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The purpose of this paper is to describe the implementation of mobile makerspaces in libraries and educational settings. Insights, decisions, challenges, and mobile makerspace projects will also be shared.

This paper delves into six case studies of librarians and educators who made the decision to go mobile with a makerspace. The case studies include public and school librarians, as well as educators in higher education settings. The author of this paper will describe the cases, projects, challenges, along with other aspects of implementing of a mobile makerspace.

Makerspaces, while becoming very popular in the field of librarianship, can be incredibly exciting to employ but often come with their own challenges and successes. What happens when the brick and mortar location is not enough? Librarians and educators begin to think creatively and bring the makerspace to the patrons if the clients cannot come to the space.

Currently the research on makerspaces is growing but there is still a limit to scholarly material in this field. When focussing on mobile makerspaces there are only blog posts and popular pieces. Nothing has been written on a wider range of case studies focussing on mobile makerspaces. This paper sets the foundation for further exploration in how librarians and educators can further serve patrons by making makerspaces mobile.

The purpose of this paper is to describe the implementation of a mobile makerspace program in a public school setting. Insights, challenges, successes, projects as well as recommendations will be shared.

This paper describes a mobile makerspace program in a public high school in Virginia. It discusses the growth of mobile making, the advantages and disadvantages of mobility, and how the program was implemented.

Mobile makerspaces are a fast-growing manifestation of maker culture. It is possible to have a makerspace in a public school and take the maker culture to other schools in the area. Having a steady supply of students or library interns that are willing to travel to other schools is critical.

Makerspaces in libraries is still a relatively new phenomenon. While the research is coming on stationary makerspaces, mobile making is a new horizon for the maker movement. This paper seeks to provide a description of one such program.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the design, implementation, and pilot of a Mobile Makerspace at a private, southeastern liberal arts institution that did not have a campus-wide makerspace. In an effort to give students in a residential hall access to maker tools and technologies and also meet the needs of a campus-wide writing initiative, a team of administrators and staff worked to build and design programing for the “MobileMaker,” a pop-up Mobile Makerspace.

The authors explain how the equipment was chosen based on a variety of user skill levels. The technical specifications of the MobileMaker are also detailed, which includes 3D printing and crafting tools, and a variety of electronics. In addition, they explain how a mobile cart was modified to house and secure the equipment so it could be stored in an unsecured area. The team experienced several challenges with the MobileMaker project, including the overall durability of the mobile cart and the lack of a dedicated staff to manage the equipment.

The authors conclude that mobility and security were mutually exclusive with the mobile design that was chosen. Greater mobility was sacrificed to achieve greater security via locked doors and compartments that added weight to the cart. While the goal of increased student access to maker tools and technologies was met, the level of access was often limited due to staffing limitations.

An unanticipated outcome of the project was the conversations that were generated about the need and demand for a dedicated makerspace open to the entire campus community.

This paper aims to give a highlight on the concept of makerspace and its perceived benefits in academic libraries in Nigeria.

The searches encompass current journal articles, books, newspapers, magazines, personal experiences on the concept of makerspace, 3D-printing and technologies in libraries. Practical examples of libraries that already have makerspaces in operation were sourced.

Findings of this study create awareness of benefits, challenges and strategies for developing and managing makerspaces in Nigerian academic libraries, using Zenith Library as a hypothetical sample.

Only the proposal guide has been drafted. There is need for more investigations on the awareness of, and plan to adopt makerspace technologies in Nigerian academic libraries.

Librarians need to appreciate the makerspace technologies and forge ahead in establishing makerspace in strategic areas of their libraries which should serve as a meeting point for all users in the university community, and for the sharing of innovative ideas.

There is need for a paradigm shift in Nigerian university libraries, hence the shift in librarians’ thinking and approach to find their place in the new maker movement.

The originality of the paper lies in its justification for establishing makerspace in Nigerian academic libraries alongside the drafted proposal which has been designed to serve as a guide to libraries in Nigeria, as no makerspace has been documented to be existing in any Nigerian library.

In response to the government’s decision to make “entrepreneurship and innovation for all” a national strategy in its 2015 annual work report, Chinese professionals in the library field have expressed a growing interest in makerspaces. This study aims to provide an overview of their current research studies and attempts in constructing makerspaces.

The authors aggregated research materials on library makerspaces in China from two sources: journal articles from the China National Knowledge Infrastructure Database and online news reports from the search engine Baidu.com. Content analysis was used to extract information regarding visions and perceived values, service models and technology adoption.

While a growing number of Chinese academic publications are concerned with library makerspaces, the existing research focuses on foreign cases and offers few empirical studies on domestic application scenarios. Libraries and researchers in China hold a positive and supportive attitude toward makerspaces. 3D printing is the most frequently mentioned technology, and free-to-use, promoting communication and realization of ideas and dreams are the most emphasized values. Libraries should highlight their own unique advantages and tap into their resources and services in mutually beneficial collaborations with other types of makerspaces.

First, the results of this study cannot fully summarize the development status of makerspaces in Chinese libraries. Second, the research materials used in this study may be biased, especially the news reports.

This paper presents a semantic, visualized analysis of aggregated online news articles and journal articles on library makerspaces in China in an attempt to summarize their characteristics and guiding values, validate the advantages of library makerspaces and give suggestions on improving their service models.

This paper introduces the development trend of makerspace in Chinese libraries, so that researchers at home and abroad can learn more about the development of Chinese library.

This study comprehensively overviews the development of library makerspaces in China. The results provide suggestions to improve maker services in library.

This paper aims to investigate design principles for transforming existing making communities of practice within public libraries into online knowledge-building communities to support youths, families with young children and adult members’ making and tinkering during COVID-19.

Building upon C4P and connected learning framework, the authors analyze existing literature and practitioner reports on informal learning projects related to making and STEM learning, family learning and online learning as well as emergent cases of innovative approaches in response to COVID-19 from public libraries, informal learning institutions and community groups.

The authors suggest 11 design principles around five areas: program design, facilitation, tools and materials, process documentation and sharing and feedback.

This work contributes to the information and learning sciences concerned with community engagement and knowledge creation by suggesting a design model to transform and sustain existing making communities of practice within public libraries into online knowledge-building communities during COVID-19.

The purpose of this paper is a case study evaluation based on a mobile innovation lab experiment – a new training and service format that offers innovation trainings on a mobile basis for schools in rural regions.

The research aims to connect concepts of “entrepreneurial orientation and education” and “innovation adoption.” The objective of the case study is to test the readiness of pupils and schools for the provided innovation trainings and services to increase innovation capacities.

The case study is based on an explorative survey of 778 pupils at 18 schools and shows an increased awareness of innovative thinking and entrepreneurial capabilities.

The findings and implications are not generalizable owing to predefined project region and the prototype character. The study offers basic insights into the specific processes and determining factors and mechanisms of innovation promotion in limited spatial work forms.

A mobile innovation environment focused on trainings and modern technologies was created. The workshops strengthened the entrepreneurial intention and potential of pupils to foster long-lasting innovation potential in the region.

The tested concept improves the method-based development of creative project ideas, thereby strengthening the regional cohesion and the economic perspective in the project region.

After extensive research, the authors assume there is no comparable concept offering entrepreneurship education and latest technologies in a mobile innovation environment, at the time of submitting this paper.

A makerspace has recently been identified as an essential learning field for cultivating students’ creative and thinking abilities. Creating a makerspace service within a university library is vital, as it fosters innovation, interdisciplinary learning, practical skills, entrepreneurship and career readiness while transforming the library into a dynamic centre for hands-on education and collaboration. Nevertheless, the wide-ranging functions and uses of makerspace equipment can potentially lead to a situation where librarians are overwhelmed by their duties due to manpower constraints. Therefore, this study aims to develop a novel game-based augmented reality navigation system (GARNS) based on the Octalysis gamification framework and scaffolding theory to support makerspace user education, hoping to promote learners’ learning motivation and their immersive experience and to enhance the learning performance of makerspace user education.

With a true experimental research method, 24 grade 11 students from a high school in Keelung City, Taiwan, were recruited to participate in the experiment on makerspace user education. Among them, ten students were randomly assigned to the experimental group using the GARNS and the other seven students were randomly assigned to a control group using the Web navigation system. The remaining seven students were assigned to a second control group using the narrative guided tour with a librarian to conduct makerspace user education.

Analytical results show that learners can achieve significant learning effectiveness using the GARNS, Web navigation system or traditional narrative guided tour with a librarian for makerspace user education. There were no significant differences in learning effectiveness and motivation neither between the GARNS group and the narrative guided tour with a librarian group nor between the Web navigation system group and the narrative guided tour with a librarian group. However, there were significant differences in learning effectiveness and motivation in terms of the value and expectation dimensions of learning motivation between the GARNS group and the Web navigation system group, and the GARNS group was significantly better than the Web navigation system group.

The study’s practical implication on makerspace user education is to reduce the manpower of a university library with makerspace services by the proposed GARNS that can offer a practical solution to enhance the learning effectiveness and motivation of makerspace through immersive game-based autonomous learning. Additionally, the study’s theoretical contribution lies in its innovative combination of game-based learning and scaffolding theory, while its practical significance stems from its potential to revolutionize makerspace user education, enhance motivation and performance and influence the broader landscape of educational technology.

This study combines game-based learning with augmented reality tools to develop a novel GARNS, which provides an innovative and effective learning tool suitable for the characteristics of makerspace and contributes to promoting makerspace user education and diversified learning modes. Additionally, most interviewees believed that using GARNS for educating makerspace users could assist them in consistently evaluating, choosing and discovering educational tasks in a library makerspace. This study contributes to promoting the popularization of makerspace user education.

The purpose of this paper is to describe the emergence of the mobile library FabLab FryskLab, a project of Bibliotheekservice Fryslân (BSF). There will be special attention on how the business case has been established.

The author examines the broader development of (mobile) FabLabs in libraries. Based on the description of sub-projects that together make the project FryskLab the approach of BSF is described.

The design of a mobile library lab speaks to many people’s imagination. However, achieving a sound business case requires a lot more than just driving around in a bus and providing practical workshops. Developing supporting projects is necessary.

At this time most publications on mobile library makerspaces are held in the realm of popular publications (blogs, magazines). Very little has been written on a wider range of case studies where mobile library makerspaces have been integrated into library services. This paper serves as an insight on how BSF developed the FryskLab project.

This paper reports the results of a survey of library staff members working with a library makerspace or with makerspace-related technologies. The purpose of this paper is to identify who is working with library makerspaces, what methods of training they have used, what training methods they prefer, and what topics they would like to see included in professional development and continuing education.

A 17-question survey was posted to two library makerspace-related listservs for two weeks.

The survey results found a varied array of job title of individuals working with library makerspaces. It also identified the preferred training methods, as well as the varied topics requested for professional development, showing a large need for a makerspace training in library staff.

This is the first study conducted about the preferred methods and topics of professional development and continuing education of library staff members working with makerspaces or makerspace-related technologies.