Mark Barnett

TEDx Speaker on Maker Education – Podcast Episode 162 | Classnotes Podcast 162

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Laurie PosnerClassnotes Podcast (April 19, 2016) Mark Barnett, IDRA’s new chief IT strategist, was a presenter a TEDx talk at TEDx San Antonio on “Everyone is a Maker, but Not Everyone has Access.” Mark is a STEM and Maker education expert who is passionate about equal opportunity technology education. In his time as a teacher and consulting with schools and other youth serving organizations he has been committed to showing that hands-on learning and project-based learning improves education outcomes and excites students.

He also served almost 30,000 students in low-income and rural schools with the high-tech makerspace on wheels called the Geekbus, which has received national recognition and awards. In this podcast episode, he shares highlights from his TEDx talk including the development of “Maker Education” and his early days as a teen building a 3-D printer from a rudimentary kit from the Ukraine before most people had ever heard of 3-D printers.

Mark is interviewed by Laurie Posner, MPA, IDRA senior education associate.

Show length: 13:31

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Resources

Video: Everyone is a Maker, but not everyone has access
Mark Barnett at TEDxSanAntonio, video on YouTube [9:28 min]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PZN7eduO-g

Youth Makerspace Playbook
By the Maker Education Initiative
http://makered.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Youth-Makerspace-Playbook_FINAL.pdf

Maker Education Initiative – Every Child a Maker
Nonprofit organization with many resources for educators
http://makered.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Makerspace-Playbook-Feb-2013.pdf

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Show Notes

  • Laurie asks Mark about his background and interest in technology and STEM fields.

  • Marks talks about the robotics programs he has started in Texas, and how robotics can help bring math and science concepts to life.

  • Mark discusses the maker education movement and the growth of maker fairs around the world.

  • Mark gives an overview of his TEDxSA talk, and his goal to expand maker-focused education programs beyond middle- and high-income areas through the use of low-cost, open-source tools like the Raspberry Pi.

  • Mark talks about work with the Geekbus, a mobile makerspace inside a 40-feet RV, and how it exposes students and teachers to new technologies and gets them excited to learn about STEM.

  • Mark explains why the Internet “is the great equalizer.”