EduElfie is proud to have co-created Level Up Rail Safety, a Minecraft: Education Edition experience commissioned by Transport for NSW as part of their 2021 Bright Ideas Project. Designed to address a genuine gap in regional transport safety education, the game brings rail level crossing safety to primary school students across New South Wales in an engaging, curriculum-linked format.
The Challenge
With more than 1,300 level crossings on public roads across NSW, and an average of around 130 near-misses at level crossings recorded on the NSW rail network each year, the need to educate young people about safe crossing behaviour is significant. Transport for NSW needed a scalable solution that could reach students in regional and remote areas where in-person programs couldn't always go.
The Solution
Level Up Rail Safety is a custom-built Minecraft: Education Edition world set in a rural environment, designed to be personalised by students to reflect their own town. This connection to place is a deliberate pedagogical choice — by recreating familiar landmarks and structures, students are better able to transfer what they learn in the game to real-life decisions at crossings in their own community.
Key Features
Level Crossing Safety Focus
The game puts level crossing behaviour at its core. Built-in safety messaging responds directly to student choices — unsafe behaviour triggers an immediate warning from an in-game Train Driver, while an Engineer character guides students as they work to build a safer crossing environment.
Real Expert Input
The game's content was shaped by the lived experience of senior NSW train drivers, who contributed their expert knowledge to ensure the safety messaging was authentic and impactful.
Customisable Rural World
Students can tailor the world to represent their own town, which is particularly powerful for regional and remote students for whom rail crossings are a genuine daily reality. This creative ownership deepens personal investment in the learning.
Full Curriculum and Teacher Support
Level Up was developed alongside a comprehensive suite of teacher and student resources, including a Teacher's Handbook with curriculum alignment, a Student Workbook, and a Quick Play Guide — making it immediately classroom-ready.
Curriculum Alignment
The game aligns with the NSW curriculum and is freely available to all NSW government schools, which have access to Minecraft Education Edition through the NSW Department of Education.
Credits
Level Up Rail Safety was co-designed and created by Stephen Elford (EduElfie) and Dr Bronwyn Stuckey (Innovative Educational Ideas), with the original concept developed by Tayla Hallett and Madhavi Shankarling of Transport for NSW.
Get the Game
The game and all supporting resources are available for free download from the Transport for NSW website. Minecraft Education Edition must be installed to play.
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