Image: Prodigy Learning
CEO Andrew Flood said the Dublin-headquartered company’s partnership with Minecraft Education marks a ‘significant milestone’ in educational technology.
Irish edtech company Prodigy Learning has struck a significant deal with Microsoft that will see its Coding in Minecraft programme offered globally through the software giant’s channels.
In an announcement today (1 May), Prodigy Learning said that it is partnering with Microsoft to deliver engaging and easy-to-teach computer science curriculum and assessments within the popular Minecraft Education universe.
Minecraft is a sandbox game released in 2011 that was created by Markus Persson and developed by Swedish video game developer Mojang Studios. The gaming franchise was bought by Microsoft in 2014 and today has many spin-offs, including Minecraft Dungeons, Minecraft Legends and Minecraft Education.
Prodigy Learning, which is headquartered in Dublin, has a Coding in Minecraft education programme that aims to teach young people computer science through the gaming environment of Minecraft Education. The programme has been adopted in school systems across five US states, as well as in Australia’s New South Wales and Northern Ireland.
CEO Andrew Flood said that the partnership with Minecraft Education marks a “significant milestone” in educational technology.
“By combining the strengths of both organisations, we are setting a new standard for game-based learning and assessment, opening doors to endless possibilities for student achievement and growth,” he said. “In the age of AI, our partnership will help build the workforce of tomorrow and create economic opportunity.”
Other than Coding in Minecraft, the partnership with Microsoft will also make an unnamed cyber product – expected later this year – available through its channels.
Allison Matthews, head of Minecraft Education at Microsoft, said that the partnership aims to empower educators and engage students in learning computer science.
“We are bringing together Minecraft Education’s game-based learning platform and Prodigy Learning’s expertise in credentialing to create a comprehensive educational experience,” she said. “This will enable students to gain critical skills such as computational thinking, reasoning and problem-solving for in-demand job roles.”
In 2020, Prodigy Learning won a contract to deploy its online assessment platform called Skillify across Irish primary and post-primary schools. A year prior to that, it opened a new office in New York, adding to its existing offices in Dublin, London and Sydney.
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