From Ideas to 14 Social Problem Solving Board Games by Young Innovators in “Thammasat-Banpu Innovative Learning Program Season 2”
Throughout a year of incubation of all 14 high-school teams, “Thammasat-Banpu Innovative Learning Program Season 2” by Banpu Public Company Limited in collaboration with the Faculty of Learning Sciences and Education (LSED), Thammasat University, has completely equipped the students with skillsets required to become new-generation innovators through board game development that reflects and gives solutions to social issues. All the 14 teams had their boardgames launch to the public for trial at “GAMES & LEARNING 2020” on Saturday 10 October 2020 at KBank Siam Pic-Ganesha Theatre, 7th floor, Siam Square One. Presiding over the event was Associate Professor Ekachai Keesookpun, Ph.D., Head of Basic Education Commission, while attendees include several preeminent figures.
Mrs. Somruedee Chaimongkol, Chief Executive Officer, Banpu Public Company Limited, stated, “Banpu aims to support innovators and drive innovative learning through practice, development and production processes of boardgame in order to seek for ways to change the society for the better. This is in line with Banpu’s concept for conducting our corporate social responsibility activities that ‘Learning is the Power of Change and Development’. The program’s season 1 successfully gained great feedback from youths who could create board games that tackled 20 social issues. As multi-dimensional learning media, those boardgames were applied to real-life situations of each target group. Following the success, Banpu carries on the program to the current season 2. We are very impressed to see that today’s young innovators are concerned about resolving social issues. Through 14 engaging board games, they are able to convey the message of 3 focused issues including social development, healthy living, and adolescent science with interesting aspects on the issues. All the games are well-refined with support and supervision from quality experts who built up the young innovators’ thinking especially during the challenging time of the Covid-19 pandemic which had led to creative changes of the program activities.”
Associate Professor Anuchat Puongsomlee, Ph.D., Dean of Faculty of Learning Sciences and Education at Thammasat University, stated, “At the Faculty of Learning Sciences and Education at Thammasat University, we aim to take part in social changes for the better by incubating “people” – the important factor for Thailand in moving forward. With the continuous support from Banpu for Thammasat-Banpu Innovative Learning Program, we have incubated people from the young age to be open-minded and equipped with Design Thinking – one of the essential skills in targeted problem-solving practice that also leads to creative problem-solving ideas for the best solution in certain circumstances. The learning crystallization is necessary for the teams to develop their board games for solving their specific social problems. After the trial of the games today, we have seen various points of views and solutions from all the teams which are all positively creative. We see this as a great start of the young generation’s self-development toward a quality innovator for the Thai society in the future.”
The event special guest – brilliant, young artist and Youtuber – Zommarie or Marie Eugenie Le Lay, shared, “I usually play boardgames and see it as a great way for me, my friends and family to spend time together doing a fun activity while also polishing up many skills. I found that coming to Games & Learning 2020 has opened new aspects of board game as a tool in solving social issues. It is such a great idea because the players not only learn about the issues but also face with fun and challenges. The 14 board games created by these 14 young innovators are really opening new aspects in social problem-solving and development.”
“Thammasat-Banpu Innovative Learning Program Season 2” has 14 finalist teams who are qualified participants to develop their skills to become new-generation innovators. The program started with the Module 1 where in-depth understanding of board game design and the design thinking skill were provided. The Module 2 Training covered game prototype development and game mechanic improvement to make the game more fun and challenging. The participants had an opportunity to present their board games for professional board gamers and other teams to play. The 14 board games by 14 finalists are as follows:
Topic – Social Development
1. Trashia Island on Waste Management by Suratpittaya School
2. Me we world on Effective Resource Management by Potisarnpittayakorn School
3. Nanny Fairy on Child Development by Panyathip School
Topic – Healthy Living
4. Pick herb up on Community Herbal Products by Prachinkallayanee School
5. Sugar Addict on Sugar Addiction by The demonstration school of Silpakorn University
6. Survivor from black snow on Air Pollution from Sugar Cane–Burning by Watcharawittaya School
7. Save health Save Life on Hygiene of Thai and Immigrant Children in Mae Sot District by Sapphawitthayakhom School
Topic – Adolescent Science
8. What happened in my school on Bullying in School by Sapphawitthayakhom School
9. #LostinEros on Adolescent Sexuality by Bodindecha (Sing Singhaseni) 2 School
10. Mentalism on Self-Discovery by Suankularb Wittiyalai Rangsit School
11. Depresso สุข..ไม่เศร้า on Depression by Chulalongkorn University Demonstration Secondary School
12. Cheating 101 on Cheating in Exams by Ban Mak Khaeng School
13. E.F.D. (Escape From Danger) on Sexual Harassment by Satri Wat Absorn Sawan School
14. Unplugged Coding on Software Coding by Photha Wattana Senee School
Although the board games are all finished and ready-to-play, the 14 teams still have a long way to go and many challenges to get through. After the launch and activities in GAMES & LEARNING 2020, the teams will have to go on site to introduce the board games to the target group. The innovators’ potential and the board games’ quality will be thoroughly evaluated by the judges. Follow up on the result and updates at Facebook Fanpage @tu.banpu.
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About Banpu Public Company Limited
Banpu Public Company Limited is a leading integrated energy solutions company in the Asia-Pacific operating three core groups of businesses – energy resources, energy generation, and energy technology – in ten countries: Thailand, Indonesia, China, Australia, Lao PDR, Mongolia, Singapore, Japan, the United States of America and Vietnam.
“Learning is the Power of Change and Development”
Banpu believes that “learning” is the solid foundation in enhancing an “individual,” which drives the community and the society to achieve sustainable development in a long run. Banpu’s CSR and other social-oriented activities of every country, therefore, emphasize and promote continued learning among young people and communities in a number of ways, be they daily real-life experiences, learning in- and outside the classroom, hands-on practice that enhances capabilities and life skills, or researches, learning, and knowledge discovery, both individually and as a team.
