It hits differently when a classroom full of curious school kids become engrossed in a game – not from a digital gadget, but from a classic board game.
The game, called Master of Disaster (MOD), features a map and play cards with images and icons indicating storms, floods, earthquakes and fires.
Morbid? Not for the kids and their teacher, who find the game as encouraging as it is educational. While the goal is to win just like in any game, MOD provides the kids with the opportunity to learn how to prepare and plan for various disasters, including the value of non-life insurance.
Each player recognizes the need to make choices, whether to spend available resources on rebuilding, or invest on preparing through insurance.
A winning partnership for the curriculum
The initiative is part of a new collaboration between the Yuchengco Group of Companies (YGC), through its affiliate Malayan Insurance Co. Inc. (Malayan) and the non-profit Asia Society for Social Improvement and Sustainable Transformation (ASSIST).
ASSIST developed MOD and helped Malayan with the donation of the board games to select schools nationwide.
More than just a donation drive, the collaboration allows MOD to be integrated into the curriculum through a structured training and support program, ensuring that teachers can use it not only as entertainment but also as a real tool for learning.
This innovative approach aligns with the Department of Education’s emphasis on Disaster Readiness and Risk Reduction and underscores the insurance industry’s role in protecting communities.
Why non-life insurance matters
YGC looks at the program beyond social responsibility and community development. It’s also about future-proofing the way the next generation makes decisions when disasters strike.
For Malayan, this is more than just a game – it’s a tool that builds a culture of preparedness and resilience at a very young age. By making complex concepts simple and engaging, the company is building disaster resilience from the ground up.
Children learn this in the classroom, then bring their new knowledge home where they can discuss disaster preparedness with the family and protect themselves and their property with insurance.
Strategic thinking from the game
Traditionally, schools teach kids how to react in case of disaster emergencies through evacuation drills and related lectures.
Information about financial aftermaths of disasters may be too much for young minds to absorb, so simulations make up for the possible overload.
MOD goes beyond the duck, cover and hold exercise and other similar drills and lectures. The game makes the players think like strategists, taking into consideration the protection of their family, their home and their community before disasters strike.
They develop forward thinking, making up ‘what-if’ scenarios in their heads if they prepare – or don’t.
Triumph from a disaster game
Rolling the dice for education is truly an extraordinary way for a young student to become a ‘master of disaster.’
Survival is no longer a scene from a disaster movie they watched on TV or the moviehouse, and the word ‘insurance’ is not just a word for adults to talk about.
For YGC, teaming Malayan with ASSIST is a triumph in turning a game into a strategic new skill and knowledge for the young generation toward disaster resilience.