Five Minecraft Learning Centres will be created in Wales to help school and colleges across the country use the popular block-building game to teach subjects such as science, history and coding.
The Welsh Government has launched the project to help students prepare for the workplace, as well as build key communication and critical thinking skills, using a game they are already comfortable with.
The educators who attend the Learning Centres will be taught how to use the “open-learning” environment of Minecraft: Education Edition to encourage creativity, self-expression and problem solving.
It comes just months after the Welsh Government invested £1.2 million to give 467,000 young people access to Office 365 and Minecraft: Education Edition via the country’s Hwb digital learning platform.
Education Minister Kirsty Williams said: “I’m proud to say we’re one of the first countries in the world to take this progressive approach to providing school staff and learners with access to Microsoft software. Through projects like ‘Enriching the Curriculum for Wales’, we want all learners to benefit from the collaboration, communication, problem-solving and critical thinking opportunities that Minecraft: Education Edition offers.”
Schools have been identified in the four Welsh regional consortia to become Hwb Minecraft Learning Centres (MLCs).
To launch the project, the Welsh Government Hwb team met with the Minecraft: Education Edition product team to host a “train-the-trainer” summit, where those hosting MLC workshops learned how to make the most of Minecraft in education.
Speaking at the Hwb summit, Allison Matthews, Principal PM and Executive Producer at Minecraft: Education Edition, said: “We are very excited to see the learning outcomes that educators will be able to drive in the upcoming year as they find ways to incorporate Minecraft: Education Edition across the curriculum.”
MLC sessions will run every term, with the first round scheduled before the half-term (October 28). Educators can reserve their place here.
