Careers Wales have launched the full release of a new Minecraft world for young learners to explore and develop their careers skills and knowledge with a digital roadshow across Wales, including a stop at Tenby Harbour.
Called CareersCraft, the resource is now available for anyone with a games console, tablet or laptop to download and has had over one million downloads through Minecraft Marketplace so far.
The new world, targeted at schoolchildren aged 8-13 in Wales, features six zones based upon different Welsh landmarks including the Senedd, Big Pit, Caernarfon Castle and the Coal Exchange.
Each zone is linked to areas of learning within the new Welsh curriculum and the resource is also available to all children in schools across the country through Minecraft Education Edition, accompanied by lesson plans for teachers.
Players are able to explore the areas within the resource, completing a series of challenges and activities as they go. They can learn about different careers in specific sectors and industries in Wales, develop their skills, and discover more about their own strengths and interests.
To celebrate the release, Careers Wales hosted a Wales-wide digivan roadshow over three days, featuring big screens and live demos.
On Thursday, May 27 the van arrived in Tenby, to enable excited pupils from four local schools to demo the game right in the harbour itself, as well as on the school sites.
Callum Addison, an ICT teacher from Tenby’s Greenhill School said: “The world today has been really good at getting the kids into experiences around the new areas of learning.
“The kids have really enjoyed it. The engagement has been brilliant, kids love playing Minecraft and gaming, so the fact that we can make that meaningful by bringing in aspects of learning is really strong.
“CareersCraft has been great to show the kids what Wales has to offer and its heritage. We can give them the experience of going out to visit these places in the CareersCraft world, which is really good.”
Speaking about the launch and event, Head of Digital and Communications at Careers Wales, Gareth Phillips, said: “We’re delighted that CareersCraft is now available to any young person in Wales and beyond through Minecraft Marketplace.
“CareersCraft is a hugely exciting innovative resource which we hope will raise the aspirations and expand the horizons of future generations.
“It’s been great to see young people exploring the world, developing their creative thinking and problem-solving skills while learning about Welsh heritage and culture and thinking about their future careers.
“We’re looking forward to expanding and developing our CareersCraft world, working with partners to add more content and further increasing awareness of the benefits that digital careers education can bring to young learners across Wales.”