John Spencer's Making is Magic

I recently heavily researched and explored the topic of makerspaces, as it was the topic for my digital curation project. Through the readings and Dr. Moorefield-Lang’s lecture, I was able to further grasp what makerspaces can enable us to instill in our students. Creativity, inquiry, exploration, problem solving, engagement, and varying applications of gained knowledge are aspects of student learning that all of us that work in schools strive to achieve. Having a makerspace in a school library, seems like a wonderful way to pull in patrons and work collaboratively on student curriculum standards with teachers and students themselves. While keeping two quotes in mind from this week’s readings that stood out to me, I explored more on makerspaces this week. I was able to find resources I had yet to tap into.

“Librarianship is not about artifacts, it is about knowledge and facilitating knowledge creation. So what should we be spending our precious resources on? Knowledge creation tools, not the results of knowledge creation.”

                                                                                 Dr. Lankes

“While this technology is becoming more prevalent, having a spirit of investigation and little fear of failure is important."

                                                                                 Dr. Moorefield-Lang

One blog that I came across this week stood out above the rest. John Spencer is a professor, author, and maker. The reason I found his blog so intriguing is that it’s easy to follow and visually appealing, he is concise and to the point on the topic of making, and he supplies additional resources to checkout. He is living the experience and shares his successes and failures. The particular blog post I have chosen to share from him is Making is Magic from April 19, 2019.

Since “making is an inquiry-driven social activity that allows students to develop the very same skills, dispositions, responsibilities, and strategies touted in the AASL’s 21st CenturyStandards,” it was refreshing to come across a blog that embraced this idea wholeheartedly. (Canino-Fluit) Not only that, but as someone like myself who is an older student and newer to the idea of a makerspace, his ability to provide easy to understand visuals, videos, and concise explanations was comforting. In the post Making is Magic, I found the section What Does It Mean to Make? helpful because Spencer addresses that not all creations of making are “tangible, physical products.”  The section on Embracing Vintage Innovation also spoke directly to me in my makerspace understanding and journey presently. Spencer points out that sometimes we have a lofty idea of tech and what to do with students, but we will most likely have barriers. I had never thought of thinking inside the box.

Creating a makerspace in your school library or classroom is about being open to the barriers perhaps being the gift you never asked for. The lecture from Dr. Moorefield-Lang made a of point of letting us all know there is no hard and fast rule of makerspaces. It’s a field for us all to explore. I found John Spencer’s blog helpful in my own understanding of embracing creativity and shifting my mind from what  I think a makerspace should be. This blog seemed to embrace what we have been learning about this week. I found his infographics, videos, and explanations worthy of sharing because I think the concept of makerspaces in education is important. I think that what he shared in this particular blog is an easy way to explain the purpose of a makerspace to an administrator or teachers in a way that is not overwhelming or too tech heavy. It is about balance, barriers, and remembering that through failure comes growth. John Spencer’s blog has many ideas and information about how to create a successful makerspace for students.

Another blog post by Spencer that I liked but did not focus on for this blogshare, is The Seven Myths Keeping Teachers From Designing Makerspaces.  I found it to be an insightful post, so I wanted to share it in case anyone wanted to check it out. 

Resources

Britton, L. (2012, October 1). The Makings of Maker Spaces, Part 1: Space for Creation, Not Just Consumption. Retrieved November 1, 2019, from http://www.thedigitalshift.com/2012/10/public-services/the-makings-of-maker-spaces-part-1-space-for-creation-not-just-consumption/

Canino-Fluit, A. (2014). School Library Makerspaces. Teacher Librarian, 41(5), June, 21-27.

Moorefield-Lang, H. M. (2014). Makers in the library: Case studies of 3D printers and maker spaces in library settings. Library Hi Tech, 32(4), 583-593. doi:10.1108/lht-06-2014-0056

Moorefield-Lang, H., Dr (Director). (2017). Makerspaces 761 [Video file]. Retrieved November 2, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBsEHD0XE6E&feature=youtu.be

Spencer, J. (2019, April 22). Making Is Magic. Retrieved November 03, 2019, from http://www.spencerauthor.com/the-power-of-prototyping/

Spencer, J. (2019, March 06). The Seven Myths Keeping Teachers from Designing Makerspaces. Retrieved November 03, 2019, from http://www.spencerauthor.com/makerspace-myths/