EdTechX Summit: BBC Bitesize and Roblox share how they created new educational game Planet Planners
BBC Bitesize and Roblox shared their new collaboration with delegates at the EdTechX Summit in London, exploring how they are using effective game-based learning at scale, and how trusted institutions and gaming platforms can work together to engage young learners.
BBC Bitesize and Roblox announced a new game - Planet Planners - which allows users to explore geographical concepts. Launching in July, the game will be tailored to KS3 curriculum in the U.K. or Grades 6,7 and 8 in the U.S., allowing users to test out geographical concepts.
Oonagh Jaquest, Executive Producer at BBC Bitesize, explained to audiences that teaming up with Roblox as it was important for them to follow their audience. “We have always learned through play, and if you’re going to learn new skills in the sandbox that is AI, you’re going to do it through play,” she said.
That said, Planet Planners is still based on solid teaching ideas. “The learning and pedagogy behind it were really important,” Jaquest added.
Dr Adam Seldow, Senior Director of Education Partnerships and Policy at Roblox, explained that Roblox is currently one of the largest gaming platforms in the world. “Our expertise was in the game itself, not the editorial content,” he said of the partnership. “BBC Bitesize is an iconic brand and the best way for us to honour that was in allowing their expertise to show through.”
As a platform that allows its users to create, Roblox has previously had a tendency to launch new games and iterate them later to add improvements. For the BBC, this was the opposite of their usual approach, which ensures no products are launched before they have been extensively tested and approved.
“Roblox is incredibly agile,” Jaquest explained. “The BBC tends to go through a lot of processes.” Seldow added that there were also many conversations around safety. “Roblox has been around for many years,” he told delegates. “And that’s because every part of it was built on its safety standards - without this we wouldn’t have so many people using it everyday.”
Looking to the future, Seldow explained that while any user can use Roblox and create their own games, it will likely become even more accessible through the use of new technologies. “Having a knowledge of how coding works is important, but with Generative AI you will get there much quicker,” he explained.
“With the increased use of Generative AI, I hope we get a massive catalogue of educational games,” he said. Jaquest added: “There is such a joyful creative challenge to be found in developing game mechanics - I’d love Planet Planner to be successful enough for us to roll out other iterations.”
