Minecraft's education edition will teach kids to code
Microsoft's popular building-blocks game gets a tool to help students learn how to program.
Learning how to program just got a lot more fun.
Microsoft's Minecraft: Education Edition for schools and students has added a tool called Code Builder that lets players pick up code-building tech from education platforms such as Tynker and ScratchX. Microsoft's own MakeCode open-source platform for learning JavaScript is also integrated into Code Builder.
The software giant announced Code Builder at its education-focused event Tuesday in New York, alongside other announcements such as a new Windows 10 S version designed to be faster and more secure than regular Windows 10, in part, by restricting the apps you can download.
Much like with rival Apple's Swift Playgrounds app, Minecraft players will be able to write the code that's used to move, build and create in the game. To get schools and students to try it out, a one-year free trial of the Minecraft: Education Edition and the Code Builder upgrade will be available starting Tuesday through the Microsoft Store for Education. All new Windows 10 S education PCs will get a free subscription to Minecraft: Education Edition as well. A license for Minecraft: Education Edition normally costs $5 per person per year.
Last year, Microsoft dabbled with the idea when it released a Minecraft-based tutorial for Code.org's Hour of Code, a nonprofit effort sponsored by tech companies to get kids into programming.
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