Designing with Purpose: Year 12 students and The Village School
Design That Matters
As part of their IB Design Technology Internal Assessment (IA), Year 12 students have taken on a meaningful design challenge: to create inclusive learning tools for students at The Village International School, which supports children with special needs. Spanning two years, the project pairs each Patana student with one or more students from The Village, fostering deep insight into the daily experiences of neurodivergent learners. This partnership not only strengthens empathy but equips students with the understanding needed to design with purpose and care.
Guided by expert input, including lectures by Mr Harshi Sehmar MBE, our students learn about the core challenges faced by neurodivergent children and are introduced to influential theorists such as Bronfenbrenner, Piaget and Vygotsky—who advocate for a child-centred approach to learning. Students also engage with specialists from The Village, including occupational, physiotherapy, and speech and language therapists, to gain a holistic view of their users’ needs.
The project challenges students to identify real-world learning barriers and develop educational or physical development tools aimed at improving accessibility, engagement, and motor or cognitive growth for Village students. To launch the collaboration, The Village students visited our Design and Technology department for a hands-on workshop. They explored Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and cutting-edge tools such as 3D printers, CNC routers, and laser cutters. For many, it was their first experience with mainstream educational technology—a moment marked by curiosity and joy. One student exclaimed, “Gosh, this is such fun! I never knew you can make things straight from a drawing on a computer.”
A particularly inspiring moment saw a Village student with a natural eye for design collaborate with Cameron, one of our Year 12s, to create a layered Minecraft-inspired figure. This creative task showcased how design can bridge communication and skill gaps while building meaningful connections. Throughout the process, Patana students applied design thinking—empathising with users, generating relevant ideas and testing early-stage concepts. Mr Sehmar concluded the visit with a feedback session, offering professional guidance on inclusive design to help students refine their prototypes.
This initiative is a shining example of IB values in action—demonstrating compassion, innovation and global citizenship. It highlights how academic knowledge, when applied to real-world challenges, can lead to socially impactful outcomes through collaboration and empathy.
Here’s what some of our students had to say:
“Teaching students from The Village how to use CAD for 3D printing and laser cutting was such a fun and rewarding experience!” – April
“I was very happy to have The Village students at our school—this really helped with testing and improving my project.” – Mahi
“This project helped us understand how crucial empathy is when designing for others.” – Nandika
We are proud of this ongoing collaboration and excited to see how our socially responsible design journey continues to evolve.
