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This marks a significant moment in the Social Justice movement. Calls for fairness and equality are echoing globally. To assist educators in exploring these crucial ideas with students, Minecraft is introducing a new set of resources designed to engage students in conversations about social justice.
Launching the Good Trouble lessons will help gamers gain a deeper understanding of social justice.
At Minecraft Live, Mojang Studios announced the Good Trouble: Lessons in Social Justice series for Minecraft: Education Edition, along with a contribution to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. Today, the developers revealed that the first lesson named Good Trouble will launch on 5/11. This world is built upon the life and teachings of Civil Rights leader John Lewis, guiding learners through social movements in history and today worldwide. Lewis believed becoming a catalyst for 'good trouble' is an effective way to help build a better world by encouraging others to speak up and stand against injustice.
In the coming months, Mojang Studios will introduce more lessons focusing on social justice, identity, diversity, and inclusion. Soon, you'll explore these activities in the Inclusion and Equity category in the game library. To ensure many can access this crucial content, developers are also adding it to the Education Collection in the Minecraft Marketplace, available in all Bedrock versions of Minecraft - any version without 'Edition' in the name. Bedrock players will access this world without additional charges.
Installing the Minecraft Education Edition game is not overly complicated. If not installed successfully, refer to the tutorial content below for guidance.
- Reference: How to Install Minecraft Education Edition
Lesson 1: Good Trouble - John Lewis and Global Social Justice Movements
The inaugural Good Trouble lesson is a collaborative effort with three educators from the United States, each with over 40 years of experience: Felisa Ford, Natasha Rachell, and Ken Shelton. Supported by Teaching Tolerance, a project of the Southern Poverty Law Center providing free resources for teaching social justice and bias prevention in K-12 schools. In this activity, students will meet John Lewis to learn about his philosophy and life story. They will then embark on a global journey and time-travel to meet leaders of social justice movements who have influenced the lives of millions.
- Students start with the Black Lives Matter protest, where they explore this movement.
- Next, they meet Malala Yousafzai in Pakistan to learn about her courageous stand against the Taliban's ban on girls' education.
- Students travel to South Africa in the 90s to meet Nelson Mandela and learn about the Apartheid regime.
- There, they visit crucial moments in the U.S. in the 1960s to meet Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and social activists behind the Greensboro sit-ins before heading to the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma.
- Going further back in time, students go to colonial India to meet Mahatma Gandhi.
- From India, students travel to Victorian-era London to meet Emmeline Pankhurst, who caused 'good trouble' in the women's suffrage movement.
- The tour concludes at Black Lives Matter Plaza, where John Lewis stood alone, urging students to reflect on the social justice movements they've witnessed and address the challenges he faced as a catalyst for 'good trouble' in their communities.
Learners will research and take notes using the in-game Book and Quill as they delve deeper into John Lewis and other prominent figures. They can also provide examples of how they stood up for others in their own lives. Encouraging students to take selfies alongside historically impactful figures and add their own photos to the Good Trouble journal. The lesson concludes by encouraging learners to share their experiences in the Good Trouble world directly or through Flipgrid video.
In the upcoming months, the next lessons will be introduced, providing a deeper insight into each social movement. They will unveil valuable information that students can gather while researching historical milestones of social resistance. The material will pose challenging questions, essential to guiding students towards an accurate understanding of social justice, motivating them to work towards a better world. Hurry to create a Minecraft account to fully engage in these lessons.
- Explore more: How to create a Minecraft account
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