TCEA Responds: Minecraft Licensing

Dear TCEA Responds:

In the next few months, our new Windows 10 computers will arrive. Soon, I will teach students game design. I had hoped to use Minecraft: Education Edition.  I thought I read something that listed it for $5/user/year.  Do you know how to access the Minecraft: Education Edition, as well as how much it will cost?

-Tina

Dear Tina:

Thank you for your question. Congratulations on the upcoming arrival of your equipment! How exciting that you are considering using Minecraft: Education Edition (MCEE). Licensing for MCEE depends on the type of Office 365 license your district has. Before we go into licensing, you may want to review a few points about game-based learning.

Licensing Types

There are three types of licenses; those include:

Office 365 A1

This license, available for free for students, staff, and faculty, includes the online version of Office 365. This free version includes:

• OneDrive, cloud storage solution
• Sway
• Forms
• Microsoft Teams*
• Microsoft OneNote*

*Both the online and app versions for Android, iOS, Mac and Windows 10 are included.

Office applications include the online versions only:

• Outlook Online
• Word Online
• Excel Online
• PowerPoint Online

Other supported services include Exchange, Sharepoint, Skype for Business, Stream, Flow, and PowerApps. With the A1 license, you can buy Minecraft: Education Edition for $5 per student.

 Office 365 A3

The next licensing tier ($2.50 per student or $3.25 per staff, per month) includes online versions of the Office Suite. It comes with Teams and OneNote. The A3 license comes with the Desktop versions of the Online tools:

• Outlook
• Word
• Excel
• PowerPoint
• Publisher (PC only)
• Access (PC only)

With the A3 version, you get the Class and Staff Notebooks, which enhance OneNote. Minecraft: Education Edition licenses come at no extra charge.

Office 365 A5

The A5 license includes all the features in A3 plus more. Read more online about Microsoft's intelligent security management, advanced compliance, and analytics systems.  Minecraft: Education Edition licenses come at no extra charge.

TCEA Responds: Minecraft Licensing

As you mentioned in your query, Minecraft: Education Edition comes with lesson plans. You can find an Introduction to Computer Science curriculum available for free.