I had the pleasure of attending a workshop by Curtis Wiebe on Makerspace and his experience with it. It was fascinating on how he was able to start from virtually nothing before being able to expand his library into the school’s creative commons. The big takeaway for me is the acquisition of technology that’s available without breaking my own wallet. The options to apply for grants from the district and corporations, community partners and parents can quickly equip a classroom with enough technology to transforming traditional learning. I’ve seen meet from the local butcher shop donated to a teacher for the purpose of teaching the skeletal system an example of accessing the community. I’ve also heard from Curtis Wiebe that his school got Microsoft Surfaces for the entire staff. It is with great hopes that I can perhaps reach out to places like Lee’s electronics for wires, LEDs, batteries and maybe even SFU’s SIAT fabrication equipment like laser cutters and foam cutters.
The vast amount of technology Curtis has acquired got me thinking about what my students could use to enhance their learning. Although not necessary needed, Masterpiece and Word on the Osmo makes learning novel, fun and competitive for students beyond what was possible traditionally. The visual cues would be a great asset for ELLs and for students who can’t draw well at all (like me!). There are just many possibilities to transform learning like never before.
As a teacher candidate who is very interested in technology but am not rich, it is somewhat futile to be thinking about learning with meaningful technology when I don’t even have access to the equipment themselves. Considering not all schools are equally equipped with iPad and computers. Today’s workshop helped me think about what can be done with limited supply of technology and how I need to adapt my lessons based on this factor.
Reference