Philosophy
Maker Philosophy
Making is defined as the process of making or producing something. My love for making started out in the kitchen. I was fascinated watching my mom and grandmas mixing raw ingredients together to make something that tasted nothing like its individual pieces. How heat made meats edible and cold made creams into delicious gelati. The confidence I gained in the kitchen, let me to explore making in other realms.
Making was rarely embedded in my education growing up. Besides the occasional creative projects in elementary school, I never truly learned how to be a maker until college. I joined the UTeach Natural Science program my senior year of college, and the UTeach maker program the second semester of my senior year. Although I joined the program late, I felt a sense of belonging immediately and a new world opened to me. I wanted to better learn how making can truly enhance education, so I decided to intern in the Ann Richards School for Young Women Leader’s makerspace during the second semester as a maker.
Within the first day at the Ann Richards makerspace, I understood why it is crucial to integrate making the classroom. I saw first hand how 7th graders applied their knowledge on angles to create hexagonal dream catchers, while also gaining confidence working with wood. When going around helping students, I got some of them to explain to me what they were working on. Students effectively answered my questions using mathematical vocabulary and explained their building process flawlessly. Although I do not have a lot of experience working with 7th graders, I can confidently assume that not all 7th graders can explain a concept as well as they did.
Throughout my semester as the makerspace intern, I worked with 6th graders on their animal enrichment projects. A group of students were partnered with an animal at the Austin Zoo and they were responsible to design, predict price, and eventually build an enrichment project for the animal. During this two month long process, students applied their skills in research, project design, project management, team work, and ultimately making.
I am currently an apprentice teacher at Ann Richards and I am implementing many of my lessons with making components. Whether this be as simple as creating a poster, or creating DNA with various materials.
My experiences strongly reaffirmed my belief that making programs are essential, especially in districts where students do not have as many resources to succeed. Rather than an afterthought, I firmly believe making should be a priority. I have seen firsthand the effects that making has on students - they became more excited about learning, learned from each other, and retained what they learned. I greatly enjoyed watching 9th grade students taking anatomy figure out ways to recreate the digestive system with household materials. I helped them think of key characteristics of each organ and how to assemble it on a wooden base. Everyone had a different home life, but this project helped connect everyone together.
Diversity should be one of the cornerstones of making. When students from different backgrounds join together in the making process, everyone gains more. One of the beauties of making is that there is not a set solution. Various ways of thinking about a problem (cultivated from different mindsets stemming from differences in background) helps everyone gain the most out of the experience. As a makerspace intern, as well as an apprentice teacher, I worked with students with a range of learning abilities and background. Each student brought their own perspective as well as struggles to the table. When making, I helped students think about their abilities and past experiences they have done in order to stimulate teamwork and creation.
Through my experience in the makerspace, I saw how it became a safe space for a lot of students. Students would come to the makerspace to work on their school work with their teachers, but many would come early or stay after school to work on personal projects. I had countless individuals ask me to teach them how to use certain machines, so they could 3D print a birthday gift for their friends, or help them make a craft out of wood for their 3 year old brother. There is no right or wrong answer when being in the makerspace. Everyone is celebrated and everyone is appreciated.
My experiences have morphed my teaching philosophy to integrate making in the classroom as much as possible. I am a maker and that will never change.
Reflections on Readings
Below you will find four articles/videos that I reflected on to better understand the depth of the maker movement. I chose these articles because I have not been making for very long and I wanted to better understand the history and depth of making from different perspectives. I hope that if you get the chance to read/watch these articles/videos, you better understand the excitement I got to experience in my journey as a maker.
The Promise of the Maker Movement for Education
Martin, L. (2015). The Promise of the Maker Movement for Education. Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER), 5(1), Article 4. https://doi.org/10.7771/2157-9288.1099
When reading The Promise of the Maker Movement for Education written by Lee Martin in 2015, I got to read about making from a different perspective. The article was published in the Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research, so it has a more engineering mindset than I have been exposed to. Although the maker movement is a relatively new phenomenon and mindset we want students to obtain through their education, it was commonly known that making is crucial in education long before the maker movement started. Children in school start playing with different materials and building things usually starting in kindergarten. At first, I thought that young elementary students were doing these projects because it was too early for them to start learning about more complex topics of science, math, history, etc. I am now coming to realize that letting students play around with different objects helps them gain confidence in putting things together and viewing their final product. These physical creations also help students work on their social engagement skills that are crucial to develop at a young age.
In the past couple of years, there has been a dramatic shift in what making encompasses. Through the making experience I have had, I have mainly worked with physical objects. I worked with wood working tools, laser cutters, 3D printers and more. Although these are what most people think about when they think of making, making has now engulfed the field of technology as well. Starting to teach students more about engineering, computer programming, and physics at a young age has allowed many to not view these fields as daunting as they were once viewed. Makers like to use simple softwares that students can code such as micro bits and raspberry pis to encourage the use of technology in projects.
The maker movement is all about collaboration and challenging oneself. New technology and tools are constantly being developed by professionals and being directly integrated into student’s education. I believe that these hands-on experiences that students are obtaining are helping our future leaders succeed to their full potential.
Maker Movement in Education: History and Prospects
I focused on the sections talking about challenges and opportunities for the maker movement in schools when reading Maker Movement in Education: History and Prospects written by Paulo Blikstein. When I interned at the Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders makerspace during Fall 2021, I didn’t see any challenges that the makerspace was facing. Although the school is relatively newly established (2007), the makerspace has been open and constantly being used by teachers and students for years. Material and machines are already strategically placed in order for efficiency and all the material you can ever need is already stored on the shelves.
Although making is new to education, the idea of making itself has been around for a long time. When first creating makerspaces, professionals designed them based on engineering research and development (R&D) labs. In theory, this would work perfectly. Engineers have been working for many years with machines now found in makerspaces (3D printers, computers, laser cutters), so why not just copy that and put it in a school. After doing this, it was soon realized that it was a terrible mistake. Many times, engineers working on R&D work by themselves in an extremely focused environment. Students are not like that. Students work best in groups and in a very friendly environment. Students need to get a lot of attention, have a lot of space to work, and be provided a positive setting. Makerspaces that were created like engineering R&D labs commonly failed and only until many spaced out machines, colorful environments, and specialized teachers were integrated in makerspaces were they able to succeed.
Why Education Needs the Maker Movement - Betty Ray
In ‘Why Education Needs the Maker Movement,’ Betty Ray makes a compelling argument for the need of making in schools. As society has advanced from an industrial, agricultural society, classrooms have advanced as well. We need to teach today’s youth different skills to fit this changing world. Rather than the “regurgitation” approach previously used, as Betty called it, we want to create a world in which students can empower themselves through making.
Mrs. Ray detailed case studies regarding the implementation of making and project based learning. When students faced realistic and authentic problems, they were much more invested in their education. They were also able to learn from each other rather than only the teacher and were thus able to retain the information more deeply. For example, in one class, students learning about energy had the opportunity to make their own examples and prototypes rather than learning from a textbook or visiting a wind farm (both of which are more passive rather than active).
In the successful implementations of the maker movement, Mrs. Ray discussed the need for these types of maker programs at both the school and district level. In addition to helping student wellness and making them passionate about education, we need to prepare students for the complexities of today’s world.
‘Diversity Does Not Happen By Accident’ and Other Lessons About Equity in the Maker Movement
The article is written by Patrícia Gomes and is part of the guide ‘What's Next for Maker Education’. It postulates three main principles: efforts should be made for diversity and equity, making should be a priority rather than a supplement, and making should go beyond the classroom.
Educators and schools in general should “be intentional in creating opportunities so that minorities and low-income students feel a sense of belonging in these spaces” rather than expecting a good making program to happen just by purchasing equipment. It talks about how the decrease in price of expensive tools such as laser cutters and 3D printers has allowed a lot more schools to buy these tools for their students. Although these fantastic changes have allowed more teachers to integrate making in the classroom, this is not enough to make all schools equal.
The article makes an excellent point about making programs a priority rather than a supplement. Some people think making is a great addition to already good programs. However, making is needed the most where students are not as motivated as their peers because of their disadvantaged backgrounds.
Lastly, it is important to include families and communities in the making effort. Doing so helps students stay more engaged and motivated and also learn more. However, in order to cultivate an environment conducive to making, the process should be well thought out. For example, as the article mentions, including the family in making should happen on weekends so it is inclusive to those who cannot get time off work.