Thailand

Southern Board Game Festival: Learning through playing in Thailand’s Deep South

Maruf Ibrahim is an aspiring activist in Thailand’s deep south. Well-known as a local expert in digital science in the area, he founded “Digital4Peace”, an organization dedicated to promoting peace and development in the region through technology. Their works mostly are digital trainings for groups in need such as youth and women and digital map for disaster relief.

But this time, it is different. Together with FNF Thailand, Digital4Peace organized a Board Game Festival at TK Park Yala on 22nd February, the first event of its kind taking place in the Southern region.

The event was divided into three sections:

1. Section for players, where participants explored and played a variety of board games
2. Section for facilitators, where participants learned how to become good game facilitators
3. Section for developers, where participants learned with an expert so that they can develop their own games in the future.

More than 180 people attended the event. Some of them even travelled from neighboring provinces just to be part of the region’s first Board Game Festival.

Passing on inspiration

However, this is not the first time that Maruf worked with FNF Thailand. Maruf first joined FNF Thailand’s activities back in 2013. He was a university student when FNF Thailand went to his home region to organize “Dream Thailand,” a platform organized by FNF Thailand for youth to voice their hopes for their country.

When introduced to educational board games for the first time, Maruf says he was surprised. “It’s more than just fun.” In his view, board games can be a platform for conversations, dialogues, or even changes. “Board games can bring people from different backgrounds to come together and have a talk.” Especially in a region with conflicts such as the Deep South, Maruf says dialogues are necessary.  

According to him, people in the Deep South are very interested in board games but there are no space or trainings for them. A board game enthusiast himself, he and his group decided to organize the event to provide a platform for like-minded people in the region.

Fan, a university student majoring in education, joined the facilitator training session and came away inspired. He said the session encouraged people to exchange thoughts and ideas, and enhanced mutual understandings between different sides. This inspired him to become a better game facilitator as he saw that board games could be beneficial to learning process.

“Becoming a teacher is my dream.” Fan said. “That’s why I want to be better at facilitating these games. They are great learning tools and I want to use them in my teaching.”

Participants of game developer session also reflected Fan’s opinion. They are mostly teachers or educators who want to develop board games as a learning tool. Topics of the games that they chose include historical locations in the region, how to prevent scammers, or basic human rights in everyday life. “It allows us to practice a concept or a knowledge in real life and create long lasting memories”, one participant said.

German model

FNF Thailand has been developing and using board games as a tool to enhance civic education since 2010. Inspired by similar approaches in Germany, they launched their first game, Sim Democracy, which allows players to simulate roles of citizens and government. The game was recognized as one of the most innovative learning tools by the World Forum for Democracy in 2014.

Since then, FNF then developed more games to enhance civic education in aspects such as rights, democracy, and dialogues in Thailand.

Vanessa Steinmetz, project director of FNF offices in Thailand and Vietnam, says board games is a great tool to engage people in active participation and learning by allowing them to experience, think, and react in a simulation. “Players must strategize, negotiate, and respond to evolving scenario. [as a result,] board games can enhance critical thinking, problem solving, and empathy.” In addition, collaboration and debate can also be fostered through board games according to Steinmetz.

Although one benefit of board games is that they can also bring joy and fun. So despite all the learning and skill practice, Steinmetz hopes that participants can also enjoy the games as well. “I wish you great insights and learning, but also a lot of fun!”

This board game festival in the Southernmost region brings fresh atmosphere and a new perspective of board games in the region. It brings not just entertainment, but a powerful, accessible tool for education and connection. The festival has welcomed young people, teachers, educators, and people of all ages; this could be the beginning of a meaningful change in the region’s educational landscape.

* Takdanai Ketkaew is Programme Assistant and Communication Officer at FNF Thailand.