Microsoft launched the "Minecraft: Education Edition" version on Tuesday, that encourages students to go to school. The new "Minecraft" iteration includes classroom tools and a way to view accounts to every student in the class or school district.
According to The Verge, the app has been developed since last January and went into a beta period during the summer. Many are hoping that the "Minecraft: Education Edition" will have a full release before school starts, but it was released a couple of months after classes began.
"Minecraft: Education Edition" is now available on both Windows 10 and macOS, and costs $5 per student. The full "Minecraft: Education Edition" version will get a companion app that's called "Classroom Mode". It will assist educators manage world settings, administer items and teleport students in the Minecraft world as well as communicating with the students.
There will also be resources for teachers to get stared with the game in the "Minecraft: Education Edition". Mac Rumors reported that the game includes pre-made lesson plans, helpful tutorials and starter worlds that will make it easier to accommodate students into the game's mechanics.
There are also "Minecraft Mentors" in "Minecraft: Education Edition" that would help educators to use the game in the classroom. The mentor teaches the educator all the basic principles of the game, along with how it can be adapted to education programs.
Microsoft's goal is to keep students engaged in schools with the help of "Minecraft: Education Edition", while teachers use it to explore other subjects. Additional reports from The Verge said that teachers will have to build out worlds that connect with whatever they're teaching, whether it be a setting in a book or a historic structure.
"Minecraft" started out as a simple world-building game or as the digital version of the Legos. "Minecraft: Education Edition" helps kids learn from programming to science and art where parents and educators can monitor the students work, according to CNet.