects. “Krone” : Are more boys than girls still interested in MINT subjects? Thomas Flatscher: We are struggling with this problem. We try to address the girls explicitly. With them it is important to put things in the right context. For example, that the lever law is not explained with pliers, but with biological processes. What we notice: Once girls come into contact with this area, they are very enthusiastic about it. Have there been MINT projects at the Kematen middle school for a long time? We have been focusing on this for the second year now. There are now two separate MINT classes. We have also had projects in cooperation with the fire department or Tiwag. Now there is the MINT-LAB. What do you hope to achieve from the educational offensive? I hope that the teachers can implement their numerous ideas. At a school it is always difficult to get the resources to be able to realize something you want to do. Are there any further initiatives needed? You first have to build up the MINT education regions. Then you can see what is going well and not so well and what is still needed. What fascinates you about the MINT subjects? What fascinates me is that you can answer questions about how the world works. To be able to answer questions that small children ask and that I have also asked.
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