WikiSeat – learning through making

photo care of wikiseat.org

Have you ever thought about how building furniture can help your learners understand your class? Well, we hadn’t either until we ran across WikiSeat and their vision for a maker education initiative. They explain how critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and communication are key concepts that are central to 21st century learning. It takes all those skills to do well in your class, and it takes all those skills to build a seat. Starting with a catalyst (pictured), learners engage in the design and building process while linking the four key concepts to the class content.

We are now one of 103 educational organizations internationally who are participating in the WikiSeat initiative. We see the WikiSeat program fitting in with our new Media and Exam Certificate workshops for the department, specifically the workshops on Instructional Design and Leadership, as they centre around the same four key concepts.

Want more information about the WikiSeat initiative? See their website: wikiseat.org.
Want to see examples of seats that students built? See this video: WikiSeats Gallery.
Want to see who the 103 participants are? See the Wiki Educators Map.
Want to participate yourself? Stay tuned to Certificate and Workshop announcements in Spring 2013!

WikiSeat is also currently doing some fundraising to be able to supply the catalysts to everyone. You can find details and donate here: Indiegogo Crowdfunding Platform.