Makers on the move: a mobile makerspace at a comprehensive public high school
| Pages | 497-504 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/LHT-05-2015-0056 |
| Date | 16 November 2015 |
| Published date | 16 November 2015 |
| Author | IdaMae Louise Craddock |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Librarianship/library management,Library technology |
Makers on the move: a mobile
makerspace at a comprehensive
public high school
IdaMae Louise Craddock
Monticello High School, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to describe the implementation of a mobile makerspace program in
a public school setting. Insights, challenges, successes, projects as well as recommendations will be shared.
Design/methodology/approach –This paper describes a mobile makerspace program in a public
high school in Virginia. It discusses the growth of mobile making, the advantages and disadvantages
of mobility, and how the program was implemented.
Findings –Mobile makerspaces are a fast-growing manifestation of maker culture. It is possible to
have a makerspace in a public school and take the maker culture to other schools in the area. Having a
steady supply of students or library interns that are willing to travel to other schools is critical.
Originality/value –Makerspaces in libraries is still a relatively new phenomenon. While the research
is coming on stationary makerspaces, mobile making is a new horizon for the maker movement.
This paper seeks to provide a description of one such program.
Keywords Library services, Library instruction, Schools, Makerspaces, Mobile Makerspaces,
School libraries
Paper type Viewpoint
Introduction
A mobile makerspace is defined differently by almost everyone who has one. High tech
makerspaces lean toward robotics and coding while others are more like garages or
woodshops with crafting makerspaces veering in the directionof art. All have value and
appeal to differenttypes of students, but the desire to see an idea madereal is universal.
The culture of making is critical in the global economy where much of what is
known now will be obsolete in three years. That means that what a high school student
learns as a first year student will either be untrue or outdated by graduation. Rather
than teaching students a specific programing language like Python, maker education
focusses on how to use programming to solve a problem and which types of computer
coding languages are used for which type of tasks. Upon graduation the student may
not have an encyclopedic knowledge of programming commands, but he or she will
know how to learn what needs to be known. In a global economy of this pace,
employers are less interested in what the employees know as they are in how fast
employees can learn. Mona Westhaver (2003), President and Co-Founder of
Inspiration Software Inc. noted as far back as 2003 that, “Learning to learn –helping
students develop thinking skills, learning skills and, most importantly, a passion for
learning –is the solution that will have the most long-term and widespread impact.”
Students, too, are interested in learning when content is presented in an engaging,
creative and relevant way. Maker education has the advantage of being truly
engaging. It teaches students a variety of skills –both technical and emotional. As one
student put it “Building a calculator began with learning how to count in binary.
Learning how to help my deaf brother feel sound again began with learning electrical
inputs and outputs. Once the “complicated”barrier was broken, I realized that I could
Library Hi Tech
Vol. 33 No. 4, 2015
pp. 497-504
©Emerald Group Publis hing Limited
0737-8831
DOI 10.1108/LHT-05-2015-0056
Received 27 May 2015
Revised 14 July 2015
Accepted 15 July 2015
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/0737-8831.htm
497
Makers on
the move
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