Learning through making in public libraries: theories,practices, and tensions

This article investigates learning and teaching in library makerspace programs. Given the recent trend for libraries and makerspaces to define themselves in terms of learning, the findings of this article are particularly relevant to current initiatives. The article first reviews pedagogical theories which are referenced in literature connected with makerspaces. Second, the article analyzes interview and observational data from a system-wide public library makerspace program. The analysis compares the pedagogical theories with the realities of teaching and learning in public library makerspaces and indicates tensions emerging from these comparisons. The conclusion highlights ways librarians in makerspaces might consider the affordances of these spaces and ways goals, facilitation strategies, and assessments might draw on a range of pedagogical theories. Rather than approaching makerspaces with a ‘one-size-fits’ all model, librarians can design makerspace learning and teaching to align with a range of structures, styles, and content.