Create, Innovate, Play and Explore: Opportunities for Formal and Informal Teaching and Learning in Makerspaces in Ireland

Abstract

The Maker Movement has gained in popularity over the last decade, allowing people of all ages and with varying skills and abilities to come together in order to create and explore in areas such as art, science, and engineering. To facilitate this movement, for profit companies, non-profits, and educational institutions run makerspaces. This qualitative study set out to examine the benefits of makerspace adoption in higher education in Ireland, with particular attention to their pedagogical value. The authors sought to identify opportunities for teaching and learning and the development of rich, diverse, and inclusive educational environments, as well as the potential to develop a maker network linking tertiary makerspaces with the wider community. Nine administrators from diverse types of makerspaces participated in interviews where they described the impacts and observed effects of makerspaces on participant learning experiences. Findings indicate that makerspaces support self-directed and peer learning, foster inclusive learning communities characterised by skill-sharing and mentorship, and provide safe environments for experimentation and productive failure. In doing so, makerspaces support learning dispositions such as agency, resilience, and self-efficacy, which are increasingly recognised as critical to student learning, persistence, and adaptability in contemporary higher education. Participants also perceived positive impacts on mental health, an area that remains under-researched in tertiary makerspaces. Finally, interviewees advocated for the development of a maker network in Ireland, suggesting that such a network could facilitate the sharing of skills and resources and strengthen access to larger-scale funding.