“About as Educational as Minecraft Can Get”

In this study, we addresses the ways that teachers, parents, and youth frame gaming activity in affinity spaces, focusing in particular on ways the popular game Minecraft are considered by both. As part of a larger study into how groups of teachers, parents, and youth interact around games in informal, online contexts, we aim to isolate the ways that language statements within these spaces reflect different goals, expertise, and intent toward games. If games and learning is to be consequential beyond the classroom, we need to better understand the ways that individuals with investments in instructional spaces consider and evaluate the potential of games.