Database #3 - Minecraft Education & Student Engagement

 Introduction (07/22/2022): 

Halfway through the 2021-2022 school year, my school decided to invest in a Minecraft Education Server for our students. I had no idea what this meant, but I was interested to know how it may further engage my students. Before this, my students had been participating in Minecraft Education on their own devices and saving their work locally to their laptops. I learned that a Minecraft Education Server would allow them to save their work to essentially a cloud system, so that the whole school could see what they had completed. This seemed like a meaningful opportunity to collaborate with the whole school. So, now I am curious how other ELA teachers have meaningfully integrated Minecraft Education into their classrooms. The end goal of this research will be to create a database of resources for ELA teachers to consult before integrating Minecraft Education into their classrooms.  

Update (07/25/2022): 

After completing some research on Minecraft Education and ELA Integration, there is a plethora of incredible teachers who created content via blogs, videos, etc. I was also able to locate a few scholarly articles based on this topic, but most of them cover information that is broader and more related to gamified learning. As a result, you will find that some of my resources relate to gamification of learning more than the specific topic of Minecraft Education. I thought that this was okay because Minecraft Education is one of many gamified learning resources.  

 

Resource #1: Minecraft Education Language Arts Subject Kit 

Minecraft Education Edition. (2021). Minecraft language arts kit: Minecraft education edition. Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://education.minecraft.net/en-us/resources/language-arts-subject-kit 

This resource is an official database of Language Arts resources from the creators of Minecraft Education. The database includes lessons, virtual worlds, training videos and access to collaborative opportunities with other teachers. If you are a beginner to Minecraft Education, this is the database that I would consult before using the game in my classroom. See below for some more specific information that I pulled from the database: 

• Official database from Minecraft Education which includes sample lessons, starter worlds, training videos and opportunities to collaborate/learn from other teachers (para. 1) 
• Sample of available ELA Lessons: 
• Shipwreck Narrative – Students explore sunken ship using Minecraft EDU and then write a story based on what they viewed and through inferencing (Possible connection to the doomed sailings of Henry Hudson, John Franklin, etc. in Canadian history) 
• Fairytale Reimagined – Recreate a fairytale using this Minecraft EDU world and then have students write their own twisted fairytales about this world 
• Sample of available ELA Collections which include multiple lessons: 
• Minecraft: The Mountain – Based on the official Minecraft novel titled “The Mountain,” by Max Brooks. Students will explore different styles of writing while wandering through custom created worlds. 
• National Writing Project - “Explore the connections between creative writing and creative gaming” 
• Many resources are available on various texts like “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” “Treasure Island,” etc. 

Resource #2: Ideas for Using Minecraft in the Classroom 

Miller, A. (2016, October 24). Ideas for using minecraft in the classroom. Edutopia. Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/minecraft-in-classroom-andrew-miller 

This Edutopia post lists some ideas for the integration of Minecraft Education in the English Language Arts classroom. It includes ideas for both writing and reading comprehension that will engage students. Check out the notes I pulled from this article listed below: 

• Minecraft is a good game to teach students how to effectively collaborate through communication skills (para. 3) 
• Minecraft can be used to tell stories – Have students design characters, locations, choices, motivations and plots (para. 4) 
• Reading Comprehension – Have students create a visualization of what they just read (para. 5) 
• Recreate settings from a story 
• Recreate plot events from a text 
• Students may also use these recreations to make predictions of what will happen next in the story. Have students design their predictions in the game.  
• “Students as players must also consider point of view and make inferences based on the world and situations,” which are ELA skills (para. 5) 
• Use Minecraft as an assessment tool which creates voice and choice for students to demonstrate their learning (para. 7) 

 

Resource #3: Teaching Literacy with Minecraft 

McNeill, S. (2018, December 20). Teaching literacy with minecraft: Education edition & research on game based learning. SamuelMcNeill. Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://samuelmcneill.com/2018/12/20/teaching-literacy-with-minecraft-education-edition-research-on-game-based-learning/ 

Samuel McNeill’s blog entry led me to discover other great resources, as well as some good lessons on his website. One of the lessons McNeill described was using Minecraft Education to teach the William Shakespeare classic “Romeo and Juliet.” Please see my notes below for more specific information: 

• Good Video Games allow you to do the following: 
• “Production: Players are producers, not just consumers: they are “writers” not just “readers”. This drives a level of engagement that more passive medias do not allow.” (para. 15) 
• “Risk Taking: Good video games lower the consequences of failure; players can start from the last saved game when they fail. Players are thereby encouraged to take risks in a way they might not normally do so.” (para. 16) 
• “Customized: Games usually offer a level of customization so that users can play — and succeed — at their competency level. Customized curricula in school would not just be about self pacing, but about real intersections between the curriculum and the learner’s interests, desires, and styles.” (para. 16) 
• “Agency: Players have control over the gaming environment – based on the first five principles above, players develop a sense of ownership over what they’re doing that often exceeds the sense of ownership in other areas of their school learning.” (para. 17) 
• “Situated Meanings: Students learn new vocabulary words by experiencing them within game situations. Research suggests learners do not acquire new vocabulary when the word is learnt purely in the context of other words. By contrast, retention is highest when words are learnt in association with an action, event, or image. Gaming provides the perfect vehicle for this.” (para. 20) 
• Romeo & Juliet World: 
• What happens years after the death of Romeo and Juliet? Do their deaths lead to peace or something else? (para. 8) 
• Begin by exploring a Minecraft Education world on this topic which leads them to collect evidence/information which they will then use to write an argumentative essay (para. 8) 
• Possible ELA Learning Outcomes of Romeo & Juliet World: 
• “Write arguments to support claims in an analysis...using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.” (para. 9) 
• “Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.” (para. 9) 
• Other Resources that this article mentioned: 
• https://eblog.stac.school.nz/2014/11/28/creative-writing-with-onenote-minecraft/ 
• https://simonbaddeley64.wordpress.com/2019/03/09/collaborating-across-the-pond-with-minecraft-education-edition/ 

 

Resource #4: Creative Writing with OneNote & Minecraft 

McNeill, S. (2014, November 28). Creative writing with onenote & minecraft. StAC e-Learning Stories. Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://eblog.stac.school.nz/2014/11/28/creative-writing-with-onenote-minecraft/ 

Another great resource from Samuel McNeill! This article wrote specifically about the opportunity to engage students in a create your own adventure lesson using Minecraft Education. It also mentioned some of the benefits of using Minecraft Education regarding student learning. See my notes listed below for more details: 

• Pick a Path story writing – Also known as choose your own adventure (para. 1) 
• Students would create a Minecraft World based on the writing that they completed. The world needed to include all of the details of their writing like characters, setting, plot, etc. (para. 5) 
• Benefits of OneNote – Students can link their pages together, share their work with others to receive feedback, etc. (para. 6) 
• Teacher perspective on Minecraft inclusion of this lesson - “The goal was not to just make something pretty in Minecraft, it was actually to improve the quality of your writing … after writing the story, the idea was to look back in Minecraft and see how you could improve the writing you had already completed.” (para. 8) 
• Technology should facilitate learning and not be the focal point (para. 17) 
• Students use Minecraft so easily and can articulate how it helps their learning, such as improving their creative writing by being able to visually see their world (para. 18) 
• End project – Students joy and pride was evident in what they created (para. 19) 

 

Resource 5: Collaborating Across the Pond with Minecraft: Education Edition 

Baddeley, S. (2019, March 9). Collaborating across the pond with minecraft: Education edition. SimonBaddeley64. Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://simonbaddeley64.wordpress.com/2019/03/09/collaborating-across-the-pond-with-minecraft-education-edition/ 

Samuel McNeill’s blog led me to discover Simon Baddeley’s website titled “Collaborating Across the Pond with Minecraft.” Baddeley’s website has a wealth of knowledge on Minecraft Education integration in the ELA classroom. In the first blog entry listed below, Baddeley writes about how he used Minecraft to engage his reluctant learners in the writing process. The second blog entry listed below details how to begin using Minecraft Education in your ELA classroom. If you are looking for lesson ideas, possible virtual worlds to use, etc. Baddeley’s website is a great resource! Please see my notes below on each blog entry for more information: 

 

Blog Entry #1: Literacy Blocks: Using Minecraft to Engage and Motivate Reluctant Writers 

Baddeley, S. (2015, February 27). Literacy blocks – Using minecraft to engage and motivate reluctant writers. SimonBaddeley64. Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://simonbaddeley64.wordpress.com/2015/02/27/literacy-blocks-using-minecraftedu-to-engage-and-motivate-reluctant-writers/ 

• Writing feels like work - Teachers job is to find a topic that makes students want to write (para. 1)
• After 20-30 minutes in the Minecraft world, students are frozen and must complete a writing piece based on what they have experienced (para. 6)
• Writing is stored in the game in books and then placed in the digital library for other students to read and enjoy in the future (para. 9)
• The writing can be anything from a story to a news report based on skill level, interest level, etc. (para. 9)
• "Minecraft is like a blank sheet of paper. It can be folded into amazing creations; it can become a canvas for spectacular works of art; it can host incredible immersive stories; it can be whatever your imagination can make it." (para. 14) 

Blog Entry #2 – Literacy Blocks 2: Where Do I Start with Minecraft in Literacy? 

Baddeley, S. (2015, March 13). Literacy blocks 2: Where do I start with minecraft in literacy? SimonBaddeley64. Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://simonbaddeley64.wordpress.com/2015/03/13/literacy-blocks-2-where-do-i-start-with-minecraftedu-in-literacy/ 

• To stop students from racing to finish the Minecraft worlds, create checkpoints where they have to complete some sort of reading or writing activity (para. 4) 
• Give students a specific task to complete throughout the world, so that they will be reading with a purpose instead of rushing (para. 5) 
• Writing Ideas Based on the “Mountain” world (para. 7) 
• A diary entry from the point of view of the scientists that sealed the survivors in the bunker 200 years ago. 
• A scientific report detailing the group's progress towards repopulating the Earth with trees and plants. 
• A first-person account of the first days after waking up in the bunker. 
• A news report detailing the return to Earth of the rest of mankind. 
• “What happened to all the trees?” 
• Students can add their writing into the Minecraft game through an in game book (para. 8) 
• “Once students are engaged and motivated, the tasks become less of a chore and more of an extension to the experience” (para. 9) 

 

Resource #6: Why Educators Should Use Minecraft in the Classroom 

Education World. (2014). Why educators should use Minecraft in the classroom. Thinking About Using Minecraft in Your Classroom? | Education World. Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/benefits-minecraft-classroom-students.shtml 

This article explored some of the benefits of using Minecraft Education in the classroom. It wrote specifically about the skills that students would obtain by using Minecraft Education. Please see my notes below for more specific information: 

• Freedom to create, push imaginations and allows them to be creative in ways not possible in the real world. (para. 5) 
• Problem-solving - Game can inspire students’ higher-level and critical thinking. (para. 5) 
• Social game - Students rely on other players for help in the game. Students who might not get along in the real world can become allies in the Minecraft world. (para. 5) 
• Working together in Minecraft - Builds positive classroom climate, teaches the benefits of collaboration and facilitates teamwork (para. 5) 

 

Resource #7: English Adventures with Cambridge - MINECRAFT EDUCATION 

Learn with Minecraft Education. (2021). English adventures with cambridge - Minecraft education. YouTube. Retrieved July 27, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaXUHGb3Hsw. 

The English Adventures with Cambridge is a virtual world that has already been created in Minecraft Education for ELA teachers use. This video reviews the entire world to show teachers how students will need to complete the activities, puzzles, etc. This is a good visual step-by-step resource if you plan to use this specific Minecraft Education world. Please see my notes below for more information: 

• English Adventures with Cambridge is an already created world that can be downloaded into students Minecraft Education domains 
• This world includes a worksheet that students need to work through as they explore 
• Students are tasked with walking around and speaking to characters to complete various tasks – At the end of these tasks, students will be able to solve a puzzle if they have collected the correct pages/letters 
• This video reviews one of the lessons within this world, but there are more that you can complete 

 

Resource #8: Using Minecraft Education as an Educational Tool 

Edutopia. (2013). Using minecraft as an educational tool. YouTube. Retrieved July 27, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSimHPmZ0hA. 

This Edutopia video details some of the positive elements of Minecraft Education for student development and learning. It also speaks to some of the innovations in Minecraft Education that may be forthcoming like in game quizzes, assessments, etc. Please see my notes below for more information: 

• Minecraft appeals to a lot of people because it is so open-ended (I.e. you can explore, build, kill monsters, etc.) 
• Digital Citizenship Learning – Online safety, responsibility, collaboration and communication, etc. 
• Working with software developers to create a quiz block that could be integrated into any Minecraft EDU world 
• Researching how and what you can teach with Minecraft 
• Teacher should experiment with playing the game and then let their students do the same thing 
• Excitement around this game can bring excitement and engagement into the classroom 

 

Resource #9: Is Minecraft the Ultimate Educational Tool? 

PBS Idea Channel. (2013). Is minecraft the ultimate educational tool? YouTube. Retrieved July 27, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RI0BN5AWOe8. 

In this PBS Idea Channel video, some ideas for ELA integration of Minecraft Education are explored. This video also does a good job of conveying the limitations of Minecraft Education (I.e., disparity in access to technology). Check out my notes below for more information: 

• Minecraft allows you to create a new game every year for students based on their needs, so it’s not just using a pre-made game to teach your students = Fluidity  
• Build sets for Shakespearean plays 
• Design famous architectural wonders like the Seven Wonders of the World 
• Kids respond well because they are in control of their learning, creativity, collaboration, etc. 
• Teachers should have appropriate professional development before using Minecraft 
• Disparity in access to Minecraft – Only the wealthy schools can afford to give their students access to their world (Important reflection) 

 

Resource #10: Mining Educational Implications of Minecraft 

Baek, Y., Min, E., & Yun, S. (2020). Mining educational implications of minecraft. Computers in the Schools, 37(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/07380569.2020.1719802 

This article had lots of great information on Minecraft Education and its integration into the ELA classroom. One of the ideas that I liked best from this article is that students could complete a survival world writing assignment. Basically, students will play in the survival mode of the game and write in a journal about each day's activities. For other information pulled from this article, please see my notes below: 

• “Open-world game that promotes creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving in an immersive environment” (p. 1) 
• Survey Results - “over 90%… of university students pursuing their degrees in primary education agreed that a game-based approach makes subject matter classes more interesting, and a similar proportion agreed that game-based learning approaches result in more active and engaged students” (p. 2) 
• “Games model real-life experiences rather than simply providing written or visual descriptions of such scenarios” (p. 2) 
• “Games enable students to learn through a more hands-on, immersive approach than when using tools commonly found in traditional classroom settings such as textbooks and worksheets” (p. 2) 
• Minecraft is open source – Allows teachers to create their own content to fit their own curriculum (p. 2) 
• Encourage students to write about their gaming experiences within Minecraft (p. 8) 
• Survival World Writing (p. 8): 
• Students were tasked with surviving a hostile world with little resources in the game 
• Each student needed to keep a journal and include entries for each day that they were in the hostile world  
• Students could create in game books and then loan them out to other classes either in their school or around the world (p. 8) 
• “Minecraft can develop literacy by allowing students to design characters and landscapes” (p. 8) 
• Description of unique characters – students practice literacy and composition (p. 8) 
• “Students can even develop storylines or blogs about characters’ actions or create videos explaining the building process” (p. 8) 
• “Minecraft, as implemented in classrooms in these papers, appears to effectively boost student interest and drive to learn, all while participating in regular classroom activities.” (p. 9) 
• “Not only are there increased rates of assignment completion, but students who normally did not actively take leading roles in class were able to act as leaders within the game” (p. 9) 
• Challenge to using Minecraft Education – Experienced players may employ their previous knowledge to skip past lessons and/or cheat (p. 12) 

 

Resource #11: Learning Through Minecraft 

Hart, A. B. (2021). Learning through minecraft: A phenomenological study of game-based instruction in higher education. Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/learning-through-minecraft- phenomenological-study/docview/2562237635/se-2 

This article also explores the integration of Minecraft Education into the ELA classroom. One area of this article that I particularly enjoyed was its suggestion to have students create a theatrical performance within the game. This could be paired with various ELA activities like readers theater, novel study, poetry, etc. Please see my notes below for more information:  

• “In contrast to traditional video games where players obtain points or complete levels, Minecraft places responsibility on players to create their own personal goals to achieve” (p. 46) 
• Creative Mode gives students unlimited resources to build anything (p . 46)  
• This mode could be used by teachers to have students build artifacts, buildings, etc. That relates to the curriculum they are teaching 
• Students may use Minecraft to put on a performance like performing using a script or recreating a scene from a story (p. 50) 
• “Educators within the Minecraft: Education Edition community have shared access to lesson plans created for various subjects including learning objectives, guiding ideas, student activities, performance expectations, and external resources” (p. 51) 
• Minecraft - “Students were more engaged and committed to their own learning while attaining learning outcomes” (p. 51) 

 

Resource #12: Can Gaming Improve Teaching and Learning? 

Schaffhauser. (2013). Can gaming improve teaching and learning? THE Journal: Technological Horizons in Education, 40(8), 26. https://ocul- qu.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01OCUL_QU/15tp3o5/cdi_gale_infotracmisc_A352751562 

This article explored some of the limitations of Minecraft Education which included access to technology, assessment opportunities, etc. It also wrote about some of the benefits of Minecraft Education like student's persistence levels. Check out my notes below for more information on this article: 

• Games are designed to have people fail but want to try again (para. 6) 
• This encourages students to want to persist on a problem and not give up (para. 6) 
• Sometimes a learner will have to fail hundreds of times within a game before they find success, which is great practice and skill development (para. 7) 
• Gaming provides teachers with real data that could be used for assessment (para. 12) 
• Not just data that is based on observations of the teacher (para. 12) 
• Games cannot tell us if a student is working within the “zone of proximal development,” instead they can only tell use step-by-step information. For example, a student completed 5 questions right, so they moved to the next level (para. 15) 
• If students can only use computers for an hour a week, based on computer lab booking or laptop carts then Minecraft is not worth it – Needs to have some sort of set schedule for students (para. 18) 
• Study – Digital games showed an increase in student understanding of concepts compared to those who did not use the game (para. 36) 
• “Game play encourages players to use particular cognitive processes, access prior knowledge, and apply skills as intended” (para. 37) 

 

Resource #13: A Game Based Learning Primer About Meeting Students Where They Are 

Darvasi, P. (2021). A game-based learning primer about meeting students where they are. Principal Leadership, 22(3), NA. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A683721029/AONE? u=queensulaw&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=5db822c4 

In this article, the idea of game design is explored as an opportunity for students to showcase their knowledge in a creative manner. The article states that game design instills 21st Century skills in students like communication, digital literacy, etc. For more specific information from this article, please see my notes listed below: 

• “Progressive educators tap game-based learning as a means to make their practice relevant and engaging.” (para. 2) 
• Universities are beginning to offer game design and games studies programs (para. 8) 
• Growing effort to design video games that deal with social issues like homelessness, race, LGBTQ+, etc. (para. 9) 
• “Play is nature's most potent incentive to learn” (para. 11) 
• Simulations - “players manage economies, run cities and households, make political decisions, and explore the streets of ancient cities” (para. 12) 
• Game design teaches students 21st Century skills like communication, collaboration, digital literacy, design thinking, etc. (para. 16) 
• “Cultivate empathy and perspective-taking through avatars” (para. 17) 
• Explore identity through role-playing games (para. 17) 
• Explore action and consequences through “branching” narratives (para. 17) 
• “Every game is a model that can potentially be mined to inform instructional design: homework, grades, and bonuses can become quests, experience points, and power-ups.” (para. 22) 

 

Resource #14: 4 Innovative Ways to Teach with Video Games 

Meyer, L. (2015). 4 innovative ways to teach with video games: educators from around the country share their best practices for using educational and consumer games to improve students' engagement and performance. T H E Journal [Technological Horizons In Education], 42(5), 20. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A434223717/AONE? u=queensulaw&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=21a5bf91 

Again, this article writes about the integration of Minecraft Education into the classroom. One of the suggestions from the article that I found interesting was connecting the game to the Heroes Journey. Students could create their own hero and develop their journey throughout the game which follows the various stages of the Heroes Journey. Check out my notes below for more information on this article: 

• Participation of Minecraft in the classroom has proven to improve student engagement, attendance, behavior and performance (para. 1) 
• Video games should be intertwined throughout your unit of study, not just a fun final product - “It should be set up with warm-up activities, it should be assessed, and there should be activities to wrap up to make sure that kids really have learned what we hoped they would learn” (para. 4) 
• Minecraft and the Heroes Journey – Could you have students create a world and character that goes through the Heroes Journey? (para. 12) 
• Students can write background stories for their characters (para. 12) 
• They could also write fan-fiction style writing about their world/characters (para. 12) 
• Connect Minecraft world to a novel study – Could you find a book that has connections to one of the pre-built worlds in Minecraft? (para. 13) 
• Students who play video games like Minecraft have a vocabulary that is different than others – Able to use these words in their speaking, writing, etc. (para. 14) 
• Project Idea – Give students a budget to build a zoo within Minecraft and then connect it to ELA through writing, non-fiction reading of resources, etc. (para. 19) 

 

Resources that Proved to Be Not Related: 

As was the case in my other databases, there proved to be some articles that were promising, but did not fit the parameters of my research question. I have included these articles below as they may still be beneficial to your specific classroom setting: 

 

Resource #1: Minecraft Education Editions in Languages 

Minecraft: Education Edition. (2021). Minecraft: Education edition in languages. YouTube. Retrieved July 27, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oE8UpkEUWT4. 

This video had lots of great information on Minecraft Education integration into the language learning classroom. The creators of the video spoke to languages like Arabic, Chinese, Greek, etc. Unfortunately, the video did not speak specifically to ELA, so it was too broad of a topic to include in my database.  

 

Resource #2: Investigating the Role of Minecraft in Educational Learning Environments 

Callaghan, N. (2016). Investigating the role of minecraft in educational learning environments. Educational Media International, 53(4), 244–260. https://doi.org/10.1080/09523987.2016.1254877 

In this article, the author focused too much on one Project-Based learning assignment which was to build a dream house using Minecraft Education. This project was not completed within a regular classroom, instead it was conducted in an after-school club. Although the article had good information, I did not think that it fit into the parameters of my research question.