The Makerspace by Keli Ingrande



My first major Makerspace I encountered while exploring a library for an assignment was at the Central Library in Downtown San Diego: a 3-D printing lab. I was awestruck and I could not believe our San Diego Library had a 3-D printing lab. I had only seen these printers on T.V. The library actually calls this makerspace an “Innovative Lab” so I did not automatically go “Oh, a Makerspace!” With that said, it was pretty interesting to read and learn more about Makerspaces.
San Diego Central Library Innovation Lab Photos by Keli Ingrande

What is a Makerspace?
Every article had their own definitions and or descriptions of Makerspaces. These are just a few that stood out to me:
1.     “A Makerspace is a physical place in a library where informal and collaborative learning happens with hands on creation using a combination of technology, industrial and fine arts that you would not normally find at home”(Bowler 59)
2.     These “Makerspaces "invite users to explore traditional and digital media, interaction with mentors and peers and engage in creative projects”(Koh and Abbas 114)
3.     “Makerspaces are informal sites for creative production in art, science and engineering where people of all ages blend digital and physical technologies to explore ideas learn technical skills and create new products” (Halverson et al. 5)


Have no fear when it comes to engaging in a Makerspace

I know from experience that learning and trying new things can be nerve wrecking and even though I love learning new technology and trying out new gadgets and machines, I was a bit intimidated by those 3-D printers. In encountering these technologies within Makerspaces, it can seem a bit scary at first because there is a possibility of being susceptible to failure, and working with new tools and/or technologies that you may not be familiar with, but in the end it can be very exciting and rewarding.(Moorefield-Lang 108)



Libraries and Makerspaces
Makerspaces, involve hands on creation using a combination of technology and arts, have become a popular faucet in libraries(Bowler 59)and have been offering patrons a more engaging way of learning throughout their use and is usually low cost or free of charge.
Libraries and their staff are asked to look to the newest technology and keep up with the latest trends, so who better to showcase a Makerspace than a library.(Moorefield-Lang 108).

School libraries and Academic libraries have also been embracing the Makerspace movement. Schools encourage students to creatively explore different resources while making connections between making and literacy by question asking, digging for answers and working through solutions. (Blakemore 67) A familiar type of hands on learning most parents, like myself are more familiar with is STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math based) or STEAM(Art).  Academic libraries incorporate Makerspaces, elevating hands on learning at a collegiate level that provides a type of bridge from the academic world to the outside workplace(Julian and Parrott 13, 18) utilizing space and resources to address "emerging challenges and opportunities".(Julian and Parrott 18)

While there are many benefits of having Makerspaces in Libraries these are the ones that I stuck out to me:

v Enhances creativity, innovation, media navigation, visual literacy, and computational thinking skills(Bowler 59)
v Provides a safe and supportive environment to patrons by cultivating, connecting and exposing them to current or new interests(Koh and Abbas 114)
v Offering access to equipment and technologies that are cutting edge (Koh and Abbas 115)


These Makerspaces sound pretty amazing and could be an amazing experience.
 I will eventually get back to those 3-D Printers and try them out but if you ever encounter a Makerspace, I highly encourage you to put any hesitation or fears on the back burner and give them a try. 

Here are a few articles I felt would be of interest to those who want to read more on Makerspaces:


Works Cited
Blakemore, Megan. “Problem Scoping: Design Thinking & Close Reading Makerspaces in the School Library.” Knowledge Quest, vol. 46, no. 4, Mar. 2018, pp. 66–69. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lxh&AN=128199635&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
Bowler, Leanne. “Creativity through ‘Maker’ Experiences and Design Thinking in the Education of Librarians.” Knowledge Quest, vol. 42, no. 5, May 2014, pp. 58–61. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lxh&AN=95795522&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
Halverson, Rich, et al. “Participatory Culture as a Model for How New Media Technologies Can Change Public Schools. WCER Working Paper No. 2016-7.” Wisconsin Center for Education Research, Wisconsin Center for Education Research, 1 Oct. 2016. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=ED580880&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
Julian, Kristi D., and Deborah J. Parrott. “Makerspaces in the Library: Science in a Student’s Hands.” Journal of Learning Spaces, vol. 6, no. 2, Jan. 2017, pp. 13–21. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ1152687&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
Koh, Kyungwon, and June Abbas. “Competencies for Information Professionals in Learning Labs and Makerspaces.” Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, vol. 56, no. 2, Jan. 2015, pp. 114–129. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ1073572&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
Moorefield-Lang, Heather. “Change in the Making: Makerspaces and the Ever-Changing Landscape of Libraries.” TechTrends: Linking Research and Practice to Improve Learning, vol. 59, no. 3, May 2015, pp. 107–112. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ1059140&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
National Science Federation. "Science of Innovation: 3-D Printing". Online video Clip .NBC Learn,         
      Youtube, 13 Dec. 2013, https://youtu.be/dzSNp_FCebs
on

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)