Minecraft & Geography
Sections
1. Introduction and Background
2. Educational use
a) Games Based Learning
b) Different versions of the game
c) Not just geography
3. Where’s the Geography ?
a) It’s a square world after all...
b) Geographical themes
c) Some examples
d) Pedagogy and curriculum examples
4. Mods
5. Associated Apps
6. References and Weblinks
Appendix 1: AHP Minecraft
Appendix 2: Barriers to use
1. Introduction and Background
"Mankind has an inherent urge to create. It's that process of creation, that process of working with others and building wonderful things, which makes it so appealing." Stephen Reid, 2012
Minecraft was created by Markus Persson, founder of Mojang. It is what is known as a sandbox construction game. This means that players have full control over how to play and what to do, and are equipped with tools to change the world.
This ability to generate a world of your own begins to make a connection with geography. Players can shape their world, decide what landforms and buildings exist, and alter the existence of water. They are the world-makers. There are few rules, and they can allow their creativity full rein.
There are two modes to the game: survival and creativity (with hardcore and other levels)
The game’s economy in survival mode is based entirely on the availability of certain items and building new compounds to be able to create buildings and weapons. Once a resource is used in this mode, it’s used forever, which mirrors the real world. This is limiting of course, since the challenge of the game is to make do with what you have.
In the creative form of the game, however, players can create items out of thin air, allowing them to express themselves in anyway they like. Some players have built incredible real-world locations inside the game, all created simply because a player had the time, imagination and will to make it happen.
The game is available in various formats:
One of the most accessible formats is the Pocket Edition which can be downloaded to iOS and Android tablet devices and smartphones. This costs around £4.99.
PC / Mac download is also available via download for £ 17.95 (UK price)
The basic unit of the game is the block.
This can take many different forms, and there are more to be discovered below the surface: by mining of course.
Other blocks can be created using a furnace where a range of ingredients are combined with a fuel source, which can also be obtained through mining. There is a large and ever-growing number of recipes which can be used to create new items and materials.
Players can store their resources in a chest in a house which they build. The choice of location of house is, in itself, an interesting exercise in settlement geography - who will locate on a hill, and who will choose to live with a sea view ? Which are the more defensive positions which a person could choose ? Perhaps on top of a steep rocky outcrop ?
A full list of all the available blocks and their creation is available from various sources including the Minecraft Wiki (an Education version of this WIKI is also available) and further changes are made with fairly regular updates to the game.
Minecraft Pocket Edition operates on a world that is limited in scope. This would allow for a good introduction to the game, and is a cheaper ‘entry level’ option.
The game is also available for XBox 360, and sold in incredible numbers when it was launched. Since May 2012 it has sold well over 4 million copies.
Finally, it’s worth saying that Minecraft is not just any old game.
It encourages exploration. There is wealth to be gained by mining, but care must be taken not to get lost or disorientated when delving in the depths. This will result in death and although characters can respawn, this is not always possible, with the result that items that have been built up are lost.
Minecraft has also been used by the United Nations in a project called BLOCK BY BLOCK.
This time lapse video shows a collaborative effort to build a replica of a playground in Kibera.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sg-vvRjFeEg
Block by Block is doubtless the first of many such projects. There are also lots of school-based projects. This document couldn’t hope to become a definitive list of such projects, but if you are aware of one, please get in touch, and we can add details.
2. Educational Use
a) Games Based Learning
Games Based Learning (GBL) has grown in prominence in recent years. Following the early pioneers such as Derek Robertson’s work with Dr. Kawashima Brain Training for Primary mathematics, there has been developments such as the Consolarium in Scotland.
Many games have some educational potential, and these include off-the-shelf games as well as those which have been specifically developed for the education market. Millions of pounds are invested in making landscapes as accurate as possible - something that Minecraft goes against, and yet succeeds spectacularly.
Early investments in consoles and games for schools were criticised, although Ollie Bray, a geographer who worked with the Consolarium, famously replied that this was not an investment in game consoles, but an investment in pupils. He also explained that ‘good teachers use good tools’. Minecraft certainly has value as an educational tool.
Derek has since been involved in a major project to model the plans to update the waterfront in Dundee. More on this to come when I have some time.
b) Different versions of the game
In addition to the versions of the game listed in the previous section, there is also an Education version.
Minecraft Edu is a way for schools to obtain licenses for the game at reduced prices as well as additional resources: http://minecraftedu.com/ and tools to enable its use in schools.
There are several potential areas where Minecraft can be included in schools.
One of them is to establish a Minecraft extra-curricular club, or lunchtime club. Minecraft’s popularity means that associating with it could be an easy ‘win’ for you, but be prepared to be drawn into the world. You should also consider how you are going to challenge those who take part in your lessons.
Think of a series of design-based competitions or themes that you can set for students to tackle, as well as some more freeform work.
The Education version of the game involves collaboration between places.
On the Pocket Edition, players can connect over WiFi and enter the same game space.
There are also education servers which are created so that students can log in and collaborate. The work of Stephen Reid and ‘A Higher Place’ is important in this area. There have been many recent ideas related to this.
It is also worth saying that Minecraft is enjoyed by pupils of Primary as well as Secondary age.
c) Not just Geography...
There are good examples of Minecraft being used in subjects other than geography
- modelling buildings from Ancient civilisations
- creative writing based on travels through the Minecraft universe
- mathematics based on cubes and other structures create by pupils
- problem solving
- connecting with the real world - create QR codes in the game which can be linked with other URLs
A good example from New Zealand: http://www.interfaceonline.co.nz/articles.cfm?c_id=49&id=1761 of a project called Life Forms.
An excellent example here, including a Prezi for a project on Passchendaele
http://dcallanit.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/making-most-out-of-minecraft.html
Insert further ideas here if you have them, or examples - URLs welcome
3. Where’s the Geography ?
a) “it’s a square world after all...”
The game begins with a pre-generated terrain. This is known as the OVERWORLD.
In the PC/Mac version of the game, this is essentially infinite. In the Pocket Edition, the world is of limited size: 256 x256 blocks.
The Overworld is made up of blocks which can be ‘mined’ using an appropriate tool.
The character, usually called Steve, can move through the terrain, and also fly above it under certain circumstances.
There are areas of water as well as land, and terrain of varying heights, built out of terraces.
The landscape can be altered by students, and vegetation can also be planted.
b) Geographical themes
There are plenty of options to develop some geographical themes:
- creating structures - these could be power stations (where would you locate one), wind turbines, or entire cities - also model important buildings such as World Heritage Sites - could also hold a competition to ‘model’ the school most accurately
- sustainable communities - here are some images from a students’ homework assignment to model a sustainable community: http://thatfergusonkid.imgur.com/minecraft_historygeogrphy_project
- city planning - build streets, new towns and new suburbs
- land reclamation - land can be created in the sea, in the same way as some Japanese cities have extended their coastlines to create land for new housing and airports
- create a farm: there are some crops which can be grown so that bread can be produced - these could be arranged into fields - alternatively use the stepped terraces to reconstruct rice padis from Indonesia and other locations
- model the movement of populations from one place to another and the mechanisms for movement
One of the main uses would be to model some physical processes that might result in changes to the landscape. These could include coastal processes, rivers, earthquakes, mountain building (orogeny), glaciation etc.
c) Some examples
In August 2012, I was moderating the applications for the Geographical Association’s Secondary Geography Quality Mark, and a school from Hong Kong sent in the work of a student who modelled an entire river drainage basin.
In a video lasting around ten minutes, he followed a river along its course and demonstrated an understanding of waterfall formation, as well as the famous ox-bow lakes - a pickaxe helped demonstrate the erosion at the neck of the meander!
This gave me another reminder of the potential power of Minecraft for geography.
Using an app which enables the progress to be videoed, students could talk through their creations after they have made them, or even during the process of creating them.
The Reflection App used in association with iMovie or something similar, so that the video can have audio added.
Apple TV would also allow for creations on tablets to be shared with the rest of the class.
I like the work of Mr. Parkinson (good name) on his ICT blog.
In May 2014, he added a page on Minecraft to it.
http://mrparkinsonict.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/improving-locational-writing-using.html
Image below taken from the blog post above
This work has continued since, and in May 2015, he added a further resource to the website, which provided a focussed look at Geography, as well as some other subjects outside of Geography.
Here are the topics covered by the Geography unit featured in the post above, for example:
Geography -
Ge2/1.1b name and locate counties and cities of the United Kingdom, geographical regions and their identifying human and physical characteristics, key topographical features (including hills, mountains, coasts and rivers), and land-use patterns; and understand how some of these aspects have changed over time
Ge2/1.3a describe and understand key aspects of physical geography, including: climate zones, biomes and vegetation belts, rivers, mountains, volcanoes and earthquakes, and the water cycle
Ge2/1.4c use fieldwork to observe, measure, record and present the human and physical features in the local area using a range of methods, including sketch maps, plans and graphs, and digital technologies.
d) Pedagogy and curriculum issues
Students should be given a task which allows them to be creative.
This comes at the top of Bloom’s Taxonomy. and teachers can engage in questioning as the student is working on their creation. They could also be asked to design their buildings first (a template of this can be seen in the References section)
There is also scope for Enquiry based learning.
Students could use Minecraft as a focus for literacy work, such as creative writing. Descriptions of travels through a minecraft world are possible, perhaps with the aid of a list of starter terms to describe the landscape.
They should be able to develop their vocabulary of landscape terms, or be challenged to ‘model’ landscape features which they are allocated.
Who can produce the most realistic biome perhaps ?
Or the city which is most sustainable ?
Or the most accurate reconstruction of a streetview image / location ?
Or how about designing a map symbol for the current OS competition
4. Mods
Mod is short for modification, and some of the modifications that can be made to the game would be of interest to geographers.
There are mods which add more biomes, so the world can be made to resemble a forest, or other ecosystems.
The word ‘skin’ is also sometimes used for adaptations which make the world ‘look’ differently.
What other modifications are you aware of ?
5. Associated Apps and Services
There is a range of apps which can be used in association with Minecraft.
Some provide information, but others offer the chance to place Minecraft creations in the real world via augmented reality.
Minecraft Reality
A newly released app which allows minecraft creations to be mapped against real buildings and then
Cost (UK price)
ShapeWays - A 3d printing service with the ability to take a chunk of your Minecraft world and print a highly detailed and accurate model in sandstone. This service is fantastic but can be replicated in schools that already own a 3D printer or have access to one locally.
Minecraft ExplorerLite
Free app, which has a range of advertising.
Has information for Desktop / Pocket and Xbox versions
6. References and Weblinks
https://minecraft.net/ - the main site for Minecraft downloads and links to the community
http://www.minecraftwiki.net/wiki/Minecraft_Wiki - the WIKI page with information and a range of other resources created by the user community
http://minecraftedu.com/ - Minecraft Edu - for the educational user
http://ahigherplace.co.uk/blog/ - Stephen Reid’s gaming blog
http://ahpminecraft.com - A Higher Place Minecraft CPD
Articles
Minecraft used to teach Geography: http://www.polygon.com/2012/11/26/3693554/minecraft
Article on MineCon12 and value of gaming in education: http://uk.gamespot.com/features/minecraft-in-education-how-video-games-are-teaching-kids-6400549/
Guardian article from December 2012 on sustainability in gaming: http://www.guardian.co.uk/sustainable-business/minecraft-block-by-block-gaming
Interesting article from NetFamilyNews:
YouTube Videos
Rachael Jones on teaching Oceanography / Cartography: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4NbrlIihpY
Never played before ? Watch this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lad5NzIwYq0&feature=youtu.be
Resources
A grid for plotting and planning out creations: (Dropbox download) https://www.dropbox.com/s/tdwpn4ecwa4qoqb/WoH%20planning%20graph.docx
Twitter Accounts
You may find it useful to follow these Twitter accounts:
@AHigherPlaceLtd - Stephen Reid - Games Based Learning and ICT Consultant
@GeoBlogs - Alan Parkinson - Geography education consultant
@MinecraftTeachr - Joel Levin - an interview with him here regarding a school friendly version of Minecraft
@WoodySkye - Marc Wood - Games Based Learning and ICT Consultant
@ICT_MrP - ICT Mr Parkinson - teacher and blogger
Appendix 1: AHP Minecraft
This is an offering from Stephen Reid.
It is a free Minecraft world which teachers can enter at any time. You will need to have a log-in for Minecraft and add the server when prompted.
Teachers can discover things to use in class such as:
• AHP primary school – Learn the Minecraft basics
• AHP Academy – Explore education ideas inside the game
• AHP Geography Department – Explore the Minecraft world inside a giant globe
• The Symmetry stands – Complete the symmetrical patterns using Minecraft materials
• The Great Library – Read books created by other users and Write and publish your own
• The 8-Bit Art classroom – View and create 8-bit art on massive canvases
• Tortuga – A Pirate Village with a working cannon!
• Rupture Farms – Plant, grow and harvest crops for food on a working farm
• Shipwreck – Explore the wreckage of the feared ‘Black Barnacle’
Appendix 2: Barriers to Use
If you’re reading this, you’re probably interested in using Minecraft in your school. There are few barriers to potentially overcome.
One aspect is risk. Teachers should be taking risks of course, and try new things, but you may need to argue the case for the value of games based learning.
There is a cost element in terms of licenses for some versions of the game.
There is a training element for colleagues, although you may well have plenty of students who are prepared to take on that role.
There is also the technical aspect of running the game with several players. There may need to be the involvement of a network manager or ICT liaison person to set up the school server so that it can handle a large number of players and the various administration that may be needed for this.
Barriers should be seen as opportunities rather than something that prevents something happening.
This document created by:
Alan Parkinson, CGeog, FRGS, FRSGS
With contributions from:
Stephen Reid - @ahigherplaceltd
Your name here if you get in touch with a suggestion...
Will be made available under a Creative Commons license eventually
Images including Minecraft Logo copyright Mojang AB
With thanks to:
Stephen Reid
Dawn Hallybone
Steve Mouldey
Created December 2012
Last updated 17th May 2015
Any errors are entirely mine - please let me know of any corrections that might be needed