Today in EdTech class we had the opportunity to play Minecraft, guided by some Middle School student experts!

I’ve never played Minecraft and did not even know what it was until last year, so I was a true beginner for this lesson. We initially created our avatar and then progressed through a semi-guided course to learn how to perform basic functions in the game. I found this portion of the lesson engaging enough, since I had a goal in mind and was able to follow the instructions, both oral from the teaching students and written on the screen prompts. Once this portion of the lesson was finished, however, we were released into the world of Minecraft to explore on our own. This was where Minecraft lost me. I wandered around a bit, built a tiny house (with some help from one of the middle school students), and then stuck close to the house to avoid danger and Googled keyboard shortcuts and gameplay instructions. Without a clear goal I was somewhat lost. Others in the class were creating projects for themselves or simply wandering. Many had more experience with the game than I did.

I can see how Minecraft could be useful in getting students engaged in the classroom, with the lure of the gamification of learning. The visiting teacher talked about all the skills she had observed her students building from the game. However, I personally don’t think I would attempt to use it unless I first spent many hours becoming more familiar with it. I also worry that in a typical classroom, the varying skill levels of students with this platform would affect its efficacy as a teaching tool.

Classmates who domesticated several wolves in the game and also made a house out of blocks of pink and purple wool