This week in Digital Technologies we continued to look at Games-Based Learning, and in particular we looked at the video game Minecraft. I was apprehensive at playing the game, as it was something I had never played before. Thankfully, we had a group of Digital Leaders from a local primary school to show us how to use Minecraft.
Before the pupils arrived, we watched a few YouTube videos to show us what Minecraft was, the aim of the game, and the basic tools on how to create a Minecraft World. At first, it looked very complicated and confusing, as the graphics did not seem to be very modern. However, there are many children in today’s society that play Minecraft frequently so I tried to have an open mind whilst exploring the game. According to Magbook (2014) “Minecraft is a worldwide phenomenon. Since it was first released back in 2011, it’s been taken to the hearts of thousands and thousands of gamers.” The Digital Leaders from a local primary school arrived and they showed us how to use it and what creations they had made. The pupils created various objects such as scenes from Harry Potter, shops, and houses. If they are in the same room, they can share their worlds with each other to see what they have created. There are so many possibilities and I thought it was a great stimulus for their imagination. The pupils explained that Minecraft can be used for literacy, technology, health and wellbeing, and many topic areas such as the Romans, Titanic, or the Egyptians. The task for the day was to design a World by creating objects using Minecraft.
Video games are extremely popular in today’s society. Ofcom Report (2011) states that “gaming is hugely popular in the UK with almost 86% of 5-7 year old children and 90% of 8-11 year old children using gaming devices regularly.” As a student teacher, I think it is important to integrate Games-Based Learning into the classroom. As Ofcom suggests, children are using their gaming devices regularly, therefore teachers should embed it within their learning. It will keep pupils interested in the task at hand, it is something they relate to from out of school and it can stimulate creativity. Beauchamp (2012, p.9) suggests that “Children spend most of their time on games not found in schools.” However, if schools introduced games to children during a lesson, they may start to use it outside of school and this can have an great educational impact on them. Bray (2012) suggests that “in a classroom setting, games should not just be used as rewards or for entertainment but as a whole new approach to learning.” The game part is only a small part of the task, but if the game is introduced as a stimulus and is then followed by a task, the children are more likely to be engaged and enthusiastic. In addition to this, Beauchamp (2012, p10) states that there are many skills that could be enhanced by playing ICT games such as strategic thinking, planning, communication, application of numbers, negotiating skills, group decision-making and data handling skills. All of these skills are very important and can benefit the child’s learning.
Links to Experiences and Outcomes:
“I can communicate clearly when engaging with others within and beyond my place of learning, using selected resources as required. “LIT 1-10a
“As I play and learn, I enjoy exploring interesting materials for writing and different ways of recording my experiences and feelings, ideas and information.” LIT 0-21b
“In everyday activity and play, I explore and make choices to develop my learning and interests. I am encouraged to use and share my experiences.” HWB 0-19
(Education Scotland, 2004)
“I can explore and experiment with sketching, manually or digitally, to represent ideas in different learning contexts.” TCH 1-11a
(Education Scotland, 2016)
After exploring Minecraft, I have found that it is a great game for stimulating the imagination. It enhances so many valuable skills in pupils that can be applied to many curricular subjects. Video games are played by children outside of school so by using them in class it would keep them engaged and interested in the topic. It was interesting to gain the knowledge of primary school children and I learned a lot of valuable information from them. Games-Based Learning is something I would use in my classroom because it is important to keep subjects interesting and make the learning enjoyable.
References
Beauchamp, G. (2012) ICT in the Primary Classroom: From Pedagogy to Practice. Pearson.
Bray, O. (2012) Playful Learning: Computer Games in Education. [Online] Available: https://www.slideshare.net/Microsofteduk/playful-learning-computer-games-in-education [Accessed: 19th March 2018]
Education Scotland (2004) Curriculum for Excellence: Literacy and English. Experiences and Outcomes.[Online] Available: https://education.gov.scot/Documents/literacy-english-eo.pdf [Accessed: 19th March 2018]
Education Scotland (2004) Curriculum for Excellence: Health and Wellbeing. Experiences and Outcomes. [Online] Available: https://education.gov.scot/Documents/health-and-wellbeing-eo.pdf [Accessed: 19th March 2018]
Education Scotland (2016) Curriculum for Excellence: Technologies. Experiences and Outcomes. [Online]Available: https://education.gov.scot/Documents/Technologies-es-os.pdf [Accessed: 19th March 2018]
Ofcom (2001) Children and Parents: Media Use and Attitudes [Online] Available: https://www.slideshare.net/Microsofteduk/playful-learning-computer-games-in-education [Accessed: 19th March 2018]
MagBook (2014) How to Do Everything in Minecraft.
Pixabay. [Online] Available: https://pixabay.com/en/photos/?q=minecraft&hp=&image_type=all&order=popular&cat=&min_width=&min_height= [Accessed: 19th March 2018]
