There are hundreds of resources available (other than cobblestone and oak trees) to help teachers incorporate MINECRAFT in their classrooms in effective and creative ways. Below are some of the best ones!
MINECRAFT EDU
This fully-realized website is specifically designed to help teachers use MINECRAFT in the classroom. As stated on their website, MINECRAFTEDU "provides discounted Minecraft licenses to educational institutions, a custom edition of the game with features designed especially for classroom use, and a hosting service to let users connect and play together". According to their statistics, over 3000 teachers have already used this service in some form in their classroom. Here is a breakdown of just some of the benefits this service offers:
Although I have not personally tried out this service, it seems as though they give you a bang for your buck and are the leader in using MINECRAFT as an educational tool.
The MINECRAFT Teacher
This blog (written by Joel Levin, a co-founder of MINECRAFTEDU) details the practical application of MINECRAFT in one teacher's classroom. In his biographical information, Levin states that using MINECRAFT in his class has much different results than he had originally anticipated. If the previous resource detailed the best website using MINECRAFT with technology, this one definitely highlights the best person to be doing the same thing.
MINECRAFT Teachers Google Group
Exactly what the title indicates!
MINECRAFT WIKI
The official wiki page for the game, this site has over 4000 articles centred around every imaginable aspect of the game. Don't know what an Enchantment Table is? Look it up! Confused over how to beat the Ender Dragon? Read an entire article about it! Written by the thousands of hardcore fans of the game, this site is a great resource not only for teachers, but for players as well. Send your students here and watch them enjoy reading like you've never seen them before.
EMERGENT LEARNING: Peer collaboration and learning in user driven environments
A Masters degree thesis project by Björn Berg Marklund that centres around collaborative problem solving in MINECRAFT. Marklund had certain groups of children perform tasks with LEGO and other groups perform the same tasks in MINECRAFT. The results of this research is that the computer based emergent system was experienced as more engaging and immersive, and that it fostered continuous discovery and problem solving throughout the game session, which wasn't the case in the LEGO exercise.
The MINECRAFT Cell: Biology Meets Game-Based learning
This short article from Edutopia details the lessons of how to implement MINECRAFT in a lesson about DNA. It follows a series of simple steps to lead both the teacher and students through learning activities. It is a great place to start for the beginner MINECRAFT teacher!
MINECRAFT EDU
This fully-realized website is specifically designed to help teachers use MINECRAFT in the classroom. As stated on their website, MINECRAFTEDU "provides discounted Minecraft licenses to educational institutions, a custom edition of the game with features designed especially for classroom use, and a hosting service to let users connect and play together". According to their statistics, over 3000 teachers have already used this service in some form in their classroom. Here is a breakdown of just some of the benefits this service offers:
- Cloud-based solution for hosting MINECRAFT classroom servers
- A library of FREE lessons and activities
- A monthly newsletter, as well as a Twitter account that is constantly tweeting new ideas
- Additions to the game that make it more useful and appropriate in the classroom setting
- A $20/month subscription fee
- Pre-constructed maps of geographical and historical settings to be explored
Although I have not personally tried out this service, it seems as though they give you a bang for your buck and are the leader in using MINECRAFT as an educational tool.
The MINECRAFT Teacher
This blog (written by Joel Levin, a co-founder of MINECRAFTEDU) details the practical application of MINECRAFT in one teacher's classroom. In his biographical information, Levin states that using MINECRAFT in his class has much different results than he had originally anticipated. If the previous resource detailed the best website using MINECRAFT with technology, this one definitely highlights the best person to be doing the same thing.
MINECRAFT Teachers Google Group
Exactly what the title indicates!
MINECRAFT WIKI
The official wiki page for the game, this site has over 4000 articles centred around every imaginable aspect of the game. Don't know what an Enchantment Table is? Look it up! Confused over how to beat the Ender Dragon? Read an entire article about it! Written by the thousands of hardcore fans of the game, this site is a great resource not only for teachers, but for players as well. Send your students here and watch them enjoy reading like you've never seen them before.
EMERGENT LEARNING: Peer collaboration and learning in user driven environments
A Masters degree thesis project by Björn Berg Marklund that centres around collaborative problem solving in MINECRAFT. Marklund had certain groups of children perform tasks with LEGO and other groups perform the same tasks in MINECRAFT. The results of this research is that the computer based emergent system was experienced as more engaging and immersive, and that it fostered continuous discovery and problem solving throughout the game session, which wasn't the case in the LEGO exercise.
The MINECRAFT Cell: Biology Meets Game-Based learning
This short article from Edutopia details the lessons of how to implement MINECRAFT in a lesson about DNA. It follows a series of simple steps to lead both the teacher and students through learning activities. It is a great place to start for the beginner MINECRAFT teacher!