LOCAL LIFE
MAKE A DIFFERENCE : Noelene Callaghan
by Lorna Gordon
To many of us parents , Minecraft is a fun game that our kids enjoy . They can build worlds , interact with friends and have a great time destroying creatures like zombies and the Ender dragon . However , this game has more to it than simply building worlds .
Noelene has been teaching in schools in NSW for over 20 years and through this teaching became interested in Minecraft . She was lucky to be chosen to work with Microsoft and through this connected with a teacher working on Minecraft . After joining a call for a class he was running she was impressed by how Minecraft got the students to engage .
“ I thought it was an amazing resource . My friend set up a server and our kids connected to each other in class and began to play together , build things and form a community . Starting World of Minecraft evolved from there .”
To being with , Noelene worked with her students at school and saw the benefits for children who had English as a second language . Through Minecraft they were able to connect and demonstrate they understood concepts taught in class but had previously struggled with finding the language to discuss them . She also found the quiet students who might have usually kept to themselves , were now giving a chance to shine .
“ The students who usually didn ’ t engage or had no voice were suddenly the champion in that situation . It was really lovely to see that shift and Minecraft became a student centred environment where they gained confidence .”
From there more students were becoming involved and parents started asking Noelene if they could get their younger children involved . Realising this was a fantastic idea , she set up a business and took her learning from schools to the newly set up World of Minecraft classes . The children who attend are not just playing games , being a teacher , Noelene ensures they are learning while they play .
“ Everything we do is aligned to Australian curriculum , I wanted them to learn and think about real concepts and be able to transfer those skills in the classroom . We recently did a class on bees and learned all about them through informal conversation , but we still hit the targets they have to reach .”
It ’ s not just tangible skills the kids are learning in the classes either , they are leaning soft skills , like team work , communication , and social skills , some of which are difficult for children who are more reserved at school to feel comfortable doing in class .
World of Minecraft has something for everyone , they offer home school learning , school holiday programs and after school and online classes for children to take part in .
All classes are kept small , and Noelene assured me there is no player to player damage allowed , so the children learn to respect each other ’ s work as well . For more information on their classes , you can go to www . worldofminecraft . com . au to find out when classes and holiday clubs are running .
Noelene has taken gaming to a new level in her Minecraft classes .
THE HILLS INDEPENDENT theindependentmagazine . com . au ISSUE 112 // OCTOBER 2024 11