Graduating students of 2020 probably won’t be able to march on stage to receive their diplomas due to coronavirus crisis. But these Japanese students aren’t ready to give up their hopes for a graduation ceremony just yet. If they can’t do it in the actual world, at least they can experience it in the digital realm of Minecraft. Apparently, you can do anything inside this sandbox video game. Those things that you can’t possibly do in the real world can be done in a snap inside this virtual pixelated world. And these Japanese students used this online platform to their best advantage.
Countries that are severely affected by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic are now under lockdown. Travel ban, social distancing and home quarantine are strictly implemented in many different countries to reduce the spread of the contagious disease. As a result, the outbreak crisis has led to business disruptions and untimely closing of schools. In order to prevent schoolkids from contracting the virus, classes have been prematurely cancelled in most parts of the world. And this also means that all school-related events are also suspended – even graduation. While most graduating students around the world felt devastated about this, these graduating elementary students from Japan didn’t let this tragedy get the best of them.
These Japanese elementary students decided to organize their graduation ceremony in Minecraft
Shuhei Kashiwara, the manager of Hakuba Hotel Mokuzin in Nagano, saw his son playing the game while under home quarantine. For Kashiwara, it’s not an unusual sight to see his son playing video games. However, this time is a bit different. His son was supposed to be attending his graduation at that time but couldn’t because of the coronavirus outbreak. Since their graduation has been cancelled and they are required to stay at home, his son and his friends decided to do the graduation ceremony in the digital world instead.
Kashiwara saw his son playing in a Minecraft world where he was joined by his classmates. The world features a full-blown auditorium complete with seats, a stage, a podium and even a host. The ceremony started when the participants walked into the assembly hall and into their seats. It follows with the host entering the stage and giving a brief speech and congratulatory messages. After which, the host proceeded to call each graduating student to bestow their diplomas.
The virtual graduation took place in a full-blown auditorium designed by the students themselves
Represented by their own ‘skins’, the graduating students walked into the assembly hall
The graduation ceremony even had a host
…and a Guest Speaker
It’s time to receive their diplomas
…and to pose for the class graduation photo
Kashiwara posted a video of his son attending the virtual graduation and shared it on Twitter. He even captured some snapshots of his son’s computer screen to show how the graduation ceremony looked. The Japanese caption translates to:
“What are you doing? [We all decided to have a graduation ceremony together!] Oh? Great. The elementary students gathered and started their own graduation ceremony.”
?????????????????????????????????????? pic.twitter.com/sYqoJ1zYaj
— ???? (@backyennew) March 14, 2020
The tweet quickly became viral and people around the globe can’t help but applaud these kids for keeping their hopes up amidst this global scare. Indeed, technology has essentially made our lives more convenient. Social networking made working from home possible and social media platforms allow us to stay in touch with our loved ones. And these have proved very useful during these times. Amazingly, these kids were able to use their love of video games to deal with their own challenges. Kudos to these kids!
Watch the actual video of the virtual graduation below
Here’s what people have to say about this ingenious graduation ceremony
Source: backyennew | Miakun Channel