Bridge Building Podcast Episode 92: Datta Podcast: Taking Design Seriously & Building Collaborative Game Worlds

In this special DATTA QLD Conference preview episode, Stephen Anderson speaks with two presenters who are exploring powerful and innovative approaches to Design and Technology education. First, Nick Kelly from QUT discusses why design should be considered one of the most important subjects in school. The conversation explores creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and the growing importance of design capability in a future shaped by artificial intelligence and automation. Nick argues that many of the so-called "21st century skills" schools aim to develop are fundamentally design skills, and that design education deserves a far more central place in modern schooling. The second conversation features Richard Neville from Babinda P–12 School, who shares a collaborative game design project connecting primary and secondary students. Students work together to design and build a multiplayer arcade-style game that requires players to cooperate in order to succeed. The project combines coding, systems thinking, collaborative problem solving, and iterative design while also encouraging students to work across year levels. This episode offers practical insights, big-picture thinking, and inspiring examples of what Design and Technology education can look like when creativity, collaboration, and authentic problem solving are placed at the centre of learning.