Dr Rabendra Yudistira Alamin ST MDs while presenting the board game innovation at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management (IEEM) 2022.

ITS Campus, ITS News – Introducing financial literacy in a fun way is no longer just a discourse. To that end, a doctor from the Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS) in his dissertation developed an innovative financial literacy education game called Tata Harta as a Game Based Learning tool that is adaptive and relevant for high school/vocational school students.

Lecturer of the ITS Visual Communication Department (DKV), Dr Rabendra Yudistira Alamin ST MDs, explained that the development of Tata Harta was strengthened with a more scientific and structured approach through the Adaptive Game Based Learning (AGBL) framework. This framework was designed through cross-disciplinary research involving game designers, high school teachers, financial consultants, accounting lecturers, board game publishers, and even a financial training CEO. “The result is a more interactive and adaptive game, making financial material easier to understand,” he said.

Bendra stated that Tata Harta was designed as a board game with real-life scenarios. In this game, players will face various financial choices such as investing, saving, buying necessities, and even donating. Instead of merely pursuing wealth, the game also emphasizes the importance of balancing asset management, happiness, and social contribution. “This approach is expected to help students understand financial values more broadly and contextually,” he said.

Dr Rabendra Yudistira Alamin ST MDs (center) during the prototype evaluation with the board game café instructor and an ITS DKV female student as the illustrator.

The man from Malang explained that the development of Tata Harta originated from a community service activity that was later expanded. As an initial step to develop this innovation, Bendra and his team constructed the game framework using the Delphi method by collecting expert opinions through repeated surveys. This process, which took place from April to June 2023, gave birth to the AGBL concept as the main foundation of the game.

Furthermore, the ITS DKV alumnus explained that the next stage focused on creating a prototype based on the AGBL framework and a study of several financial games, conducted from June to October 2023. The research team involved ITS DKV students who handled illustrations, typography, layout, and packaging. “The prototype was tested gradually by involving board game communities, seminar participants, educational café visitors, and several experts,” he revealed.

ITS students, members of the KKN Abmas team, while demonstrating playing Tata Harta with students of SMKN 12 Surabaya.After being refined, the Tata Harta prototype was tested at SMKN 1 Mojokerto and SMKN 12 Surabaya, involving more than 60 students from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. The results showed a significant increase in student motivation and engagement. “The Game Based Learning approach succeeded in creating a more active, relevant, and enjoyable learning experience compared to conventional methods,” said the bespectacled man.

Interestingly, the AGBL framework developed from this research also inspired the creation of a derivative product in the form of an educational game called Cashflowpoly Entrepreneur Edition. This game was specifically designed for elementary and junior high school students and has been mass-produced as a learning medium for financial literacy and entrepreneurship in various schools in Indonesia.

Dr Rabendra Yudistira Alamin ST MDs (third from the left) with the supervising lecturer and examiners after the Doctoral Dissertation Defense at the ITS School of Interdisciplinary Management and Technology (SIMT).

A member of the Surabaya Boardgame community, Bendra hopes that the innovation presented in his doctoral dissertation will not stop here. He wants to see Tata Harta continue to be developed and utilized more widely, including its potential digitalization to reach more students in various regions, thereby contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) point 4 on quality education. “We want to create a financial learning ecosystem that is not only fun but also meaningful and sustainable,” Bendra concluded. (ITS PUBLIC RELATIONS)

Reporter: Aulia Okta Wijaya