New Educator Program Aims To Help Teachers Leverage 3D Printing
Source: edtechmagazine.com | Re0Post CCS Presentations 4/27/2017 –
From creating prosthetics to exploring creativity and enhancing understanding of literature, 3D printing has a lot of potential in the K–12 classroom. But for a teacher who has never used a tech tool like a 3D printer, it can be a daunting.
“For teachers who are inundated with tons of new technology and who have changing standards to adhere to, the intimidation factor of 3D printing is real,” says Drew Lentz, MakerBot’s education manager.
This possible intimidation was the impetus behind the MakerBot Educators program that was launched at the Future of Education Technology Conference earlier this year. Playing off Thingiverse Education —MakerBot’s collection of science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics (STEAM) lesson plans — Lentz says MakerBot Educators is a community of teachers of various skill level and backgrounds working together to further 3D printing in education.
“There was a huge need and request from most of our education customers for content and community,” says Lentz. “Essentially, they had a 3D printer, but didn’t necessarily know how they could use it in alignment to their standards.”
