Playing In The Virtual Sandbox Students Collaborative Practices In Minecraft
Minecraft is among the most popular video games ever, selling over 100 million copies since its launch in 2009 (Huddleston 2016). The sandbox game, which players play, build and discover ways to survive in virtual landscapes is especially popular with young players (Thompson, 2016). Teachers are taking note, and many are exploring ways to incorporate Minecraft into their teaching (Timoner, 2014). In the classroom, Minecraft is being used to teach subjects and skills, such as physics, math creative thinking and art and digital citizenship, history and collaboration (e.g., Cipollone, Schifter, & Moffat 2014; Craft, 2016; Hill & Jones, 2015; Overby & Jones, 2015; Short, 2012). A Minecraft: Education Edition is available to help teachers use Minecraft with students. Minecraft workshops and camps are becoming more popular outside of the classroom. The enthusiasm of educators for Minecraft is part of a wider trend in the field of game-based education (Gee 2007, 2008; Plass Homer, Kinzer, & Kinzer 2015; Squire 2006, 2008). Just another wordpress site are founded on a constructivist method to education where students actively construct knowledge through engaging in open-ended activities that require problem-solving, decision-making, and following one's interests (Plass et al., 2015).
Despite the overwhelming enthusiasm for using Minecraft to enhance learning, there is scant research on its effectiveness. There is little empirical evidence to back the claims of Minecraft as a tool to teach specific skills. We also lack information about the conditions that can lead to such benefits. Incorporating Minecraft and other games that are multiplayer into teaching and learning will not be possible until we have evidence.
This study aims at filling this knowledge gap by exploring middle school students' collaborative interactions when playing Minecraft in small groups with 2-4 players. We decided to focus on collaboration due to its centrality in learning (Johnson & Johnson, 1989; Rogoff, 1998; Roschelle, 1992), and because multiplayer games are particularly suited to collaboration (Gee, 2007; Plass et al. 2015; Squire, 2006, 2008; Steinkuehleret al., 2004). While Presta Live is often used in conjunction with other goals in pedagogy however, this study specifically focuses on collaboration. Previous research has demonstrated that students struggle to collaborate effectively, which can cause negative consequences to their learning outcomes (e.g. Barron, 2003). Thus, collaboration is itself a skill that students must learn to master in order to reap the benefits of collaborative learning and thus warrants a specific investigation.
Our analysis focused on the kinds and functions of discourse participants engaged in the game (Bluemink Hamalainen Manninen, Manninen and Jarvela 2010, 2010). The findings provide new insight into the factors that facilitate and undermine high quality collaboration in Minecraft. Just another wordpress site will be of value for educators who are interested in using Minecraft and other multiplayer games to promote collaboration among their students.
