WHAT IS LEARNING BY MAKING AND WHY DOES IT WORK? Most of us have been through an education system which taught us how to pass exams and regurgitate facts, while sitting in rows of desks facing a teacher. This system worked while standardized education was the objective. But as our world has grown in complexity, so we need to rethink our educational approach. At pi-top, we know that there’s a better way of teaching and learning, especially in STEAM subjects.
LEARNING BY MAKING IN STEAM SUBJECTS Before we standardized education, there was a different way of learning, and that involved making, doing or building something. Instead of being told how to solve a problem in theory and then completing some practice examples, students solve these problems for themselves. By getting hands-on, they directly observe and understand what is happening. There’s also achievement in discovery, a sense of “yes! I did that!” and ownership of their learning.
WHY DOES LEARNING BY MAKING WORK? Learning by making works on many levels. Firstly, students learn skills they need for the future. Taking STEAM beyond the textbook means focusing on collaborative problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. This type of learning also encourages students to discover and do things for themselves and learn both independently and with their peers.
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WHAT IS LEARNING BY MAKING?
Hands-on learning engages and supports different types of learners because it gives everyone a place. Those with more experience can help those with less, those who want simple or more complex applications or scenarios can build a project that suits them, and all of them can take advantage of different kinds of memory — procedural, autobiographical, communicative — that neuroscience has shown to be more powerful than the semantic memory necessary for filling out a worksheet or taking a multiple-choice test. Students get meaningful feedback through trial and error, figuring out a new way of doing something, input from peers, testing, prototyping and improving (in addition to teacher feedback). All of this can happen within a lesson. Students learn more quickly, and crucially they will make mistakes or their tests won’t work first time, so they also learn more deeply. Learning by making helps students retain knowledge because of this depth of learning and engagement, and because they’re using their hands as well as their minds. There’s no point in forcing students to memorize something if they can’t apply what they’ve been taught, or use it outside the classroom. A lesson is most effective when it’s relevant to real life, because it’s easier for students to understand and relate to what they’re doing. It also empowers students to engage with their environment and take a sense of inspiration away with them. And finally…it’s fun! Learning by making engages students; there’s a buzz of creativity and joy in this type of learning. Nothing could be better than having a classroom full of engaged students who are learning to apply their knowledge in a meaningful way.
