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***Update 1 – 2017-07-17 – 00:36 CEST***

I just wanted to let you guys know that Mr. Kiyotaka Horii gave me the following information regarding price and how to get started with the Minecraft Japanese language institute:

1. Pick your plan
2. Fill out the form “Contact us”
3. We will then contact you when your registration has been approved.
4. You will receive an invoice.
5. Schedule your lesson.
6. Let’s Play to Learn!

Beginner Plan, $110

4 Times Lesson ( 2 with Teacher, 2 with Assistant Teacher )
+Teacher schedule
+Assistant Teacher schedule

Advanced Plan, $95

4 Times Lesson ( 1 with Teacher, 3 with Assistant Teacher )
+Teacher schedule
+Assistant Teacher schedule

Beyond Plan, $80

4 Times Lesson ( 4 with Assistant Teacher )
+Assistant Teacher schedule

For the Minecraft lovers, $5

Learn Pay & Play
We are going to have a Meetup in the minecraft world (REALMS). Anyone can join this session and enjoy conversations in Japanese with Senseis.
+MEET UP PAGE

I hope that this information will clear up any potential confusions or questions that you guys and girls might have had about this matter =) And with that said, best of luck!

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It’s no secret to the most of us that millions of people are enjoying Mojang’s open-world sandbox game “Minecraft” (even if you don’t like “Minecraft”, that’s still common knowledge among most gamers world-wide). Personally, I have known for a long time now. However, I had no idea that you could actually learn Japanese with the help of “Minecraft“. Well, now I know better. You see, a couple of days ago I noticed that Mr. Kiyotaka Horii was following us on Twitter (Horii is a teacher at Nishimachi International School in Tokyo) . Long story short, Horii is the man behind the Minecraft Japanese language institute. Simply put, Horii teaches people Japanese in Minecraft, and this is how it’s done:

“Using Minecraft as a platform. The language proficiency levels are adjustable. We can also find best textbook that will be suitable for you. Recommended textbook for the beginner and intermediate is Genki 1 and Genki 2. After Genki textbooks, we will use JLPT (Japanese-Language Proficiency Test – 日本語能力試験) textbook and prepare for the test. We will work to maximize your learning and achievement through the use of minecraft.This method provides students enjoyable and sustainable language learning experience. First of all, no tears. Students can enjoy to finish their assignment.We provide stress free language conversation lesson with minecraft. Some students don’t like to be in the situation that we have to face-to-face all the time for 60 minutes, but we don’t need to.We can also design an Differentiated-Assignment. We differentiate the goal and task depending on the student’s Japanese level.

Our Method

Reading & Writing
Using textbook to study Japanese grammar.

Minecraft
Providing inquiry based learning.

Speaking & Listning
Enjoying discussion and presentations.” – The Minecraft Japanese Language Institute

Happy students = Happy teacher (s).

As for teachers, these are the said Japanese Minecraft teachers at this time:

Kio-sensei
Japanese Teacher
Head of Minecraft Japanese Language Institute.

Hikari-sensei
Japanese Teacher
Brilliant Assistant of Minecraft Japanese Language Institute

Here’s some more info about Kiyotaka Horii:

Kiyotaka Horii is a teacher at Nishimachi International School in Tokyo.　He is working as the Elementary Japanese Curriculum Coordinator and IT Strategic Planning Group member in addition to leading faculty to implement technology into the curriculum. As a board member of Japan ASCD, a Intel Master Teacher, a Super Science Kids Headmaster, and an Apple Distinguished Educator, he has been organizing several technology focused events in Japan. He also manages a Professional Learning Network for like-minded educators in Japan. (http://jascd-tiom.ning.com) holds over 500 members. Kiyotaka believes that his action to change the education system in Japan is possible to carry out. KiyotakaH.com is his site that provides variety of lesson plans and you can find him on Twitter (@KiyotakaH).

Kiyotaka says; ”I believe each teacher has to utilize his/her creativity to devise strategies that promote successful and effective learning for students. We all know technology is here to stay. Schools the world over are integrating or have already integrated technology into classrooms to greater or lesser degrees. We should expect those levels to increase and start to think of computers and hand-held devices as “study tools” of the future, on a level with traditional classroom tools, namely, pencils, erasers, and notebooks. Rather than be swept under by an ICT tidal wave, we as educators should be looking at ways in which to maximize the benefits of ICT in the classroom, recognizing the rich opportunities it affords students for individual learning, communication, and expression.” – Kiyotaka Horii

These are the teachers that will help you to learn Japanese while playing “Minecraft”.

Well, I don’t know about you, but on a personal level I find all of this to be rather interesting and cool. Even so, I still would like to point out that I’m not an expert when it comes to “Minecraft” or Japanese (not by any means). I just thought that “Maybe” this could be helpful for those who like “Minecraft” and want to learn Japanese in a different kind of way. Anyways, as for prices, booking times for lessons and whatnot. Well, I would recommend you to reach out to Mr. Kiyotaka Horii for more information, because I did try to buy some lessons myself via the Paypal button on Horii’s homepage just now. However, there seem to be technical issues with that payment solution (at least for now). So I have no idea how much the Minecraft Japanese language institute charges per lesson (I have sent Horii a PM via Twitter about this). Nevertheless, I hope that this will be helpful to some of you at least =)

And with that said, what’s your take on this matter? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section down below!

Source:
Minecraft Japanese Language Institute

Robin “V-Act” Ek
Editor in chief
The Gaming Ground
Twitter: @TheGamingGround