Nintendo Labo's educational rollout worldwide appears to be well and truly underway, with Nintendo Australia launching an "Australian-first" primary school program, aimed at teaching the basic principles of science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics.
The program aims to give 800 primary school-aged children an opportunity to learn and develop these STEM skills by using Nintendo Labo and the Toy-Con Garage. According to research conducted by the Australian Government's Department of Industry, Innovation and Science in 2016, 75% of jobs by 2026 will require workers with STEM skills.
Girl Geek Academy Co-Founder and CEO Sarah Moran said how Labo was "perfect for little learners" as it "ignited passion and excitement for STEM" at a young age, and in a way, few other programs could.
Nintendo Australia Managing Director Kamon Yoshimura added to this with the following statement:
“We hope our program provides children across Australia with the tools to build, explore, problem-solve and, in the process, get excited about design and technology – all while having fun.”
Do you think Nintendo Labo has a bright future as an educational tool? Tell us down in the comments.
[source vooks.net]
Comments 45
Kinda wish we had stuff like that over here, just so I can mess with it.
Ladies and gentlemen, this is the example of future education with cardboard, sponsored by Nintendo LABO. 😎
This was always with the goal with Labo, nurturing young minds, not some core gaming experience. Which makes me wonder why Very Serious Gamers™ get so worked up over it.
Hey, that’s pretty cool. The more methods to expand knowledge available, the better!
@Kainbrightside
As someone who went through UNI at a point where things were just starting to transition online? I don't agree. I think a VoD stream of a lecture is about as good as it's going to get in all but very edge case scenarios.
What I found was that a VoD stream of a lecture is about as good as attending the lecture in person, for me at least. I don't see how VR would improve that any further. To be blunt the reason the VoD stream was better is entirely because you could pause whenever you want, go back on something you missed AND there were zero distractions. The only thing VR would do is add back in the distractions.
I still think there's value in having contact hours on campus though. Especially for people who are in first year. But I don't see VR as being the solution to that either anymore than, for example, a regular video conference call or forum might be.
One of the few times I wish I was still in school...
@WiltonRoots Because children offend our very mature and very magnificent beardy sensibilities.
Children can’t have beards so they are consequently invalid.
Pah.
@KingdomHeartsFan Not sure if you thought the government actually asked nintendo for their products, but to me the article reads like Nintendo’s educational program and the Australian Government’s study into jobs in 2026 are entirely seperate things. Pretty sure the Girl Geek Academy has no affiliation with either party too.
Sure, governments can be less-than-thoughtful and this whole program is essentially a nationwide publicity stunt but please don’t try to drag two different things together and proclaim both of them to be incompetent because of their “association”.
@Liam_Doolan any idea what age group they decided to go for in school? Would love to get some labo for my 4 yr old but feel she's still too young to really get it.
@R1spam The source says the program is targeting primary school kids, so I imagine it's for children aged between 5-12.
"science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics"
Umm... that spells STEAM, not STEM. Why am I not surprised that art is the one getting left out here? ~.>
@Liam_Doolan cheers, just wondered if the they had said a particular age group (7-9) etc but no worries. Wish I had this at primary school!! I did get the Oregon trail on a BBC computer though and still remember that we got to play it in groups of 4 when we were 10, fun times.
@KingdomHeartsFan I don’t understand. Correct me if I’m wrong but from my understanding, there is no association in this case?
@KingdomHeartsFan What? You don’t think other big businesses, like Sony, Microsoft, Apple and the likes, don’t profit from the education system?
@locky-mavo
Thanks, exactly. I don’t see harm here. It’s beneficial for all. Fun ways to learn.. I think we “old farts” can be really jealous. I would have loved such a program. An earlier approach on scientific topics could broaden and facilitate the choice of further education.
@KingdomHeartsFan
[I'm not a fan of big companies profiting from education]
[Two things that I strongly believe should never have an association are for profit businesses and education]
Sony, Microsoft, Apple, all big companies/ businesses that also gain profit from education by providing teaching and learning tools. No different to what Nintendo is doing here as well.
@KingdomHeartsFan
Okay....
1. Peoples use Apple tablet for schools.
2. Peoples use Sony TV at the schools.
3. Peoples use LEGO as school competition, as a new curriculum.
4. Peoples use Microsoft Windows 10 with XBOX icon inside Windows 10 tiles.
5. Now, Peoples use LABO as alternative curriculum.
Embrace the reality, whether you agree or disagree.
Nintendo goes to school ?
You're welcome, Nintendo !
@KingdomHeartsFan
I guess the laptop / PC at British school are completely NOT Windows 10 with XBOX app icon inside, the TV at British school are NOT Sony label, British Kindergarten school NEVER have LEGO bricks at their class.
Nintendo goes to school has been since SNES era (Mario Paint for example), even there were some Educational games for Pre School students on PS1 (Also with the peripheral) with Winnie the Pooh and Mickey Mouse as the stars.
Learning can be fun with toys, especially for Pre School students.
Doesn't matter the label (Unbranded or Famous brand), they are offering SAME purpose.
If we can accept LEGO as a Norm for educational toys, why don't LABO ?
@Anti-Matter couldn't agree more the more learning tools for kids the better. Those wanting stone age thinking are always the naysayers here. One needs to open your mind instead of closing it off. Labo is actually a useful teaching tool - it was never made for serious gamers. But gamers seems to think it's all games and that's where the education for them needs to be restarted again.
Reminds me of the hey days of the Wii era. When you would see stories along the lines of Wii Sports being used in senior citizen homes. Not that it really happened, but you get my drift.
@KingdomHeartsFan So you're telling me UK schools don't use Windows/Apple computers or tablets or projectors at all, which also means you don't use Microsoft Word, Google Drive etc. Just paper, books and pencils only (and even those things have a company associated with it). Got it.
@KingdomHeartsFan
"To the children they're simply "the computer" or the "interactive white board"."
But, even computer or PC or Tablet has a Brand Name
It could be Apple / Sony , not the unbranded.
White board itself has a Brand name , not the unbranded.
Btw, do you think LEGO bricks (with LEGO brand name on it) at school is a same shameless promotion to schools as LABO goes to school ?
Because i see an inovation and embracing the new things from LABO goes to school.
LABO goes to school will NOT replace the Traditional curriculum, it just only as Additional media learning.
Oh, you said MS Office was used internationally.
Oh, it happened also on different school last October 2018.Microsoft, used to be just a Computer company until on early 2000 they joined in Video games industry. They also create Kinect for Xbox 360. How do you feel with Microsoft now when they are also get involved in gaming industry ?
Even on Microsoft Windows 10 there are XBOX and XBOX LIVE apps on it.
Now every schools which use Windows 10 will have XBOX and XBOX live apps on it and at the same time it's a self promotion about XBOX machines and games.
@KingdomHeartsFan
Oh, have you ever know about this ?
@KingdomHeartsFan "I'm not a fan of big companies profiting from education or using it as a way of advertising their products."
If there was no profit in it, the products wouldn't exist. Students need school supplies. We need Mead paper, and Bic pens, Crayola crayons, Scholastic books, Trapper Keeper binders, or the Sony TVs in the classrooms, or the company who makes the desks, and so on. They're literally big companies profiting from education. Schools need supplies, so, someone has to be there to supply it to them.
@KingdomHeartsFan
You know what ?
I like the idea Nintendo goes to school.
But maybe as an Extra Curricular, not as main lesson.
And lately, i have realized if The Magic School Bus series i knew from Educational book series (by Scholastic) in my school library also on Nintendo DS
@KingdomHeartsFan
My school library has some books also on entertainment media and some of my students knew about that such as The Magic School Bus, Geronimo Stilton, Harry Potter, Spongebob Squarepants, Pokemon, The Berenstain Bears, Barbie, Disney Princess, Cars, etc.
"As parents we have a choice of shielding our children to a degree from the influence of money hungry corporations. "
Nonsense.
Kids will see any advertising everywhere, even from the school.
It could be from library books, from their friends conversations, from their drawing ideas on paper, from the Brand of product they saw at their school.
How do you think kids should learn at school without any brand for their school supplies and the things around the school ?
At least they saw Sony or Dell or HP at PC monitor and nothing wrong with that.
@KingdomHeartsFan Anti-Matter gave legitimate reasons as to why stuff like this is good. If you think those reasons are irrelevant, then I suggest you stop.
@TheAwesomeBowser those grabbing so hard to straws means they have something to gain and don't want to do something new. Which is what education is suppose to mean to think outside of the box and learn something new. People fear when something that can help kids learn better helps them learn.
@Anti-Matter Yes, it is finally happening. Nintendo products are being used for STEM.
@SwitchForce LOL, you're right.
I miss the educational/edutainment software of old. I am really fortunate to have grown up with some fantastic children's software, and I feel that children nowadays are missing out as too many apps aimed at children are designed to rob children of their time rather than to simultaneously educate them in the process.
Whatever happened to Edmark, The Learning Company, Mecc, Headbone etc.? These companies should have been enduring giants like any other major software publisher, and now all of these companies have ceased, their iconic IP scattered, and no way for publishers to pick up the pieces and rerelease classic software for future generations to enjoy.
Reader Rabbit, Storybook Weaver, Bailey's/Millie's/Trudy's/Sammy's House games, Zoombinis, the Super Solver series, The Gigglebone Gang, And countless others should be as iconic and recognisable as any other video game IP. Nintendo's hardware in particular would be such great platforms for these sorts of games and yet they are nowhere to be seen.
I never understood why Leapfrog developers never thought to branch out to other platforms. It seems silly to have a dedicated handheld device solely for games aimed at preschoolers when many of them have access to video game consoles.
@KingdomHeartsFan
Well, enjoy your life without branding at school. ☺
But i still prefer Nintendo goes to school. 😉
@KingdomHeartsFan "Tell me exactly how Nintendo Switch and Labo help children learn in new ways that are literally impossible without them."
I'm not sure where 'literally impossible' was ever a requirement for school supplies. Regardless, where else are children learning how sound frequencies work, or how gyroscopes or accelerometers work, or the UV spectrum, or learning how to build their own instruments, learning about design, and architecture, and robotics? It's hands-on experience, and it's a million times better than anything you'd read about in a book.
@KingdomHeartsFan It's not branding. It's just companies helping schools, which get paid dirt despite the fact they're trying to help kids grow to be responsible adults. And it definitely doesn't help that Luigi_Mario just mimicked you to show just how much of a kelp-for-brains you are.
https://topics.nintendo.co.jp/c/article/43603be1-9b96-11e8-b123-063b7ac45a6d.html
LABO at Japanese school looked fun.
I want to play LABO with them.
@KingdomHeartsFan
"My point is quite simply that schools don't need Switches and Labo to learn anything that they can't in other existing ways."
I haven't been to school in a while, but, please, do tell me how children are learning hands on like they would with Labo at:
1: robotics
2: engineering
3: sound frequenices
4: accelerometers & gyroscopes
5: the electromagnetic spectrum
Hands On. Where? What kind of classes do that?
@KingdomHeartsFan This is your last warning. Drop the ignorant attitude. If you complain about the same thing again, you will be ignored. Moderation jokes aside, so what if Nintendo's an entertainment company? They made Mario Teaches Typing, Pokemon Typing Adventure, Mario's Time Machine and so many more. Also, how am I a blind fanboy when I've made it loud and clear that I hate NSO? And no, I won't write to the Department of Education to tell them to bring Labo to British schools, because that's their decision to make. Also, Nintendo isn't a money-hungry corporation, Apple is, with their way-too-expensive phones and computers (an official keyboard case for the new iPad Pro will cost between $270AUD and $300AUD; if that's not money-hungry, then I don't know what is). Just chill and have a cola, man. You seem to need it.
@KingdomHeartsFan
You know ?
I wanna join in that LABO activities.
It looks more interesting than normal activities.
LABO offers something to be discuss about, you know. 🤓
You say that they do these things already, if so, you should easily be able to give me a source to where you've seen school children building remote control vehicles using real-time adjustable sound frequencies as the engine as part of the curriculum.
I want my children to go to a good school. Which school(s) in the UK are you talking about that do that, and do you have a link?
@KingdomHeartsFan I don’t want to budge in and take sides and say who’s right and wrong. I honestly see all your points and agree with you. It just seems like going in circles now and you repeating yourself.
Can't all of you just stop? This discussion won't go anywhere. Anyway, just keep it civil.
@KingdomHeartsFan wow, no source, how shocking, lol. Well, you can keep arguing if you want, you've got no source, or link to back up your claims, so I won't bother responding further unless that changes. But of course it won't change because you made it up, so there won't be any sources or links. (please prove me wrong)
Yeah, I'm with @Octane here. Not gonna keep this going when there's far more interesting things to be doing.
The introduction of digital technologies and new educational programs in the education system is very good. This makes life much easier for students. I can also help you and recommend a service where you can write my dissertation at this website https://uk.papersowl.com/write-my-dissertation, I think this service will be useful for you. good luck to you.
Wow, this is really great news! I think it can be a nice experience for children. There are plenty of useful tools for life, education, and business in the world. And I think https://instagrowing.net/buy-instagram-likes/ is one of them.
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