2 Reading Take-Aways!

The introduction of maker spaces in school settings is giant step in the right direction.  The direction: veering away from standardized testing.  It is hard to imagine a future where standardized testing is not the end all be all.  Although test scores still stifle student potential, there is a noticeable shift in the way we are thinking about education.  Creative problem solving,  inventiveness and learning through material exploration have become important factors in many educational approaches.  Maker spaces and fab labs are interdisciplinary environments that foster and inspire these methods of learning and teaching.  As Paulo Blikstein writes, "...‘making’ could be a new and major chapter in this process of bringing powerful ideas, literacies, and expressive tools to children." (p. 2).  

The use of maker spaces combined with a more student driven curricula could mean all the difference in student success.  Much of the time, I feel like teachers talk at their students instead of with them.  The most important thing is to execute a lesson plan, even if that means you are putting students to sleep.  Teachers forget that students need to feel a connection to the subject matter.  Listening to the interests of the class could open the proverbial door to truly meaningful educational experiences.  This is where maker spaces come into play - they hold the keys to a interdisciplinary learning experiences which have the ability to fully immerse students in their studies.  These spaces challenge the conventions of a typical classroom.

"The real power of any technology is not in the technique itself or in the allure it generates, but in the new ways of personal expression it enables, the new forms of human interaction it facilitates, and the powerful ideas it makes accessible to children." (p. 18).