Although I was not able to take part in tech class on Tuesday, I had my classmates fill me in on their experience with Minecraft and how it can be used as an educational tool.
I know very little about the world of Minecraft, but I do know that many kids absolutely LOVE it. In every classroom I’ve visited and taught in, Minecraft has been insanely popular. This fact alone proves that it can and should be incorporated into classroom instruction- when kids are passionate about a subject, they are more likely to be focused. This being said, it is important to recognize that having kids simply play Minecraft is likely not an activity that complies with the BC curriculums goals. However, Minecraft is a tool that can aid cognitive development through:
- Fostering creativity
- Teaching basic coding skills through the modelling/ altering programming aspect of the game
- Encouraging self direction
- Promoting non-competitive goal structure; there is no way to “win” in Minecraft
The more I learn about inquiry education, the more I realize how fostering this type of learning is something I wish to base my educational pedagogy around. Given the popularity of Minecraft, creating an inquiry project based around this game could be a great way to spark student interest.
