ALP Team

Look! A conference with Dylan Wiliam, Thomas Guskey, and our own Bob Dillon, among others! Good company there.

Minecraft six principles of game-based learning: The failure dynamic, fail early, fail often. Teach students to take risks in a safe environment- a game. The flexibility dynamic. Provide multiple paths to success. Old school video games had one way to win. Newer "sandbox" games are more open. The construction dynamic. Build something that matters. Students want to create things with a purpose. Minecraft lets them create something difficult and worthwhile. The situated meaning. Learn new ideas by experiencing them. Students learn vocabulary in real-time, as it pertains to playing with others in the game; or learn math as they understand construction. Systems thinking. Learn how all pieces can fit or be fitted. Games help players see how their actions fit into the bigger picture, not just the individual. Build empathy. Bring players together to learn a common goal. By communicating and working together, players build empathy through their avatars by raising awareness of local or global goals.

"Meeting the needs of each student through personalized, competency-based learning (PCBL) is more important than ever. Blended learning can help us achieve this vision. These free tools and resources are intended to support school and district leaders in implementing PCBL environments through blended learning. They may be the catalyst for an initial conversation or serve as a continuous improvement resource for those well down the path of the work. Explore definitions, reflect with your team, engage in a readiness assessment, and utilize curated resources to develop a blueprint for implementation and continuous improvement."