The article focuses on the establishment of the YOUMedia Network at Saint Public Library in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The digital learning laboratory operates within the guidelines of Hanging Out, Messing Around and Geeking Out (HOMAGO) which provides teenagers access to technology and art such as sewing machines, makerspace, and recording studios. The library partnered with Parks and Recreation Department, Saint Paul Neighborhood Network and the Science Museum of Minnesota's Youth Science Center.
The article presents the makerspaces in libraries where informal, collaborative learning can occur through hands-on creation using any combination of technology, industrial arts and fine arts not readily available for home use. It cites the underlying goal of a makerspace to encourage innovation and creativity via the use of technology and offer a place where everything can be nurtured. It notes a growing interest in design thinking afforded by makerspaces.
The article offers the authors' insights on a two-event in the Faculty of Information's symposium series at the iSchool @ Toronto on Creative Making in Libraries and Museums. Topics discussed include museums and cultural libraries, the development of makerspaces in a library and use of three-dimensional (3D) printing, and the open source, portable digital file distribution tool LibraryBox. The symposium featured librarian Jason Griffey, professor Matt Ratto, and MakerKids founder Andy Forest.
This study explores the characteristics of after-school program activities at a charter school in the Southeast US highlighting students' experiences with and gains from these after-school program activities. A qualitative case study design was employed to understand students' views and opinions regarding the activities and their learning trajectories. Study data were collected through formal and informal observations, one-on-one semistructured interviews, and field notes. The study's findings indicated that such activities emphasize open-ended and collaborative scientific investigations in
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Alpaslan SahinMehmet AyarTufan Adiguzel
Parents and children are rapidly adopting mobile technologies, yet designs for mobile devices that serve a communication function to connect parents to children's out-of-school time activities are limited. As a result, our team designed the Digital Postcard Maker so that children attending summer camps can create digital photographs to send home to their parents. These digital postcards help to connect children's home life with out-of-school learning experiences and also support 21st Century Skills' media literacy practices. The research design included two iterations of a design-based
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Heather ZimmermanChristopher GamratSimon Hooper
The article provides information and suggestions for coordinating a Family Science Day, an informal science event for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. Suggestions include integrating art into STEM experiments to create STEAM projects, securing content experts for the event, and creating a manageable timeline.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Sara McCubbinsBethany ThomasMichael Vetere
Educational makerspaces (EM) and maker education (ME) have the potential to revolutionize the way we approach teaching and learning. The maker movement in education is built upon the foundation of constructionism, which is the philosophy of hands-on learning through building things. Constructionism, in turn, is the application of constructivist learning principles to a hands-on learning environment. Thus maker education is a branch of constructivist philosophy that views learning as a highly personal endeavor requiring the student, rather than the teacher, to initiate the learning process. In
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TEAM MEMBERS:
R. Steven KurtiDebby KurtiLaura Fleming
In 2007, Carnegie Corporation of New York joined with the Institute for Advanced Study to create a commission, comprised of some of our nation’s most distinguished mathematicians, scientists, educators, scholars, business leaders, and public officials, to assess not only the current state of math and science education in the U.S. but also how to enhance the capacity of our schools and universities to generate innovative strategies across all fields that will increase access to high-quality education for every student in every classroom.
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Carnegie Corporation and the Institute for Advanced Study
Schools do not define education, and they are not the only institutions in which learning takes place. After-school programs, music lessons, Scouts, summer camps, on-the-job training, and home activities all offer out-of-school educational experiences. In Learning at Not-School, Julian Sefton-Green explores studies and scholarly research on out-of-school learning, investigating just what it is that is distinctive about the quality of learning in these “not-school” settings. Sefton-Green focuses on those organizations and institutions that have developed parallel to public schooling and have
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The MacArthur FoundationJulian Sefton-Green