‘Through their 15 years of learning, every child must live and graduate with the BELIEF that they CAN make the world a better place.

This is why we are in education.’ – Design for Change

‘To design is to grapple with the future. 

The trouble with ‘the future’ is that it doesn’t exist.’ 

– Stuart Candy

DFC Singapore’s Happiness by Design 2023 brought children (9-12), parents, and teachers together to unpack and co-design ‘happiness’ in their lives, collectively. In partnership with the DesignSingapore Council’s Learning by Design initiative, over 45 participants from Yumin Primary, Bedok Green Primary, and Lakeside Primary tackled issues like ‘too much homework’, ‘distracted students’, and teacher-student relationships.

Children must grow up believing that they are not helpless, change is possible and they can drive it, so they CAN not only navigate but THRIVE in the future that is complex and unknown.  

Design Thinking teaches students to be human-centered, optimistic and collaborative and nurture them to be future-ready and adaptive change makers.

At Design for Change, we empower children to be change makers.

Not by chance, by Design.

THE I CAN

WHOLE SCHOOL APPROACH

Our I CAN SCHOOL approach fostering a child-centric environment that enhances learning experiences, improves processes, and identifies opportunities within the school. This includes, but is not limited to, curriculum, pedagogical practices, processes, relationships, and spaces.

We engage with students, teachers and school leaders to research, co-design and iterate based on context, ensuring the solutions are user-centric, relevant and have the buy-in of all involved.

DFC’s Feel-Imagine-Do-Share (FIDS framework) is internationally acclaimed design framework that is simple, powerful and versatile and has been adopted in 70+ countries.
It has won the INDEX and Lexus Design awards.

The I CAN mindset is unpacked into 16 distinct habits of mind, each grounded in the principles of design thinking application and also used as an assessment tool.

WHY CHOOSE US?

With over
15 years of experience,
DFC Singapore pioneers design thinking in schools in Singapore, collaborating with over 150 school, to address their unique needs and challenges.

Our team of
60+ experienced facilitators are continuously trained to excel in engaging students to practice design-led methods to unleash their
I CAN mindset of a
change-maker.

With our affiliation with Design for Change Global & Riverside School in India, awarded as the World’s Best School in Innovation in 2023, we bring world-class innovation in education to Singapore.

HOW WE ENABLE AN I CAN ECOSYSTEM?

I CAN CURICULUM

We design and deliver student programs by partnering with schools to integrate design thinking methodology and real-world learning in existing school programmes (ALP, LLP, VIA, CCE, Service-Learning, IPW, Project Work etc.) to solve real-world problems. DFC has curated over 100+ programs to suit the objectives of various schools.

I CAN SCHOOL

We enable teachers, with a whole-of-school systems approach, using design-led processes through:

  1. Design Thinking Facilitation Skills to foster students’ creative problem-solving skills
  2. Adopt user-centric design mindset and methods in pedagogical practices
  3. Apply design to promote educational innovation, re-designing systems & processes; integrate technology or applied subjects and/or improve overall culture. 
Schools we have worked with; Ai Tong School, Commonwealth Secondary, Yumin Primary to name a few.

I CAN CONSULTANCY

I CAN Consultancy provides tailored services for school improvement, focusing on designing processes, spaces, and systems. We work with schools to enhance innovation, efficiency, and learning environments, from planning to implementation.

 

I CAN EMPACTATHON®

EMPACTATHON® is an intergenerational engagement children to co-design solutions and real-world impact in collaboration with corporates and community partners. Get a glimpse of our unique projects with Salesforce and Frasers Property.

Empactathon® 2019
Empactathon® 2021: Inclusive Spaces
by Frasers Property
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TESTIMONIALS

Mr Joseph ChanHead of Integrated Programme,
CHIJ St Nicholas Girls’ (Secondary) School
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"I am glad that the team from Design for Change Singapore is able to respond quickly to the many changes and are open in sharing your expertise in how we can customize our programming and format to ensure a meaningful and enriching experience for our girls. .... it was very heartening to see our students immersed in their task such as designing a bag from recycled materials. Conducting a programme via Zoom for an entire cohort is no mean feat, but the team was able to do this with finesse!" (DFC program has been running for 6 years)
Mr JonathanHOD, ICT
Chongfu School
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"Design for Change has been effective in training both our teachers and students in Design Thinking. Feedback from both teachers and students has been exciting and positive, and the prototypes and presentations produced at the end are proof of the good work that has been done. The trainers are very inspiring and engaging. The programme design was well thought out and the student learning outcomes in Design Thinking were achieved with great results"
Mr Simon SngSubject Head - Business Studies,
Westwood Secondary School
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"As strong supporters of Design for Change Singapore (DFC) for the past 4 years, we have witnessed how it has sowed seeds of possibilities and entrepreneurial dare in our students. Beyond skills and knowledge, the power and stickiness of empathy developed has also led our students to soar for their school and local community while being rooted in positive values. Through DFC, they have an opportunity to contribute actively through meaningful design thinking and values in action projects which brought forth actual positive impact on the beneficiaries. The sense of pride and satisfaction from their projects also strengthen their affiliation and ownership towards Singapore as they realized that they could make a difference regardless of their young age. The "I CAN" attitude will also stay with them as a lifelong tagline which will serve them well in their future endeavours. Thank you DFC Singapore."
Ms Hooi Yee LowCCE HOD,
Whitley Secondary School
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"The Active Citizenship for Social Change in Whitley Sec School aims to inculcate active citizenry where students take an active role in bettering the lives of others and to develop critical and creative thinking so that students can take action towards a more desirable future."
Ms Dimps RaoPrincipal,
Yumin Primary School
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"Empowering 10 to 12 year old Yumin Champions with the ‘I Can’ spirit over the last 3 years has brought a whole new meaning to the phrase, Education by design, not by chance'! Students immersed in the DFC learning experiences have learned to be advocates of change for issues that affect them, the people around and the school environment."
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Design for Change Singapore is proud
to be one of the shortlisted Programme Partner
for Learning by Design*.

*Learning by Design is an initiative by DesignSingapore Council to nurture future generation to apply design thinking.

Chat with us to find out how we can collaborate for funding support for applying design thinking in your school. Email us at Leena@dfcsingapore.com
Please feel free to download the packages offered as part of the initiative HERE