ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book illustrates the impact of making on learning and development. It identifies the core learning practices of making as revealed through analysis of the field's most seminal maker publication, MAKE magazine. It examines how the learning that comes from maker experiences is affecting the way that learners see themselves as agents of change in the world. The book discusses systematic comparison of several 21st-century out-of-school pursuits, including video gaming, social media participation, and making. It addresses how a more considered view of the role of gender and tool choice can help educators design more inclusive making activities for youth from a variety of backgrounds. It investigates what motivates young people to take initiative, persist, and learn new skills in the process of making. The book presents a view of e-textile production as a fundamentally different way of relating to technology.
