ERIC Number: EJ1419731
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024
Pages: 21
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0263-5143
EISSN: EISSN-1470-1138
Socio-(Im)material-Making Activities in Minecraft: Retracing Digital Literacy Applied to ESD
Maria Impedovo; Anne-Marie Cederqvist
Research in Science & Technological Education, v42 n1 p73-93 2024
Background: There is a growing interest in the complexity of socio-materiality-making activities in educational and everyday settings. Indeed, maker-centered learning is considered as a socio-materially embodied process in which artifacts and social and emotional dimensions are interconnected. The making process is also found in everyday life when children engage in specific applications -- like Minecraft, where they perform activities in a virtual environment. Purpose: Starting from analyzing some episodes recorded with a child aged seven, this paper aims to better understand the maker process in a virtual setting with implications for digital literacy and sustainable development education. Design and methods: A socio-material approach is privileged to analyze the data collected. Specifically, we will explore the maker activity as a socio-materially embodied process. Sample: The research question will be answered with the support of a case study of one child playing Minecraft. Thinking-aloud modality, observation, notes, and pictures are collected. Then, the verbatim from the semi-structured interview is collected in the same session. The entire session is audio-recorded. Results: The three dimensions that emerged are--Resources to make digital objects; Digital Objects became Social Objects; Making digital objects became ground for literacy. From this analysis, we can retrace digital literacy in the Minecraft maker activity and some final considerations for teaching in STEM. Conclusion: In conclusion, students' informal activity in a Minecraft setting could become a potential green environment to ground digital literacy. However, this process needs to be scaffolded and amplified with an enriched level of abstract process, critical, and inquiry attitude.
Descriptors: Shared Resources and Services, STEM Education, Sustainable Development, Learning Activities, Electronic Learning, Video Games, Digital Literacy, Informal Education
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A