Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
Barriers to classroom adoption
Today, 3D printers have made solid inroads at the high school level. If there's
already 3D design software and a CNC mill in a high school, it's not that big of
a step to install a low-cost, consumer-grade 3D printer. In a sense, when a 3D
printer scoots into a classroom on the heels of 3D design software, it's exactly
where it should be: a classroom manufacturing tool that can turn design ideas
into physical reality.
The primary barriers at the middle and primary school level are train-
ing teachers, good curriculum, and itting 3D design and printing into the
standardized testing process. Teachers need to be enthused and comfortable
about integrating design software and 3D printing into their core math and
science curricula. School boards and parents need to understand its role in
the teaching process. And somehow we need to devise a curriculum that
integrates their capacity.
Teachers breathe life into their classrooms and they determine what sort of
learning activities their students will take part in during the school year. Many
elementary school teachers, however, are typically not comfortable teaching
math and science. They view themselves primarily as reading teachers. 7
Somehow, to prepare teachers to warm up to 3D printing curricula, we need
to ensure that the printing curricula don't just walk teachers through the basic
mechanical aspects of the design and 3D printing process. Not everyone gets
excited by new technology for its own sake. Many teachers and students only get
excited when they see that they can apply design and 3D printing technologies
in their own creative arena or to solve problems in their daily lives.
If public schools are to invest in 3D printers and curriculum, to justify
their investment, lesson plans need to align with national and state education
standards in order for teachers to commit to teaching these activities. In the
1980s, in the United States, most states approved policies aimed at improving
the quality of K-12 education by implementing statewide curriculum guide-
lines and frameworks. About half of the states require students to pass some
form of exit examination to graduate from high school.
Private schools enjoy more freedom since they aren't required to adhere to
state standards. In the public school system, however, teachers and schools live
and die by their students' performance on yearly standardized tests. Standardized
tests are a double-edged sword. On the one hand, underperforming schools can
be identiied and perhaps offered additional funding or assistance.
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