48. Enhanced Learning Experience with Gamification to Increase Awareness of Finance Among Young Children

With appropriate financial information, individuals can bail themselves out of destitution. Despite this fact, finance is an overlooked aspect of most people’s lives. Many societal and scientific aspects are integrated into our educational curriculums but unfortunately, no electives on understanding the fundamentals of finance are offered. Although children know that money needs to be kept in banks for its safety, they are clueless as to how they can increase their savings without compromising their lifestyles. This study is targeted at developing a playful game for educating children above 10 years of age about the many benefits of investment and financial prudence. With an aim of drawing and retaining the attention of youngsters, the design solution is tethered around participative approaches and building collaborative creative spaces, and a fun way of learning a complex subject of Finance. The fundamental concepts of earnings, expenditure, savings, and investment for the future were demystified with simple examples. The concept of Income Tax was also included while drafting the game architecture. An exciting new board game named “Cash Hike” has been designed focusing on six major investment types–Savings, Fixed Deposits (FD), Public Provident Fund (PPF), Gold, Mutual Funds, and Stocks–for a maximum of four players. The game strategy involves imparting knowledge and giving experiences on how different investment types work. Feedback received from real-time users has conclusively validated the efficacy of the game in making the players understand the importance of informed monetary decisions.