Maker Spaces

In the 2014 article “The Maker Movement in Education Halverson (University of Wisconsin–Madison) and Sheridan (George Mason University) discuss the role of Maker Spaces and perhaps more importantly the connection between these spaces and the significant research on other informal settings. The authors "describe three components of the maker movement—making as a set of activities, makerspaces as communities of practice, and makers as identities—each of which inspires different theoretical and empirical approaches, research questions, and areas of study reflected.”

Many educators are viewing Maker Spaces as an extension of authentic assessment. Faculty who are employing effective research in teaching have been offering active learning opportunities, experiential learning, project-based learning, etc., with associated analytical rubrics. Now, where open access Maker Spaces are available, faculty can ask students to create physical representations of their conceptual understanding.

In addition, the authors highlight "Deweyan constructivism, which frames learning as the product of play, experimentation, and authentic inquiry, the distinguishing feature of constructionism is learning by constructing knowledge through the act of making something shareable (Martinez & Stager, 2013).”

Initially, people viewed Maker Spaces as focused on engineering. However, the authors perceive a wider audience sharing "West-Puckett (2014) describes how educators can design classrooms as makerspaces by focusing on student interest and by understanding learning as integrated and connected through projects rather than as an isolated set of skills.” Ideally, every discipline can incorporate students creating and sharing their knowledge, skills and dispositions as tangible artifacts.

Finally, the authors summarized their research with the possibility of Maker Spaces creating “an expanded sense of what counts may legitimate a broader range of identities, practices, and environments—a bold step toward equity in education.”