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The researchers conducted a collective case study to investigate how families engaged in making activities related to aerospace engineering in six pop-up makerspace programs held in libraries and one museum. The purpose of this paper is to support families’ engagement in design tasks and engineering thinking, three types of discussion prompts were used during each workshop. The orienting design conjecture was that discussion prompts would allow parents to lead productive conversations to support engineering-making activities.

Within a collective case study approach, 20 consented families (22 adults, 25 children) engaged in making practices related to making a lunar rover with a scientific instrument panel. Data included cases of families’ talk and actions, as documented through video (22 h) and photographs of their engineering designs. An interpretivist, qualitative video-based analysis was conducted by creating individual narrative accounts of each family (including transcript excerpts and images).

Parents used the question prompts in ways that were integral to supporting youths’ participation in the engineering activities. Children often did not answer the astronomer’s questions directly; instead, the parents revoiced the prompts before the children’s engagement. Family prompts supported reflecting upon prior experiences, defining the design problem and maintaining the activity flow.

Designing discussion prompts, within a broader project-based learning pedagogy, supports family engagement in engineering design practices in out-of-school pop-up makerspace settings. The work suggests that parents play a crucial role in engineering workshops for youths aged 5 to 10 years old by revoicing prompts to keep families’ design work and sensemaking talk (connecting prior and new ideas) flowing throughout a makerspace workshop.

This paper aims to investigate how families’ sociomaterial experiences in engineering programs held in libraries and a museum influence their creative engineering practices and the creativity expressed in their products derived from their inquiry-driven engineering activities.

This research project takes a naturalistic inquiry using qualitative and quantitative analyses based on video records from activities of 31 parent–child pairs and on creativity assessment of products that used littleBits as prototyping tools.

Families engaged in two sociomaterial experiences related to engineering – collaborative idea exchange and ongoing generative tinkering with materials – which supported the emergence of novel ideas and feasible solutions during the informal engineering programs. Families in the high novelty score group experienced multiple instances of collaborative idea exchange and ongoing generative tinkering with materials, co-constructed through parent-child collaboration, that were expansive toward further idea and solution generation. Families in the low novelty score group experienced brief collaborative idea exchange and material tinkering with specific idea suggestions and high involvement from the parent. An in-depth case study of one family further illustrated that equal engagement by the parent and child as they tinkered with the technology supported families’ creative engineering practices.

This analysis adds to the information sciences and learning sciences literatures with an account that integrates methodologies from sociocultural and engineering design research to understand the relationship between families’ engagement in creative engineering practices and their products. Implications for practitioners include suggestions for designing spaces to support families’ collaborative idea exchange and ongoing generative tinkering to facilitate the development of creative engineering practices during short-term engineering programs.

This chapter examines the existing work on tangible user interfaces (TUIs) and focuses on tangible programming with the scope to enlighten the opportunities for innovation and entrepreneurship in this particular domain.

In the first section, we start by presenting in short the history of TUIs and then focus on tangible programming presenting the different design approaches. Then we present the opportunities for innovation and guidelines for future products.

In the second section, we review the entrepreneurial activities that combine educational toys and TUIs.

The main finding of this chapter is that although TUI design and research are still in its infancy and more design guidelines and research are required to further bridge the digital and the physical world, the first signs of entrepreneurship promise a bright future.

Limitations arise from the fact that many companies keep many of their financial data confidential. Thus, it was impossible to include and validate all the information that we intended to present.

Initially, this chapter motivates and challenges scientist to find novel innovative solutions in the field. Then, reveals the entrepreneurial opportunities and potential customers. Finally, shows the funding sources and how tangible products are offered in the market.

We propose a new kind of toys that might alter and expand science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in education.

This chapter appears to be unique in the sense that is the first that reports simultaneously on TUIs, entrepreneurship, and innovation.

In response to the underexplored need for holistically inclusive makerspaces for learning, we put propose the “SCAFFOLD” framework, which considers equity, inclusion and accessibility in the design of spaces and activities for socioculturally diverse learners.

This paper proposes a universal design (UD) framework that is intersectionally inclusive for learners with diverse needs in makerspaces and maker activities. This paper provides conjecture mapping to put forth theoretical and empirical arguments for the design of holistically inclusive makerspaces that consider gender equity and cultural inclusivity, as well as accessibility for diverse learners with divergent and unique abilities and dis/abilities.

Combining related literature and three existing UD frameworks (i.e. UD, web accessibility and UD for learning) and prior research on equity and inclusivity in making, this paper proposes the integration of eight principles, which leverage individuals’ diverse abilities to become agentic makers: simplicity, collaboration, accessibility, flexibility, fail-safe, object-oriented, linkability and diversity.

Researchers who have implemented conjecture maps (Lee et al., 2018) have found them to be useful for developing theory and learning designs grounded in research and practice. However, it should be noted that design research is iterative and contextual, and conjecture maps are effective in providing visibility and rigor, but are meant to be flexible and responsive to changes in context (Lee et al., 2018; Sandoval, 2014).

This paper provides practical guidelines and principles for researchers, educators, instructional designers and product developers to assess and redesign makerspaces and activities that are intersectionally and universally inclusive, equitable and accessible.

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.

We consider start-up companies that have been established for rapid growth and are active in the international market. In this study, we examine the conditions required for starting a start-up. We analyze how it is possible to add value to an idea that makes a business unique. First, we’ll show you when to talk about start-up. The starting point is that a start-up company is organized on a community basis. This much greater knowledge is coupled with high-level technological competences. In addition, there is a need for some “big idea,” innovation, which investors see as fantasy. A new niche market must be found where hundreds of thousands of customers worldwide can be served without any geographical constraints. The founder must have a high-risk appetite, and even naughtiness, because the novelty he invented will narrow the market of others and harm the interests of others. Here’s a look at the financing options for start-ups. At the end of this chapter you will find case studies on different start-ups.

The purpose of this paper is to uninitiate new and non-traditional library resources, such as those commonly found in a makerspace, can often seem abstract, intimidating, or even unrelated to the library mission. The University of Nevada’s DeLaMare Science and Engineering Library set out to engage its on-campus library colleagues to increase awareness and understanding of the new technologies being offered in support of active learning and discovery.

The science and engineering library is experimenting with an ongoing series of inreach/outreach workshops that enable other library faculty and staff from across the greater library organization to experience their non-traditional services and resources. A first pop-up maker technology workshop took place in June 2015 and was composed of three sessions including an introduction to 3D printing and modeling, digital design literacies, and lendable technologies. A survey was distributed to attendees for feedback.

Anecdotal evidence suggest the event was successful, offering a potentially powerful mechanism for engaging and informing library staff about non-traditional resources and technology.

This outreach approach may prove valuable for other academic libraries to similarly create awareness of non-traditional resources and technologies among its colleagues.

Area 49 is a group of specialized technology spaces in J. Murrey Atkins Library at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Since the launch of these spaces in 2018, librarians have worked with instructors in all disciplines to design unique experiences that support students’ academic success and lifelong learning. However, much of the success of these spaces is due to the extensive research and work that occurred during the planning, construction, and purchasing stages. While the spaces will continue to evolve based on research, emerging technologies, and use, it was this foundation that posed the spaces for success from the start.

This conceptual study investigates the adoption of education technology (EdTech) products among college students, focusing on identifying the key factors influencing the adoption process within educational institutions. Technology integration in education has rapidly gained prominence, with EdTech offering innovative solutions to enhance teaching and learning experiences. However, understanding the determinants that affect EdTech adoption remains critical for its successful implementation and impact. This paper aims (1) to identify the factors influencing the adoption of EdTech by college students (2) to create a conceptual model that shows the connections between the elements that lead to college students adopting EdTech.

The research employed a mixed-methods approach, combining qualitative data analysis and conceptual modeling to achieve the objectives. The underlying knowledge required to create a qualitative data gathering tool was obtained through a thorough literature analysis on innovation dissemination, educational psychology and technology adoption. College students, teachers and administrators participated in semi-structured interviews, focus groups and surveys to provide detailed perspectives on their attitudes about and experiences with EdTech. The Scopus and Web of Science databases are searched for relevant information in an organized manner in order to determine the factors influencing the adoption of EdTech. Second, an extended version of the technology adoption model is adopted to develop a qualitative data-based conceptual framework to analyze EdTech adoption in the Indian context.

Overall, by highlighting the critical components that emotionally influence college students' adoption of EdTech products in educational institutions, this course adds to the body of information already in existence. The conceptual framework model serves as a roadmap for educational stakeholders seeking to leverage EdTech effectively to enrich the learning environment and improve educational outcomes. By recognizing the significance of the identified factors, academic institutions can make informed decisions to foster a climate conducive to successful EdTech integration.

A comprehensive conceptual framework model was developed based on qualitative data analysis to illustrate the interrelationships between the identified factors influencing EdTech adoption. This model presents a valuable tool for educational institutions, policymakers and EdTech developers to comprehend the complex dynamics of implementing these technological solutions.

The findings of this study demonstrated a number of important variables that affect the uptake of EdTech products in educational settings. These factors encompassed technological infrastructure, ease of use, perceived usefulness, compatibility with existing academic practices, institutional support, financial constraints and individual attitudes towards technology. Additionally, the research explored the significance of institutional preparation for embracing technological advancements as well as the influence of socio-cultural elements.