3/25/2016

McConnell MP2

EDT 6440

When processing the wealth of information provided this week on the subject
of the Maker Movement one must allow oneself to be drawn to the major points that
best resonate with them as a teach, administrator or learner. The subject in itself is
too complicated to completely break down and describe in one mini-paper, even if
one chooses only a single article to do so. After reading and digesting the materials
related to the Maker Movement and how I believe it will impact the world of
education I identified some highlights that I think will most affect me.
The first article reviewed related to the Maker Movement, Making Matters!
How the Maker Movement is Transforming Education brought this approach into
better focus. The article outlined some broad concepts of the Makers Movement
such as the basic tenet that the applications should be free and allowing students to
learn by doing (Martinez & Stager, 2015). The authors then went on to identify
some main components of this movement that they considered game-changers in
terms of transforming education. One of these game-changers that caught my
attention was the case for computer fabricating devices such as 3D printers. While
some academic writings on this educational technology (and even some comments
from our class) seemed to downplay or deny the validity or value of these
applications this article clearly refutes that perspective. While it is true that there is
only a certain real-world value to the rudimentary objects that can be designed and
created, the goal is to generate an interest in science, engineering and problem
solving with an eye toward engaging in modern technology as life-long learners, not
the minutia of what project is actually in front of them at the time. It goes without
saying that the articles focus on programming is another area where the impact in
education will be great. Exposure through coding exercises or even the games we
designed in class can open a learner up to the notion, and hence the growing
ability, that the backbone of all computer applications, web design and gaming is
programming. Inspiring learners of any age to foster an interest in this can open
them up to incredible educational and employment opportunities as they progress
in life.
The article The Make-It-Yourself Movement Is a New Mecca for Entrepreneurs
takes the discussion of computer fabricating devices to a deeper level. Although
the article focuses largely on the benefits of this technology in the startup business
sphere the implications for education are clear. The author points out that in the
roughly fifteen years since the Maker Movement began in southern California there
has been an enormous upswing in interest in its precepts that have now led to
millions of advocates globally (Zwilling, 2014). Advantages cited by the author of
how this somewhat still-emerging technology include the idea that one person, one
teacher, student or perhaps entrepreneur can use 3D printers and other
applications without outside support or even a large budget to design new products
for a business or in the classroom. By reading this article I was able to glean many
potential ways in which 3D printing can impact education, particularly as it might
apply to cognitive-based instruction approaches like project-based learning.
For me the article What is the Maker Movement and Why Should You Care
offers a fresh approach to the Maker Movement phenomenon and connects it to the
DIY movement so prevalent now amongst my generation and millennials. For

3/25/2016

McConnell MP2

EDT 6440

anyone who has an interest or knows someone with an interest in web sites such as
Etsy or GE Garages the author makes the important case that these extremely
profitable enterprises are in fact closely connected to the Maker Movement.
Amongst other observations made in the article, the author points out such
fascinating data as the movement away from book clubs toward makers meetings
and the fact that sales in sewing kits at Walmart had gone up thirty percent at the
time of the writing of the article (Morin, 2013). Although the focus of this article is
largely for illustrating the shift toward a do-it-yourself mentality when it comes to
education, inspiration and output there is a strong connection to the Maker
Movement which can absolutely be applied to education.
Once again we hear of the do-it-yourself / do-it-with-others mantra which
seems to be the hallmark of the Maker Movement, this time applied to my field of
study, higher education. The author of this article uses the phrasing learningthrough-doing (Emantras, 2015) as an effective way of ultimately summing up the
core philosophy of what the movement is all about. The article goes on to describe
the Maker Movement as a means to encourage learning, not just to teach about a
specific topic to a class of unengaged students (again I cannot help but see the
parallels here between this and project-based learning). There are applications
mentioned that have specific use for P-12 education as well as higher education. In
terms of college-learner usage, the author cites many applications of the Maker
Movement that can be advantageous including entrepreneurial business courses,
engineering and computer skills, as we as design and implementation projects for a
wide swath of potential majors or programs. For me the most compelling part of
this article was the actual examples they have of higher education institutions
around the country, many comparable to ours, that are already incorporating facets
of the Maker Movement into full-blown majors or degree certifications (Emantras,
2015).
In the video trailer for Maker: A Documentary on the Maker Movement they
featured a quote that I think best describes this movement: The web generation
meets the real world (Tsai, 2014). Although several useful phrases such as DIY
and learning through doing have been applied to this approach I believe the films
description best suits it. Along with many other attributes I think the Maker
Movement follows the forward-looking trend in todays education of moving away
from strictly lecture-based student instruction reinforced by rote memorization. In
reaction to more challenging educational obstacles for both instructors and learners
in the 21st century, along with millennials predilection for digital technology and
their seeming inability to be separated from it, the Maker Movement seems to offer
a means by which the latest technical applications and old-fashioned skillsets can
be merged.
When one takes all of these articles into consideration one aspect of the
Maker Movement in terms of its impact on education is obvious: instructors,
administrators and educational professionals should make full use of its advantages
or risk losing the interest of modern day students. While it is easy to apply the
lessons learned here strictly to my university background, the readings and video

3/25/2016

McConnell MP2

EDT 6440

we reviewed make it clear the Maker Movement is well-established and already

ingrained in not just the education arena but also business and recreation, across
ages and interests. The Maker Movement offers an alternative instruction method
that engages learners with a more hands-on approach that has been proven to be
more effective with 21st century students, particularly generation X and millennials.
Many popular phrases for techniques, such as DIY or hands-on, or the massive
popularity of web sites like Etsy find their roots in the philosophy that embodies this
movement, such as shared, cost-free applications and the use of the internet and
the latest cutting-edge technology, such as 3D printers, to engage students. If one
considers just the concept that an application we studied in class allowed me to
create a game that my five-year-old son was fascinated with, and taught him math
while teaching me programming, the uses and need for the Masker Movement in
education are abundantly clear.

Bibliography
Emantras. (2015, 9 9). Making it into Your Classrooms? The Maker Movement.
Retrieved from Emantras: http://emantras.us/making-it-into-your-classroomsthe-maker-movement/
Martinez, S. L., & Stager, G. S. (2015, 4 3). Making Matters! How the Maker
Movement Is Transforming Education. Retrieved from We are Teachers:
http://www.weareteachers.com/blogs/post/2015/04/03/how-the-makermovement-is-transforming-education
Morin, B. (2013, 5 2). What is the Maker Movement and Why Should We Care?
Retrieved from The Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/britmorin/what-is-the-maker-movemen_b_3201977.html
Tsai, M.-M. (Director). (2014). Maker: A Documentary on the Maker Movement
[Motion Picture].
Zwilling, M. (2014, 6 13). The Make-It-Yourself Movement is a New Mecca for
Entrepreneurs. Retrieved from Entrepreneur:
http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/234775

3/25/2016

McConnell MP2

EDT 6440