Envisioning a culturally relevant maker learning program

Maker-centered learning takes shape differently depending on its context. Not all programs follow the same popular themes. Instead it’s important to build programs around the strengths, interests, and resources existing in your community.

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Use this tool to help you envision an equitable, culturally relevant maker learning program in your organization, program, school or district.

What to do

After you have discussed with colleagues, synthesize your thinking. Collaboratively write down three statements that boil down your conversation to its essence. You can think about:

• What ideas emerged that you hadn’t thought about before?
• What are your biggest opportunities as you think about your work through the lens of equity?
• Who do you need to be including in your planning?

Individually:

• Read through Envisioning a culturally relevant maker learning program (Digital Promise)
• Use the prompts from Envisioning… to journal about your community, your program, and future possibilities

With colleagues:

• Discuss each of the three areas outlined in Envisioning…
• Record your thinking on the following slides

Look outward

Building on the unique context of your local community

• Who in our local community designs, creates, or fixes things as part of their…

...profession?

...hobby?

...cultural tradition?

• In what events and spaces can we connect with any of the people or communities in the answers above?
• How might these people inspire and/ or participate in our maker learning program as role models and mentors?
• How might these local practices inform our maker learning program?

[click to and begin typing your thoughts and notes]

Look inward

Examining areas where habits of maker learning may already be present

• How is creativity a part of everyday life for students in our organization?
• In what ways are students currently encouraged or prohibited from engaging in creative practices? Is creative space a reward for some or an opportunity for all?
• What groups are not engaging in creative practices right now, and what activities are currently capturing their time and imagination instead?
• How does our organization embrace multiple ways of knowing and understanding?

[click to and begin typing your thoughts and notes]

Look forward

Envisioning characteristics of an equitable maker learning program

• What indicators will let us know when students feel a sense of belonging and ownership?
• Who might feel most vulnerable in our maker learning program, and how will we support them?
• What biased patterns of participation do we need to be watchful for and how can we change them?
• How might we support all students in ways that deepen relationships and cultivate agency?

[click to and begin typing your thoughts and notes]

— Daniel Morales-Doyle, Shirin Vossoughi, Sepehr Vakil & Megan Bang, Truthout

“Young people would be better served by STEM education that teaches them to deal with the complexity of problems like pandemics and climate change with a clear-eyed view of politics and history.”