Makerspaces: building a generation of doers
~Originally published on December 19, 2016 for the Beta: the McGill Innovation Initiative~
Students are tired of writing papers that, if ever read, end up on a shelf to never be read again. They are tired of being taught as though they all learn in the same way and having their intelligence tested in an archaic, short-sighted and unidimensional fashion. Many talented individuals are falling though the cracks due to a failing educational system that is simply not adapting to the changing needs of students and the skillsets required for their futures.
Also, over the last few years, I have realized that I am part of a generation that is, for the most part, hypercritical of governments and administrations, yet is often unable to, or simply unwilling to propose tangible solutions to the problems it calls out. Nonetheless, there is a good number of students that endeavour to solve real-life problems and be part of the solution. We are currently witnessing a wave of students that are striving to become entrepreneurs, and McGill has created programs and resources to satisfy their ever-evolving needs. However, I still see the need to further entrench a culture of doing into education. It is vital that we ensure future students, across all disciplines, have the means necessary to carry out change, and that this be done by given them the opportunity to actively express themselves and to learn through doing (i.e. experiential learning).
I believe there is a need for a complete educational paradigm shift that will satisfy students’ desires for experiential learning and will better prepare them for a successful and healthy post-graduation life. While this is not a small task, and can only be achieved over the course of years, if not decades, one feasible and efficient first step is to invest in makerspaces — spaces where students can explore, build and test their ideas, and bring them to life using a variety of tools, such as 3D printers, laser cutters and much more.
As the graduate students’ representative on the Innovation Steering Committee, I was recently delegated to attend the first ever International Symposium on Academic Makerspaces (ISAM) held at MIT, in the beautiful city of Cambridge, Massachusetts. This was an enlightening experience that has motivated me to continue the stimulating conversations I had the chance to partake in. It is worth noting that many of the benefits of academic makerspaces are not exclusive to makerspaces, but also apply to other types of experiential learning. I therefore intend on expanding this conversation beyond spaces, but to the entire concept of doing and how to foster the next generation of doers. Currently, students graduate as experts at determining the specific items that will be on an exam, studying these often arbitrary theories and facts, then regurgitating them as points on a scantron. This should simply not be the case.
While I had already been introduced to the rather general concepts of makerspaces (i.e. what they are), this conference exposed me to many other, deeper aspects I believe need to be highlighted. Makerspaces accomplish much more than simply enabling their users to bring their ideas to life; they can create communities in which people from different backgrounds can collaborate, socialize and feel safe. Their impact doesn’t stop there though. Makerspaces can empower and inspire their users to take action and innovate; they can embed a sense of intrinsic motivation deep within their users that will be maintained for the rest of their lives.
One of the most eye-opening talks over the course of this conference was given by Dr. Aaron Hoover from the Olin College of Engineering, who spoke on the self-determination theory and how it relates to makerspaces. There are three components necessary for optimal motivation: autonomy, competence, and relatedness. To summarize, students should feel as though they have some degree of freedom in the choices they make, have the competence required to bring their ideas to life, and should feel personally attached to their work and surroundings — they need to feel as though they are part of something bigger, to which they are contributing. Makerspaces create opportunities for its users to work autonomously by offering the equipment and materials needed to bring ideas to life, develop participants’ skills through workshops and tutorials, and create a sense of attachment due to the social and communal aspects of the space.
Enriching students’ sense of intrinsic motivation will develop the character required to bring ideas to life and actively participate in their communities. Experiential learning does not only contribute to their qualifications though, but also has an impact on their charisma while in school, which then affects their willingness to enter certain job markets. By putting less of an emphasis on textbook readings and cookie-cutter exams, and more on hands-on opportunities, many of the hardships students face can be alleviated. For example, during the conference, someone in the audience mentioned that they had noticed students were remarkably happier when they were in makerspaces compared to the classroom, and that with such a high rate of mental illness in student populations, adopting a culture of making could contribute to solving their mental health issues. As mentioned earlier, I believe this phenomenon is not only in making, but extrapolates to all experiential learning. There is nonetheless, something special about makerspaces; they are safe spaces where participants can express themselves, be proud of it and show it off to their peers.
If you have any questions/concerns/ideas about this post, makerspaces or my view on experiential learning, please leave a comment via Medium or get in touch with me personally; I am very interested in keeping the conversation going.
Originally published at https://medium.com on December 19, 2016.
