If you’ve watched past episodes of Idea Channel, you know we’re huge fans of Minecraft. This totally amazing video game allows you to build your own world from scratch, what’s not to like?!?! But it may be good for more than just fun and games. Some experts have brought Minecraft into the classroom, allowing teachers to customize lessons and students to engage with concepts in new ways. And while educational games aren’t new, Minecraft has some unique advantages that could usher in a new direction in education. In the future, students across the world may spend their class time punching trees.
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Literary Links:
Classes using the game had significantly higher means than those classes that did not use the game:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/pzqv0rawreremis/blunt_game_studies.pdf
Teachers documenting positive experiences w/ Minecraft:
http://minecraftedu.com/wiki/index.php?title=Real-world_Examples
Video Links:
Will Minecraft and Makerbot Usher in the Post-Scarcity Economy?
MinecraftEdu Thoughts 02 – Probability and Gravity
The Physics of Minecraft: Gravity
Minecraft Virtual Classroom #4 – Foreign Language
A Sad Day on the Oregon Trail:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yj2tNbhS_ko
History of Latvia:
Teaching with Games: GLPC Case Study: Joel
Video Game High School:
Music:
Roglok: http://vimeo.com/musicstore/track/21166
Binarpilot: http://www.jamendo.com/en/track/661417/geeks
Level 5: Room for the Homeless http://www.jamendo.com/en/list/a101325/level-5
Want some more Idea Channel?
Here’s Last Week’s episode: “What Does the Russian Meteorite Tell Us About Surveillance Culture?” http://youtu.be/Cjlb3Iu071M
Want another one? Here ya go: “There’s No Such Thing As Offline?!?” http://youtu.be/CZwJq88cWKY
Here’s Some More: “Are Bitcoins and Unusual Hats the Future of Currency?” http://youtu.be/E_9R45RLNR0