Intel Innovation Spaces: Cultivating a Generation of Tech Creators for a Smart Nation

(by Sattiya Langkhapin and Anshul Sonak, Corporate Affairs Group Intel Asia Pacific)

A smart nation requires an equally smart workforce, in other words, those who have the necessary knowledge, skills and ability to innovate. By engaging youth and technology through a network of Innovation Spaces across Thailand, Intel helped open up opportunities for youth to use technology to address a range of social challenges.

Building capacity in technology innovation through Maker activities

The maker culture promotes an informal environment in which learning takes place through hands-on activities that involve applying knowledge and skills to create innovations, or sometimes just to create something really cool! A growing number of makers incorporate computing technology components into their creations which makes it possible for many smart inventions to answer the needs of real-world issues. The Maker Movement is gaining popularity worldwide because it is a concept that promotes learning and creating with technology in a fun and meaningful way.

Intel promotes innovation skills development through maker activities at Innovation Spaces, especially the use of computing technology to develop smart solutions. Intel’s processor technology within Intel Edison, Intel Galileo and Intel Genuino 101 kits has helped Thai students from schools and universities nationwide to create prototypes of smart devices such as a flood warning device, a smart cradle that can be monitored through the web, a smart weather station, or even an illegal parking detector.

Key Learnings: three success factors of the Innovation Space program

1. Creating opportunities through physical and/or time spaces

In 2015, Intel supported various agencies across Thailand in launching 20 Innovation Spaces, reaching more than 1,500 youth across the country. Some were physical spaces, e.g. a dedicated innovation facility, where youth can attend workshops or check in and “play” with technology. In other cases, they took the form of a time space where universities engaged the communities to allow secondary school students and teachers to interact and create with technology. Innovation spaces are critical as both the technology and the hands-on approach in interacting with it are currently not ready available to all youth even within formal education systems.

2. Building capacity for educators.

It is important to also create space for educators to experience the process of innovating using sensors, microcontrollers and mobile application technologies. From pre-service to in-service teachers, from secondary schools to computer science and engineering faculties, over 500 educators from Thailand and neighboring countries were encouraged to design and make with technology. Initially, many activities at the innovation spaces reached out to youth directly, but as more educators are empowered, more schools and education institutions can become innovation spaces, opening up more opportunity for youth to apply their knowledge to solve real world problems with technology.

3. Fostering community of practice.

The growing “maker community” ecosystem is key to sustaining the learning and innovation seeded in the classroom or innovation spaces. This is because the challenges of solving real world problems sometimes require multiple insights and expertise. The community provides youth with mentorship support, horizontal learning and a sense of belonging. Maker events allow young innovators to interact with established tech innovators, showcase their creations, and build networks that share technical expertise and provide platforms to promote and socialize ideas.

The right technology skills for IoT era

The current technology trend is moving towards an Internet of Things (IoT) era, defined as group of smart devices that are interconnected within intelligent systems of systems. It is vital that we implement education initiatives that are focused on developing the competencies and skills within students to be able to apply technology to solve problems. Intel’s initiatives in Thailand, and globally, are working to create spaces to empower youth with the technology skills they need for the future, not just as technology consumers, but as technology innovators.

Resources

Example Maker Contents in Thai language www.vcharkarn.com/maker

Example Maker Contents in English language

innovationtoolbox.intel.com.au

www.instructables.com/id/Intel/

Contact info: anshul.sonak[at]intel.com