GAME-BASED LEARNING IN ACTION: HOW TEACHERS USE MINECRAFT EDUCATION TO FOSTER STUDENT ENGAGEMENT

As the increasing pressure for teachers to develop innovative teaching practices aimed at increasing student engagement, teachers are increasingly encouraged to adopt game-based learning strategies. This study evaluates the utilization of Minecraft Education (ME) into lesson planning in various subject areas, focusing on how teachers incorporate game-based learning into instructional design to elucidate both challenges and successes within the lesson planning experience. This study employed a document study methodology where 15 lesson plans were analyzed to identify trends, challenges, and successes regarding the incorporation of MEinto formal educational structures. These findings indicated that teachers experienced some differences in their ability toadopt ME by adapting their practices; however, most managed to develop significant effort and malleability after early challenges. This study exemplified how the inclusion of game-based learning (GBL) methods can changeconventional lesson preparation and stimulate students’ critical decisions, creativity, and cooperation. Additionally, the results underscore the importance of targeted professionaldevelopment initiatives for teachers to address the identified gaps in digital pedagogy and enhance their ability to design effective game-based learning experiences. Thisstudycontributes to ongoing explorations of curriculumintegration in game-based learning, instructional innovation and educational technology more generally.