Maker Professional Development in a Latinx Agricultural Community Workshop: Learning for My Students and Myself

• In Event: Mapping the Terrain: Designing, Supporting, and Understanding Maker Educators in Rural Communities

Abstract

In rural and agricultural communities, where the technocentrist and White upper class imagery of “making” can fall flat, working toward careers in emerging STEM fields involves imagining new futures at individual and community levels. To design professional development (PD) for this kind of work, we draw from theories of expansive learning that stress the emergence of new goals and objects as new vantage points are gained (Engeström & Sannino, 2010), and from culturally responsive pedagogies (Ryoo, 2019), including equitable approaches to design and making (Martin, Dixon & Betser 2018; Vossoughi, Hooper & Escudé, 2016). We design for flexibility across tools and facilitation structures so that work can be responsive to goals and constraints of organizations and learners, and honor existing expertise in making, problem solving, and teaching. In this project, we also used techniques and open-source technologies that emphasize storywork (Tzou et al, 2019) and employ low-cost, familiar materials (paper and cardboard) to create a wide range of entry points into scientific, computational, and creative practices.
In a predominantly Latinx community in a small agricultural city, we conducted a one-day PD (professional learning experience) for 15 educators who worked in a community center and afterschool clubs and ranged in age from 17 to approximately 45. We introduced techniques for creating cardboard mechanisms and inexpensive microcontrollers, then provided time to work and reflect together. We analyzed data from field notes and videotaped presentations in which participants shared and reflected on their creations and process.
We focus on three cases to illustrate key considerations that emerged from analysis. The first case highlights an experienced educator who used the new resources to extend, instead of displace, work he was already doing with young people. The case demonstrates how short-term PD in rural makerspaces can succeed by opening opportunities to bring in community histories and cultural practices, while retaining a clear focus on strengths and constraints of teaching sites.
The second two cases focus on what we term “emerging educators” whose work in the PD was tailored around particular visions for what they wanted to build and learn. Our analysis spotlighted the dual roles of teacher and learner that emerging educators take in maker education programs. While this duality exists everywhere, it may be especially salient in rural and agricultural communities, where many young people step into positions as mentors, tutors, coaches, and teaching assistants, as they step out of high school. These programs can allow them to earn income and try out possible careers, while also continuing learning in high tech areas that would otherwise be difficult to access.
We discuss how maker-oriented PD may be an asset to both community- and individual-level learning and change, supporting educators work within existing programs, while simultaneously supporting trajectories and imaginaries that could take them further into STEM but possibly out of education. We also explore ways in which experiences of rurality among predominantly migrant communities may differ from those of predominantly White communities, and how pedagogical approaches in maker-oriented programs can respond to these experiences.

Authors

• Colin Dixon, BSCS Science Learning

• Sherry H. Hsi, BSCS Science Learning

• Seth Van Doren