Minecraft As A Mandatory Subject In School? Sweet!
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Sweden has to be one of the coolest places for a kid to grow up in - First, they introduced the concept of schools with no grades or classrooms, then came Monstrum's amazing playgrounds and now, the coolest idea of all - 'Forcing' 13-year-olds to play Minecraft as part of the classroom curriculum.
The seed for this rather radical idea was planted when the government of Sweden organized a national school competition called 'Future City' for which classrooms were asked to submit their ideas about the kind of structures they envisioned in the Sweden of the future.
It was such a success that educators at Stockholm’s Viktor Rydberg school decided to continue this 'out of the box' thinking by incorporating Minecraft into the class curriculum for 13-year-students.
According to the teachers, the game which challenges kids to use their imagination by building virtual worlds complete with electricity grids, water supply pumps and anything else they would like to see in their future, allows students to think beyond the classroom frontiers. This they believe will help them make better decisions as adults, especially about things like the environmental impact of their actions. And while it may sound radical to most people they liken it to teaching a woodcraft class - except in this case, all the construction is being conducted in a virtual world.
So far, 180, 13-year girls and boys, have participated in this mandatory unit, which not surprisingly has been such a huge hit that the school is planning to make it a permanent addition to their curriculum. It of course augments, not replaces, core subjects like math and science. The educators say that even parents who were a little apprehensive about their kids playing video games at school, are now on board and fully support this decision.
We wonder if any school in the US would even consider such a drastic curriculum addition - And how parents would react. What do you think? Be sure to let us know, by adding your comments below.
Resources: The local.se, gizmag.com
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13802 Comments
analisealmost 12 yearsMINECRAFT IS AWESOME
happypug12almost 12 yearsWhat is the most amazing thing u have ever built in Minecraft?
tntsteve134almost 12 yearsI'm more of a miner than a creator so the most amazing thing I've ever built is...(drum rolls, pls) A HOUSE MADE OF DIRT!!!!(I know, I know. But was YOUR dirt house 56x34 and 67 blocks high with 15 large chests,and 13 furnaces? I don't think so. (of course, I've always been more of a fighter than a miner)
swimmer_girl02almost 12 yearsMy worst creation was a 3 by 6 dirt and sand house with a tiny little corner to hide from skeletons. It was hidden in the trees, I was playing the hunger games.
- analisealmost 12 yearsA big city with skyscrapers with individual rooms inside each of them. IT WAS SO COOL! Then my brothers friends came and poured lava all over my beautiful creation... sigh. I LOVE MINECRAFT!
- happypug12almost 12 yearsThat's too bad that your brother's friends did that. Your skyscraper sounds amazing, analise!
- swimmer_girl02almost 12 yearsThat happens to be alphawolf06
kell-bellalmost 12 yearsI made this thing on something like minecraft from Divergent! it was a big glass building and a hole and a train... then it got deleted.- happypug12almost 12 yearsThat is so sad, kell-bell. I hate it when I build something awesome in Minecraft, but then it deletes.
bobo900almost 12 yearsI really want this to happen at my school.- Yugal Gautamalmost 12 yearsThis would be awesome!!!!!!!!!!!
- tntsteve134almost 12 yearsYEAH!!!
- jaguar101almost 12 yearswhats the point
coolgirl12321almost 12 yearsI love minecraft its like my top game XD
animaljam22almost 12 yearsI play minecraft every day and I made a mashin
nikukyualmost 12 yearsI made a amusement park, a Ufo, a huge house inside a mountain, and e.t.c... I think I'm much better at creative than on survivable! Anyone agree? I y'all do, follow or like!- analisealmost 12 yearsOh, yes, and follow me back!!! ;)
- nikukyualmost 12 yearsI did!
- analisealmost 12 yearsNikukyu, I already follow you! I just need happypug12 to do the same ;) wink wink
- nikukyualmost 12 yearsThanks a lot! I hoping to reach 50 followers soon!
- happypug12almost 12 yearsI really enjoy following u, nikukyu! U r a great friend!
- tntsteve134almost 12 yearsWhy is people following each other so important? I have 0 followers because I have been on this site 4 less than 24 hrs.I like Minecraft
frankiebabyalmost 12 yearsIt isn't but it is a friendly way to get fake friends and happiness- frankiebabyalmost 12 yearsIt's not that important, but it's fun anyway
- swimmer_girl02almost 12 yearsI think that since we are all kids, we are allowed to talk with each other. Sites like facebook and instagram arent so safe because weird grownups use it too! Ill bet if I met all you guys, like happypug12, nikukyu, and you, frankiebaby, I'm sure I'd enjoy all your company!
- nikukyualmost 12 yearsYeah I think so too! But I'm in Japan, so it might be hard...
- happypug12almost 12 yearsWill u follow me back if I follow u, analise?
- analisealmost 12 yearsJust did! thnx so much
- happypug12almost 12 yearsYeah, I am way better at creative than on Survival. Once, I spawned the Wither!
- happypug12almost 12 yearsOnce I had spawned the Wither in Creative, it just looked at me, then it flew away.
- analisealmost 12 yearsYeah the wither is so weird!
- tntsteve134almost 12 yearsTrue! It kills all the animal on creative and it...REGENERATES!!!! I think that was a lag, though.
- nikukyualmost 12 yearsOMG that's awesome! I usually play with my iPad, so there's not much of a variation. The rarest thing I saw in creative was a pink sheep!
- happypug12almost 12 yearsWhoa, a pink sheep! Can you dye the sheep different colors, or are they always white, gray, and black?
- nikukyualmost 12 yearsI think in survivable ya can! When I saw it, I was like OMG qwick build a fence around it!!!! And it was great because I made a house right next to the fence where I held captive of the sheep, so I made the pink sheep the houses pet!
- analisealmost 12 yearsOh, yes you can dye in PE. Just choose a dye, press the sheep, and violia
- happypug12almost 12 yearsWow! Does that work on the computer?
- swimmer_girl02almost 12 yearsnot too sure, i only have PE
- analisealmost 12 yearsMe too! Its in one of my backyards in a village... I cant remember which
- happypug12almost 12 yearsCool, nikukyu! Did the pink sheep ever escape?
- analisealmost 12 yearsHappypug12, does your school have a minecraft club?
- coolalmost 12 yearsthis is so cool i could just kill you in minecraft
- Jjvejjhejjwjfhualmost 12 yearsI so want thos to happen.
- coolalmost 12 yearswow minecraft is so cool that i have every game
