makezine.com: Programs that explore aspects of making, tinkering, and hacking would’ve been unheard of even ten years ago, but now we see them happening in universities all around the nation. Aside from DePaul, we see this at places like School of Art Institute of Chicago with their “Designing for Emerging Technology” program and Carnegie Mellon with “Physical Computing.” At the Nation of Makers White House summit, it became very clear during a breakout session of academics that makerspaces and Making were things that universities ranging from tier 1 research schools to small liberal arts colleges are exploring makerspaces and making.
6 comments:
I agree completely with this author. I so think that one of the most important things for innovation and intellect is problem solving, creativity and looking for creative solutions. Its not a new concept, and its something that I think our generation especially are familiar with, that its the people who learn the most and can navigate careers are the not the ones who can memorize facts and score well on standardized tests. I really like the new idea that the author brings up of Problem Making. I think that beyond solving problems we encounter going one step further and predicting problems and find problems that don't even exist yet is another push towards innovation. This mindset was of the reasons I was liked Carnegie, beyond the Drama program the common values of pushing to new limits. I hope that more universities have this idea in mind in their programs and culture. But, moreover I really hope that flows through to the high school level education.
This article really gets at the heart of what it means to be an active learner, and why it’s important to be one. It doesn’t matter if you’re a student, a teacher, or a professional in the field (or any combination of the lot) it will only benefit you to look at things in a way that leaves room for improvement and be willing to look for what that improvement might be. That’s how progress happens. When we solve problems, it gives us the opportunity to not think about that problem anymore, allowing us to solve more problems and up the order of complexity of a product. Conversely, if we don’t look for problems, then we become complacent with existing technology and methodology, robbing ourselves of a potentially more effective solution. And while it isn’t always worth doing things a different way just because it might be better, sometimes it absolutely is. But if you never ask yourself the question of “is this worth doing different” then you’ll never know.
This article was really interesting and encouraging as its great to see a variety of colleges and universities adopting "problem making" as a integral part of their curriculum. It will be great to learn how this type of program which is backwards from the traditional test taking standard empowers different types of learners. For example, those who may feel more stress and anxiety from traditional methods could find that tinkering and hacking puts them at ease. Those who find starting projects to be the most difficult step could use this different approach and become less intimidated or more articulate about their work. Also the intersection between the arts and sciences, usually treated as two different types of learning and practices, is really evident in the "problem making" model. Visual/creative and metholodical learners alike benefit from "problem making" and maker spaces.
I am a really bad test taker, I have very little patience for studying and reviewing notes and also tend to be pretty bad at taking them. If I don’t find a certain piece of information useful I tend to just assume the teacher doesn’t either and not worry about memorizing it. Usually it’s something small like a name or a date, something which to me matters little. As long as I understand the sequence who did what and when exactly they did it don’t really affect my understanding and use of the information. That one bites me in the ass all the time. Making something however is something totally different. I love the process of visualizing something in my head and slowly transforming it into reality. Making lets me think about things from every angle, I love visualizing whole complex systems in my head and imagining how a push here might affect the whole system or how this detail could influence a person’s perception of that system. Making has often given me a chance to explore this side of me and it’s something I’m very appreciative of.
I think the ideas of makers and making can extend to a wider range of educational pursuits besides literally making things. I always had the best luck in subjects such as math and science when we were given a brief set of rules or guidelines and left to figure out the answers on our own. I distinctly remember a few times coming up with a way that was different than my teachers way but still correct, and being able to find that for myself was more beneficial than being told how to do it.
I believe this is also a really effective way to integrate creativity with learning for kids. For kids who are bright and interested, letting them experiment will allow them to come across problems they would have never experience before. I am glad that these institutes of higher learning are encouraging this, as hopefully it will trickle down into other forms of education.
Maker culture is an interesting culture that was created among our presence. Almost everyone in our generation grew up with this brand new idea of making things and tinkering as a way of learning. I am such a strong believer of the maker culture because I think it's the perfect thing for tactile learners. I always took those little quizzes they used to give you in elementary or middle school and always found that I was a strong mix of a visual & kinesthetic learner. Through my experiences in schooling, I found that there was always a strong emphasis on visual and auditory learning but not enough hands-on things. I always wished I could do more and certain things like science labs helped with that but whenever you take courses that are more "Make" orientated, such as physics, electrics, or mathematics, you never really have a chance to apply it to the real world. This is why this Make culture is huge. People build robots, machines, inventing new things, etc. that are changing this world completely and preparing them for the real world like never before. I think, given that higher educational institutions have more money, it's inevitable that they would convert to a Make culture and implement Maker Spaces. I think Making is a way of life & a way of the future in combating laziness and forcing people to get up and do something, no matter what it is
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