iPads, MakerEd and More in Education

This morning kids were 3D printing some new designs. They were joined by a group working on a geometry problem. At lunch time, the Code Club worked on their snake robots (ironically coded in Python), then a team worked on unicorn designs. After the Engineering and Physics class, a group of kids worked on four panes that illustrate The Kite Runner.” Jayne Everson, Director of Robotics + Engineering and R+D Experience Lead at ​Beaver Country Day School​ summarized the eclectic forms of engagement experience on one day at the year-old Research + Design Center.

Nationally known for its forward-leading education, ​Beaver Country Day School​ released a Student Engagement Study​ today outlining the ways that big flexible spaces can unleash learning—in some expected and surprising ways.

To determine the impact of the Research + Design Center during its first year, three graduate students from the Harvard Graduate School of Education spent time interviewing, observing and surveying students and faculty. The study found that 95% of students understand topics better when learning in a collaborative, project-based space.

Replacing the old dark library, the school’s new 38,000 square foot Research + Design Center is a state-of-the-art innovation hub designed to promote student-driven learning. The Center hosts regularly scheduled classes, project teams, clubs and lots of drop-ins.

Each year, the art teacher and I collaborate on a 3D design and 3D printing project to accompany her art standards in 1st grade. Blokify has been a trusty 3D design tool that has served this project well due to its simplicity on the iPad. However, this year we hit a road block. Blokify is no longer available in the app store, and this was the year that our iPads finally quit supporting its functionality.

When you’re a designer you never stop learning. No matter if you’re a UX designer, a graphic designer, or you specialize in illustrations or hand lettering, there’s always something new to learn. That’s one of the best parts of being in this field.

And if you’re struggling, it’s helpful to know that there is a huge community of designers out there who are going through the same issues as you are. And who are eager to share their stories and impart their wisdom. Listening to them can help you become a better designer.

With that in mind, we have compiled a list of the best design podcasts that should help spark your creativity and get you out of any slumps you may be in.

Wordplay is a never-ending source of amusement for me, with puns, spoonerisms and double entendres bringing a little extra color and life to the everyday language that we sometimes take for granted.

Swedish designer Daniel Carlmatz also loves to get creative with words, but in a different way. He set himself a challenge to create a new typographic logo each day for 365 days, using a common word and adding related visual elements through symbolism, creative use of negative space, and geometry. “The inspiration for the 365 day challenge came from trying to challenge myself to look at type and design from a different perspective,” Daniel told Bored Panda. “The challenge was just an outlet for my personal design thinking. And yes, I did manage to finish it without missing a day!”

This story is part two of MakerBot's series of design studies, exploring iterative design and the relationship between designers and their tools. 

You've probably taken something apart just to see how it works. Maybe you fixed it, maybe you marveled at the ingenuity of the design, but something about it was fascinating.


I had this experience recently with a micro drone. It flies surprisingly well, has a camera, and even some stabilization features. With my curiosity getting the better of me, I decided to take it apart and reverse engineer it to create my own 3D printed design.

The Open University offers a free course on design and innovation. The course includes a set of six short videos that provide a broad overview of the history and development of modern design. That playlist, beginning with the video on the influence of arts and crafts on design, is embedded below.

Doris Wells-Papanek of www.designlearning.us published an article in “Innovation Journal” in which she said “Design is to doing as learning is to thinking.” Learning, Wells-Papnek explains, prepares students to think, and design enables them to do. The goal of design learning is to help students become great problem solvers as they progress through the steps of the design learning framework, challenged to be creative but mindful of the task put before them.

The scale of what we’re designing has shifted from products, to companies, to economic systems.

Who we’re designing for has expanded from a solitary user to an intimately connected web of people, spanning the globe.

New tools such as artificial intelligence, the internet of things, and synthetic biology mean our design ambitions are limited only by our imagination.

Meanwhile, creativity has never been more important: the global economy is stuttering and disruptive technologies challenge established business models.

Design is an artistic endeavor that values the creative and human centered application of math, science and technology. Using design to help others learn science is not intuitive, however, once practiced you will see how humanistic and authentic it is to incorporate design in any subject. Below is a list of the most promising benefits that I have noticed in the past six years for using design as a framework and making as the engine to empower students as they gain and apply their scientific literacy.

Part 1 of the series ‘Designing responsibly with AI’ to help design teams understand the ethical challenges when working with AI and have better control over the possible consequences of their design on people and society.

Here’s a fun project using Tinkercad that also serves a very handy purpose. These clever QR code coasters can give out your home WiFi information for an automatic login, perfect for any party by giving guests access without them having to ask. All people have to do is scan the code with their phones and they are automatically logged into your WiFi.

The free online design resources that are available today are versatile, simple, and powerful. They are user-friendly and social media-oriented in every way. They’re also free to use, which makes it easy to explore and experiment with them as much as you like. The tools listed in this post fit the bill nicely. Design a website, create vector graphics, edit photos, design icons, create a visual resume, and much more.

This year the Global Day of Design will take place on 5/2/17. We will be sharing students designing, building, making, and tinkering on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram using the hashtag #GDD17!