A long-term nationwide teacher shortage, fueled by a dwindling pipeline and pandemic-related burnout, has led school districts around the U.S. to offer four-day school weeks. Some of these districts hope a shortened week will incentivize weary teachers to stay put.

But would a shortened week benefit educators in practice while limiting consequences for students? And is this enough to slow the exodus? Recent surveys show pandemic-induced stress is causing teachers to consider leaving the industry earlier than they expected.

A cross-industry analysis of professionals and stress co-authored by Seth Gershenson, an associate professor in the School of Public Affairs at American University, found similarities in college-educated professionals' stress levels and mental health.

“What we found is that everybody’s stressed and teachers are no better off, no worse off than other similar looking professionals. That was a bit surprising at first, given the teachers' discussion and news attention,” Gershenson said, Changing America.

That was before the pandemic.

Discovery Education this week announced the availability of a host of new resources designed to support the integration of Minecraft: Education Edition (M: EE) into classroom instruction. Accessible through Discovery Education’s award-winning K-12 platform, these resources complement M: EE’s ability to inspire student exploration, experimentation, and expression. Discovery Education is the worldwide edtech leader whose state-of-the-art digital platform supports learning wherever it takes place.

The Minecraft: Education Edition Channel, now available within the Discovery Education platform, provides educators with useful lesson plans and ready-to-use activities that support students as they explore Minecraft Worlds and uncover important subject area content and skills. Furthermore, students can demonstrate creativity and showcase evidence of learning through an editable showcase board built within Discovery Education’s content creation tool, Studio. With Discovery Education’s dynamic set of learning supports, educators have a new set of resources supporting the integration of M: EE into Discovery Education’s math, SEL, STEM, and science lessons.

Discovery Education’s team continues adding, contextualizing, and organizing exciting new content and timely and relevant resources to the platform each month in response to current events and the ever-evolving needs of educators. These resources, sourced from trusted partners, are aligned to state and national standards and help educators bring the outside world into STEM, math, science, and SEL instruction every day.

Minecraft: Education Edition takes everything players to love about Minecraft and adds collaboration tools, classroom controls, and more into an open-world game where the only limit is students’ imagination. Available for Windows, iPad, and Chromebook, M: EE includes exciting, immersive worlds such as Sustainability City, which invites students to explore aspects of sustainable living, from forestry to wastewater, recycling to clean energy, and more, and Code Builder, a feature that allows educators and students to explore, create, and play in the immersive Minecraft world by writing code.

To learn more about this exciting partnership and do a deep dive into the Discovery Education platform with our new summer learning activities, grab-and-go instructional activities, and new resources to support SEL and ELL call or email Discovery Education at (888) 280-7493 or EducationPartnerships@discoveryed.com.