Gamified experiences help children gain financial literacy, spot scams
Colourful booths reminiscent of retro arcade machines caught the eye of Chiong Tze Yu, 13, who pulled his father in to explore the area.
Resembling an automated teller machine (ATM), the booth – made by local education platform Eyeyah! – provides a series of interactive games that teach basic but essential financial literacy skills to children.
These include learning how to spot scams, how passwords can be stolen, and how to set up stronger security in the digital space.
The eye-catching booths were just one part of the digital and financial literacy initiative organised by POSB at the Tzu Chi Humanistic Youth Centre in Yishun on Nov 2.
Other sections include virtual reality games that challenge participants to budget their money, scam awareness quizzes and financial literacy workshops.
Tze Yu said the games helped him learn about managing money.
“The games were very interactive, they taught me to be careful with my money and also how to spot scams before they happen,” he said at the POSB Your Neighbourhood Carnival.
Minister for Home Affairs and Law K. Shanmugam attended the event with members of Nee Soon Town Council.
Speaking to the media on the sidelines of the event, Mr Shanmugam said the Government will continue to partner stakeholders such as POSB to educate the public and provide a “shield against scams” for Singaporeans.
This comes as scams continue to rise and become more sophisticated, he added.
Victims in Singapore lost a record $385.6 million in the first half of 2024, with the number of cases in the first six months of the year increasing by 16.3 per cent to more than 26,500, compared with the 22,853 cases over the same period in 2023.
Mr Shanmugam said the Government will continue to engage the media and also participate in events such as POSB’s initiatives to increase people’s knowledge and fight scams.
One important educational skill is financial literacy among the community, he said. “When we look at the needs of our community, we also think of the life skills they need. A skill that everyone can benefit from, even from a very young age, is financial literacy.”
The minister added: “Having a good understanding of financial concepts is key to cultivating responsible financial behaviour. From budgeting to planning for retirement, it allows everyone to have better control of their financial future.”
Ms Isabella Andrews, education liaison at Eyeyah!, told The Straits Times that gamifying the learning experience for young children can help them learn more about financial literacy.
“We wanted to make the experience a little bit more fun and interactive, and we’ve seen kids above Primary 3 learn better through these games as they want to achieve the highest score in them. “As a result, they will read and educate themselves to get the right answers,” she said.
She pointed out that this applies even to younger children who may not understand such financial concepts.
“The younger kids below Primary 3 enjoyed playing the games, and they were actually intrigued by the illustrations and animations. This made them curious in knowing what the art is about, and when they asked questions we are able to break it down for them,” said Ms Andrews, adding that the gamified ATM booths, which took around six months from conceptualisation to production, will be taken to 20 primary schools and four public libraries by the end of 2024 as an educational show.
Mr Paul Chiong, father of Tze Yu, said Eyeyah!’s gamified ATM experience has helped his son understand scams better.
Said Mr Chiong, 51, who works in procurement: “It’s actually quite interactive and easy to understand, I think even adults will find it useful. The games will get the child to understand more about scams, like what phishing or the different types of call scams can be.”
Separately, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat launched the East Coast Digital Ambassadors initiative in Bedok on Nov 2. It is aimed at enhancing digital literacy and bridging the digital divide through artificial intelligence among residents in East Coast.
About 600 individuals will become ambassadors over the next three years to create digital initiatives and lead the efforts.
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