Impediments to Digital Fabrication in Education

Abstract

Digital fabrication technologies are increasingly integrated across subjects in primary and secondary education. Focus on the potentials of these technologies has mainly been on the support to STEM oriented learning goals, while emphasis on teachers' roles with the new learning processes of technology and design is largely absent. The paper addresses the experiences and challenges that digital fabrication technology present for teachers in educational environments, and the impediments that are linked to the teachers' roles in design processes of digital fabrication. Based on a research study with eight primary and lower secondary teachers, the findings point to four central impediments for integrating digital fabrication and design into school environments. The findings extend current perceptions of digital technology in education towards exploratory processes of investigation in which the teachers' roles are fundamental.

“The concept of learning goals will always be in my head” - Aligning and Applying Learning Goals in Participatory Design in a School Context

“…In an interview with students, the school librarian pointed to the importance of collaborative and creative learning, due to today's changing role of teachers. When incorporating design and technology into the classroom, the teachers have to manage and switch between the roles of the classroom teacher, a facilitator of the activities, and being a coach for each student group, supporting their design process through dialogue and reflective questions [27]. This is in line with how one of the groups reflected on the importance of children understanding that they are not only consumers of technology, but that they can also design and build with it themselves [11,27].…”

Supporting Fab Lab facilitators to develop pedagogical practices to improve learning in digital fabrication activities

“…Hauer and Daniels [[16]] had a learning theory perspective on running open-ended group projects in engineering education. Also, several studies [ [8], [17], [33]] have listed differences, possibilities and challenges of digital fabrication in relation to traditional school context from the teachers' new role or school point of view. However, there is a lack of research which considers the fundamental requirements from the learning perspective, when proposing to apply or implementing workshops and courses of digital fabrication in formal education contexts.…”

“…It is necessary to understand how novice learners construct knowledge and what challenges they may face in the process. First, compared to an expert, a novice learner has limited or non-existent experience of the content [33]. Second, one of the most remarkable differences of learning between novices and experts relates to human cognitive architecture (short-term memory, often referred to as a working memory ) and long-term memory), which is limited in duration and capacity [ [11], [23]].…”

How are Mobile Makerspaces Utilized in Schools?

“…In this poster, we aim to explore the current practices of mobile makerspaces in K-12 school contexts. The previous studies claimed benefits of applying digital fabrication in education [e.g., [1], [10], [11]]. Blikstein [[1]] emphasized the needs for implementing digital fabrication at schools for the sake of equal participation.…”

“…Mobile makerspaces in schools (e.g., a cart with tools which can be transferred in different classrooms) enable schools to implement digital fabrication activities flexibly in different locations. The previous studies noted that it is important to integrate activities in school curriculum [ [9]] and involve teachers [ [10], [11]] in order to utilize digital fabrication in school contexts. In this paper, we focus on how mobile makerspaces are integrated with school curriculum, as well as how teachers and technology experts (e.g., organizers of mobile makerspaces) are involved in the process.…”