ABSTRACT

This chapter examines the cultural roots of the Maker Movement, make the case that the roots are a threat to its survival in schools, and propose a new set of principles that might allow the movement to achieve the goals dreamed by Dewey, Freire, and Papert. The Maker Movement is one of the most exciting educational innovations in recent decades, but if it is indeed to transform schools, people need to quickly amplify and solidify its impact and avoid converting it into one more item in the long list of failed educational innovations of the last 50 years. The chapter proposes a conversation within the movement and the research community around it to better align its ideals, implementation, and future. Every few decades, one idea, practice, or place captures the hearts and minds of progressive educators: Maria Montessori's method, John Dewey's school at the University of Chicago, Paulo Freire's experiment in Angicos, or Seymour Papert's Logo programming language.