Microsoft is giving primary school kids in South Africa a chance at a real hands-off education. Classrooms at Lakeside Park Primary, in the Vryheid, KwaZulu-Natal district (yes, it's a Natal project) are being equipped with Kinect cameras and Xbox 360s as part of a Microsoft initiative, in order to encourage English use in the classroom.

"Shy learners, who take months to speak up in class in their mother tongue – let alone in English, were already shouting out to classmates to 'jump' and 'duck' with no inhibition," Lakeside Park Primary Deputy Principal Karen Kirsten explained. According to XboxGaming, the Kinect and its English-language games are used to reduce the affective filter involved in learning and speaking English, so it can be better used as the teaching language in the classroom.

As a bonus, it teaches valuable mime skills.

http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/24/ki...rimary-school/