Swedish school has students play Minecraft

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STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Jan. 9 (UPI) -- A Swedish school is requiring 13-year-old students to play the popular computer game Minecraft to encourage creative thinking.

Monica Ekman, a teacher at the Viktor Rydberg school in Stockholm, said the game teaches students many practical skills, The Local.se reported Wednesday.

"It's their world and they enjoy it," Ekman said. "They learn about city planning, environmental issues, getting things done, and even how to plan for the future."

Ekman said about 180 students are being given lessons surrounding the game.

"The boys knew a lot about it before we even started, but the girls were happy to create and build something too -- it's not any different from arts or woodcraft," Ekman said.

She said the school will continue using the game as a learning tool.

"It's been a great success and we'll definitely do it again," Ekman said. "We think it's a fun way of learning and it's nice for the students to achieve something."