Hardware Reference
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enforced by closed source binaries and user licenses. If these students
had been exposed to open source software instead, they would be free
to explore the full stack of the tool they're using. They might even go
on to share code changes, contributing to the distributed development
of their software tools.
Education in its purest form has no barriers to inquiry and no restric-
tions on exploration of ideas. Open source values align splendidly with
education, providing students with the opportunity to dive into any lay-
er of tools that they find compelling. Closed source software in educa-
tion implicitly tells students that there should be limits to their curios-
ity—that they should not look behind the curtain, but should instead be
satisfied with what has been given to them. While this strategy may be
effective at selling software licenses, it promotes a mentality of con-
sumption over creation that is detrimental to students' education and
personal development. Open source hardware is in a wonderfully form-
ative stage. Because open source hardware is easier to use and reaches
a younger audience, it has the opportunity to become a stakeholder in
education and push closed source platforms out before they infiltrate
our education system to an even greater extent.
OSHW Teaching and Service
Developing and sharing open source hardware designs can be viewed as a form of ser-
vice—service you do for the entire world and for those to come in the future who build
from your work. When this service is brought into the context of the classroom, it is best
discussed as service learning, which is a teaching method that combines community ser-
vicewithacademicinstructionasitfocusesoncriticalreflectivethinkingandcivicrespons-
ibility (Campus Compact, 2000). One of the unique aspects of service learning is that it
benefits both the provider and the recipient of the service and requires that the service and
the learning occur in tandem (Furco, 1996). Service learning began as a somewhat fringe
educational endeavor, particularly in engineering. However, now that the evidence shows
service learning outcomes are positive for students, faculty, educational institutions, and
involved community partners, it has grown into a formidable trend (Bielefeldt and Pearce,
2012; Bringle and Hatcher, 1996; Cohen and Kinsey, 1994; Driscoll et al. 1996; Giles and
Eyler, 1994; Kellogg Commission, 1999; Panici and Lasky, 2002; Pearce, 2007a, 2009;
Pearce et al., 2008; Pearce, 2009). There is now an entire journal ( The International Journ-
al for Service Learning in Engineering ) devoted to the topic.
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