At a time when interest in STEM studies is declining, GO! Atheneum Oudenaarde and technology company LightStream are joining forces. Together, 15-year-old students have built a fully working handheld controller for “Troubleshooting the Game”, premiering at Indumation 2026 in Kortrijk and carrying this Belgian STEM story onto the international stage.

GO! Atheneum Oudenaarde builds game controller that travels from classroom to international show floor
Unique STEM collaboration between a school and technology company LightStream premieres at Indumation 2026

While enrolment in STEM programmes is under pressure, students from GO! Atheneum Oudenaarde are proving that things can be different. In close collaboration with Gavere-based technology company LightStream, they developed a fully functional handheld controller for “Troubleshooting the Game”, a technical game that will have its premiere at Indumation 2026 in Kortrijk.

What makes this collaboration special is that it is not a theoretical exercise or a typical school project, but a trajectory that closely mirrors a real industrial assignment. The students go through the entire journey: from idea and concept, through product design and electronics, to assembly and the construction of five fully working units. There is no step-by-step manual; instead, there is a clear deadline and the challenge of building something together that must actually work, on time and to industrial standards.

“What they are doing here is what we do every day in industry,” says Dylan Caufrier, CEO of LightStream. “Bridging disciplines, daring to make mistakes, adjusting and moving forward, and ultimately delivering a product that can stand on an international stage. This controller is built like a real industrial product and shows that young people can absolutely think and create at that level.”

LightStream, active as an electrical engineering design office and developer of the digital platform CabinetManager, guides the class throughout the entire project. The company brings hands-on experience, practical feedback and field-based training straight into the classroom. “What we build in the classroom today forms the structure on which industry runs tomorrow,” Caufrier adds. “If we want the best engineers of tomorrow, we need to invest in their foundations today. For us, paying forward is not a slogan, it is a way of working.”

The enthusiasm on the school side is just as strong. “Our collaboration with LightStream turns electrotechnics into an experience rather than just a subject,” says Stijn Bauters, teacher at GO! Atheneum Oudenaarde. “Students work with technologies and tools that are actually used in companies. They see that what they learn does not stop at the school gate, but finds a real place in industry.”

In the broader debate around declining interest in STEM, this project offers a concrete answer. Not a campaign built on slogans, but a hands-on trajectory where education and industry jointly build real technology. The model shows how companies, even without massive infrastructure, can make a difference by sharing time, expertise and realistic cases. It is a Belgian response to an international challenge, with a story that continues far beyond national borders.

For visitors to Indumation 2026, the handheld controller will be one of the eye-catchers. At the LightStream stand, they can hold the device developed by the students and play “Troubleshooting the Game” themselves, in a setup that is also presented internationally to industrial and technology partners.

Anyone who wants to see how 15-year-olds are already contributing to technology at an industrial level is welcome at LightStream in Hall 4, Stand 421. From this Belgian show floor, a story is launched that resonates internationally: how a close collaboration between a school and a company can make STEM tangible, relevant and attractive again.