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57 min 7 sec

The Velocity Prize for Educators

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assessment-icon assessment-icon Course Assessment
Score: 100%

Question 1/5

What best describes The Velocity Prize using Minecraft Education?
A
A fast-paced gaming tournament where students mainly compete to get the quickest reaction time.
B
A global Minecraft Education challenge where students use computational thinking, coding and AI-supported strategy to find, retrieve and return a hidden flag efficiently.
C
A coding-only activity where students must use Python before they can take part.
D
A teacher-led walkthrough where students follow a fixed route to find the flag.
E
A Minecraft activity where the main learning goal is to memorise where the flag was hidden last time. (

Question 2/5

What is the main purpose of the Velocity Problem-Solving Loop?
A
To help students complete one attempt quickly and then move on to a different activity.
B
To give teachers a script that solves the challenge for students.
C
To turn a timed challenge into a learning process where students read the world, plan, build, test, improve and explain.
D
To make sure every student uses exactly the same strategy in the same order.
E
To focus only on the final recorded time, rather than the thinking behind it.

Question 3/5

Which approach best reflects a strong first Velocity practice session?
A
Ask students to master every strategy before they are allowed to attempt the practice world.
B
Give students one run, ask one reflection question, help them change one thing and let them try again.
C
Begin by showing students the best route so that everyone can get a strong time.
D
Let students play freely for the whole session without capturing any attempt or reflection
E
Only allow students to continue if they find the flag in their first attempt.

Question 4/5

Which statement best describes responsible AI use in The Velocity Prize?
A
AI should be used to generate a complete answer that students can submit without changing it.
B
AI can support the strategy, but students still need to check, adapt, test and explain what they used and why.
C
AI should never be discussed because it is not relevant to coding or problem-solving.
D
If AI suggests something, students should assume it is accurate and allowed.
E
The fastest AI-supported answer is always the best strategy.

Question 5/5

What is the teacher’s most important role during a Velocity practice session?
A
To solve the challenge before the students begin, so the teacher always has the best route ready.
B
To take over the keyboard whenever students get stuck.
C
To coach the learning by helping students slow down, notice what happened, improve one thing and explain their thinking.
D
To focus only on the students with the fastest times.
E
To avoid reflection so that students have more time to keep running the challenge.
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COURSE OVERVIEW

This training helps educators bring The Velocity Prize to life as an applied problem-solving challenge inside Minecraft Education. It blends the excitement of a timed hidden-flag challenge with practical guidance on exploration, computational thinking, coding, debugging, responsible AI use, fair play, teacher coaching and first-session planning. Educators will learn how to support students as they test strategies, learn from attempts, explain their thinking and improve with confidence, without needing to solve the challenge for them.

By the end of this training, educators will be able to:

• Explain The Velocity Prize as an applied problem-solving challenge where students use Minecraft Education to explore, test, improve and explain their strategies.

• Identify key learning opportunities within the challenge, including pattern recognition, decomposition, coding, automation, debugging, responsible AI use, digital judgement and fair play.

• Plan and facilitate a first Velocity practice session using the simple model of one run, one reflection and one improvement.

• Coach students through the challenge without solving it for them, using practical questions and reflection prompts to support safe, ethical, purposeful and explainable participation.

PRESENTERS

Michael Barrett
, Teacher & Audience Engagement Manager
Michael Barrett is an Audience Engagement Manager on the Microsoft Ireland Dream Space team. He trained as a primary school teacher and holds a B.Ed. from Dublin City University. He has further qualifications in Python, AI, and sustainability. Michael focuses on rural STEM education outreach programmes, hosts educational livestreams through Dream Space LIVE, and leads Minecraft Education initiatives and training both nationally and globally. As a Microsoft Certified Educator, he is passionate about game-based learning and the integration of innovative technologies into education.
Neeve Hyland
,
Neeve Hyland, a member of Microsoft Ireland's Dream Space team, trained as a Primary School Teacher and is now pursuing a Master's in Education with a STEM specialism. She became a Microsoft Certified Educator and recently earned a postgraduate certificate in 21st Century Teaching and Learning. Since 2019, Neeve has been a Minecraft Education Ambassador and leads both the Dream Space Ambassador Program and Dream Space’s work in Initial Teacher Education across Ireland. She is dedicated to inspiring both students and educators through innovative, game-based learning approaches in STEM.