In today’s classrooms, it’s no surprise to see teachers using various technologies to help engage their students.
One such technology that has been gaining popularity in recent years is Minecraft Education Edition . What may come as a surprise, though, is the number of ways Minecraft can be used in the classroom to improve student learning. In this blog post, we’ll explore how you can jump into taking your use of this amazing tool to the next level. So whether you’re a teacher who’s curious about using Minecraft in your classroom or you’re already using it and want to learn more, read on!
First, let’s dispel the myth that you need to be a Minecraft expert to leverage it for your classroom. Aspire 2Be has trained hundreds of teachers and the majority of those had major anxiety or doubts about their abilities.The jumping on point for using Minecraft Education edition can be narrowed down to the categories listed below along with useful ways to take your learning to the next level.
- Beginner
Learn the basic controls and settings of the game. Practice manoeuvring within the game. View lessons on the Minecraft Education Edition website to access ready-made lessons with worlds that are ready to use ‘out of the box’ or edit them to suit your class.
Top Tip
Start with utilising Minecraft as a choice for assessment in any subject. This will make editing your current lesson plans easier and you can easily assign and collect creations via your chosen LMS (Teams, Google Classroom etc.)
- Intermediate
Ok, you know the basics and you have used it for a couple of lessons successfully. What’s next? Take a look at upcoming opportunities to get trained up on your favourite aspect of Minecraft Education Edition such as coding, creating student ambassadors, becoming a certified educator, Esports and more!
Top Tip
Start with the Virtual Teacher Academy to become a certified Minecraft Educator. You can show off your new shiny badge and come to grips with how to master assessment, multiplayer, creating non-playing character guides for lessons and more!
- Intermediate-Advanced
You are a Minecraft Certified Educator, have used it in multiple lessons, and helped your colleagues buy into the power of Minecraft Education Edition? Now what? You are eligible to apply to be a Minecraft Global Mentor. You can find all of the information you need to see if you qualify and how to apply by clicking here.
Minecraft can be used as a powerful tool in the classroom to help students visualise learning objectives. Not only does it allow for creativity and collaboration, but it can also be tailored to meet specific educational needs. Since 2017, Aspire 2Be has proudly collaborated with regional Local Authorities and Councils across Wales, Scotland and England utilising Minecraft Education Edition to bring relevant curriculum to life. We have also registered over 1,000 teachers for and delivered the Minecraft Virtual Teacher Academy to help them gain their Certified Minecraft Teacher accreditation.
Have your teachers tried using Minecraft in the classroom? Are you looking to get started as a school or within your local authority but don’t know where to start? Contact Dean Garza at dean.garza@aspire2be.co.uk for a free consultation and help to get started.
