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AlexisMiranda
TinaChaves
SeniorInternship
15December2015
InternshipatOpenSourceMakersLab
Introduction
OnceIstartedmyinternship,IhadnoideawhattoexpectattheOpenSourceMakers
Lab.Atfirst,Iwasn'tplanningtogetaninternshiplikethis.Atmysurprise,Iendedupgetting
thisinternshipwiththehelpofmyteacherMrs.Chavez.ThroughoutthedaysI'vebeengoing,I
slowlystartedtogetagraspofthetypeofcommunityandenvironment.OSMLhasahuge
selectionoftoolsandmachinesallaroundtherewarehouse.Mycuriositywasgettingaholdof
me,untilIlearnedabouttheMakerMovement,thatswhenIfinallyunderstoodthemain
conceptofbecomingamaker.Iwouldhavetosaythatmyinternshipplayedabigrole,when
gettingintomyresearch.Mymentorisanexpertatwhathedoes,whichismainlyprogramming,
workingwithtechnology,andgeneralinformationaboutlabworksandelectronics.
TheMakerMovementhasbeentransformingourabilitytoreconfigurecertainskillsets.
Learninghowtocreateanidea,comingstraightfromyourmindsoundssomewhatdifficult.But
withtherightmindset,youcanconductafinalproduct,thatrepresentsyourcreativeness,ideas,
andhardwork.Buildingandinventingaren'ttheonlyaspectsofbecomingamakerorbeingpart
ofthemovement.Asthismovementkeepsongoingforward,therearen'tasmanyyounglearners
thatareawareofthis.Ivealsonoticedthatschoolshavenotbeenincorporatingthismethodin


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theirsystem,especiallypublicschools.HighTechHighdoesagreatjobonimplementingthese
programsintotheschoolculture.
Background
TheMakerMovementhasbeeninspiringchildrenandteenstoexpressthemselves
throughanengineeringperspective.TheMakerMovementisanewtypeoflearningprocessthat
engagesthelearnertoexpandtheirthinking.It'saverypowerfulmethodthatinvolvestrue
artisticelementsintotheirwork.Thereareplacesdedicatedtothismovement,thatarecalled
makerlabs.Therearemanymakerlabsallaroundtheworldincludingover100eachinGermany
andtheUnitedStates.Thesemakerlabsalsoreferredasmakerspaces,allhaveuniquestyles
thatwhichcontainalltypessuchaselectronics,robotics,circuitryworks,welding,3Dprinting,
laserprinting,woodworking,metalworking,andtheuseofCNCtools.TheMakerMovement
hasbecomemoreandmorepopularthroughouttheyears.makerlabsencourageyoungchildren
fromallagesbyhelpingthemcraftwhatevertheyfeellikebuilding.Makerlabmembersget
introducedtonewskillsetstheycanpotentiallyuseintheircareers.
TheMakerMovementhascaughtmanypeople'sattention,includingthePresidentofthe
UnitedStates.InJune,18,2014,PresidentObamaheldthefirsteverWhiteHouseMakerFaire.
TheFaireissuedtheimportanceofmakerspacesbeinginvolvedintheeducationalsystem.He
thereforemadeacalltoactionthateverycompany,everycollege,everycommunity,every
citizenjoinsusasweliftupmakersandbuildersanddoersacrossthecountry.Eversincethen,
makerlabshavebeenexperimentingwiththeuseoftechnologythatcanpotentiallychangethe
futureofourmoderntechnology.Infact,thispastJuneofthisyear,theObamaadministration
issuedaPresidentialProclamationnamingJune12throughJune18NationalWeekofMaking.


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AlsoduringtheWhiteHouseMakerFaire,itannouncedthecommitmentoffederalagenciesand
schooldistrictsaroundthecountry.Includingpledgestocreatemorethan100,000makerspaces
intheUS.
Kidshavebeenahugeattractiontowardsthemakermovement,duetothefactthatMaker
Labsattainalotofhandsonprojectsandtasks.Thisengageschildrentobuildsomethingoftheir
own.Astheyprogress,theystarttogainnewskillsetsbytacklinganyobstaclethatgetstheir
way.Mostmakerlabshavealltheresourcesyouwouldeverneedincluding,tools,woodcutting
machines,metalbendingmachine,soldering,breadboards,arduinos,andallothertypesof
circuitrytools.Asthemakerculturebecomesmorepopular,hackerspacesandmakerlabsare
becomingmorecommoninuniversitiesandpubliclibraries.Ahackerspaceisaplacewhere
peoplegotoworkoncomputingortechnologyandshareknowledge,ideas,andprojects.In
EuropethepopularityofthelabsaremoreprominentthanintheUS,aboutthreetimemorelabs
existthere.Makerspaceshaveadifferentkindofenvironmentthatcanmakepeopleinteractwith
oneanotherandshareideasbyactuallytransformingtheirideaintoaphysicalmodel.
Anotherwaymakerlabshavebeenbenefittingcommunitiesisthat,nothingcanlimityou
frombecomingamaker.Allyouneedisacreativemindandthedesiretobuildandoperate
machinery.ThereisamakerlablocatedinSanDiego,inthecityofVistacalledOpenSource
MakersLab(OSML).Thismakerlabisagoodexampleofwhatthemakercultureand
movementareallabout.Thislabhasallthetoysandtoolsanengineerwouldeverwant,alltheir
resourcesandsuppliesrightatthetipofyourhands.Theyhavemanymembersmainlyteensand
adults,thatarethereeithertouse3Dprinterorthelasercutter.3Dprintinghasbeengrowing
rapidlyintoourmoderndaytechnologythatitmakespeoplewanttogetatasteofperhapsthe


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future'stechnologywhichmay,insomecases,be3Dprinting.Inotherwords,OSMLhasbeen
doingawonderfuljobonkeepingthemakerculturegoingbybringinginmorepeopletobea
partofthisworldchangingmovement.

Methods
TheresearchtookplaceataninternshipattheOpenSourceMakersLab.Theyreallydo
fittheirnameduetotheiropensourcesthatareveryreliabletocommittedmakersthatgoand
workonprojects.PeoplewouldgottoOSMLasmembers,soyouwouldhavetobecomea
memberandpaythefeeeverymonth.TheOpenMaker'sLab(OSML)islocatedinVista
California.OSMLisafamilybusinessthatisownedbyDanHendricks,heismymentorand
CEOofOSML.HiswifeMaryHendricksisthemanageroftheOSMLandisalwaysthereto
helpoutwiththesetupsandprogramsforthecompanymembers.OSMLhasavarietyof
electronicworksandcircuitry,allthetoolsyouwouldeverneedinordertobuildliterally
anything.OSMLhasbeenapartoftheMakerMovementjustlikeanyothermakerlaboutthere.
Theyencouragemoreandmorepeopletojointhemovementsotheycanexperiencethenew
wayofexpressingideasandactuallybuildingthem.
OSMLhoststheroboticsteamformyschoolHighTechHighNorthCounty.Allthe
roboticsteammembersgotoOSMLandconstructalltheirroboticexperimentsusingtheiropen
spaceandtools.TheHighTechHighroboticsteamhavealsobeenpublishedtoanarticlemade
byreporterswhogotothecompetitionsandinterviewtheteams.I'mgladtosaythatourschool
wasabletomakeinthearticle,whereittalksabouttheirstrugglesandaccomplishmentscoming


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intothecompetition.TheyalsoaddasectionprimarilydedicatedtoOSMLandexhalinghow
OSMLplayedabigroleintotheHighTechroboticsteam.DanHendrickswasseenasarobotics
expertwhichiswhyhemakesahugeimpactintothemakersociety.
EverythingOSMLhasinstoreisavailabletoanyone,anywhere.Whetheryouwantto
testyourideasby3Dprintinganobjectandactuallyhavingyourideasrightatthepalmofyour
hand.Thereisaunlimitedamountoftoolsandmachinerytouseatanytime.It'sbasicallylikea
gymmembership,butinsteadoftreadmillsandweights,theyhave3Dprinters,plywoodcutting
machine,andweldingmaterials.
However,inorderformetogetactualevidenceofthemakermovementimpact,I
decidedtofindoutifotherstudentofHighTechhadsimilarexperiences.Icreatedasurvey
askingfivequestions,allofthembeingrelatedtoOSMLandhowtheywereabletoimplement
theirworkatOSMLintotheirschoolassignmentsandprojects.Ichosethesurveyasamethod
becauseIonlywantedtogettheviewpointsofthemembersthatareintheroboticsteam,since
they'vehadmoreexperienceandknowledgeaboutOSML.I'venoticedthatmostmemberswere
abletoproducemorecreativity,mainlyinthetechnologicalaspect.Thismadesensebecauseat
HighTechwealwaysendupworkingwithelectronicsinsomeway.Developingbeneficialskills
wasalsoapopularanswerwhengettingintothelearningprogress.Everyoneseemedtoalready
haveanideaonwhattheywanttodoasaprofession.Oneofthemwastodevelopvideogame
graphicsandbecomingexpertsincomputerscience.Idobelievetheywillhavethecapabilityto
successfullyearntheirprofessionchoices,withtheirexperienceandskillsthatcanleadtheminto
theirdesires.


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Analysis
Accordingtothedatagatheredatthisinternship,ithasgivenabettersenseoftheMaker
Movementandhowit'schangingstudentscapabilitiesinlearningnewskills.Asmentioned
before,theMakerMovementrevolvesaroundtheengineeringaspect,alltypesofengineering.
It'sbecomewellknownallthroughouttheUS,andit'sgivingyounglearnersanopportunityto
expandtheirknowledgeastruemakers.Building,designing,hacking,andprogrammingcangive
ustheskillsetsthatwecanlateronshowhoweffectiveitisintheeducationalenvironment.
Asanexample,Ihavegatheredprecisedata,fromveryreliablesourcesthatshowthe
actualprogress,whengettingintothemakermovementconcept.IusedtheHighTechHigh
roboticsteamasoneofmysources.IfiguredsincetheroboticsteamalwaysgotoOSML,they
wouldhaveabetterunderstandingofthemakermovement.SoIsentthemmysurveythatI
created,itcontainedfivequestionsbasedofftheexperiencesandgoalsofamaker.Iconsider
everyroboticsteammembertoreachtheirhighexpectationsnowthattheyhaveexperiencewith
complextoolsandresources.
Onefindingwasthatmostmemberswereabletoproducemorecreativity,mainlyinthe
technologicalaspect.Thereasonwhythesestudentshavebeensoengaged,isbecausetheirare


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multiplewaystolearnandproblemsolve.Whichmakesitfuntodiscoverallthenewthingsyou
canlearn.ThismadesensebecauseatHighTechwealwaysendupworkingwithelectronicsin
someway.Anotherfindingwasthatstudentsfelttheyweredevelopingbeneficialskillswhen
gettingintothelearningprogress.Everyoneseemedtoalreadyhaveanideaonwhattheywantto
doasaprofession.Oneofthemwastodevelopvideogamegraphicsandbecomingexpertsin
computerscience.OSMLcontainsdifferenttools,sotheyarecapabletoaccomplishthisbecause
computerscienceisrelatedwithprogramming,andcircuitry.Idobelievetheywillhavethe
capabilitytosuccessfullyearntheirprofessionchoices,withtheirexperienceandskillsthatcan
leadthemintotheirdesires.
Inadditiontogatheringdatafromtheroboticsteam,therewerealsomanywebsite
dedicatedtotheMakerMovement.TherewerelabsthatweresimilartoOSML,butthesource
thatstoodoutthemostwasanarticlepostedonHuffingtonPost,whereittalkedaboutthe
presidentBarackObamaandhowhewasahugesupporteroftheMakerMovement.President
BarackObamabasicallystatedthatthemakermovementshouldbemoreinvolvedintothe
educationsystems,includinghighschools,colleges,universities,andevenbusinesses.Hestated
thatitcanproducemorecreativityandselfconfidencetowardstheworkweareproudof,when
wehavecompleteaccesstotheresourcesweneed.
TheMakerMovementcanexpandthroughdifferentcategoriesofeducation.Itoffers
muchmorethanhandsoncrafting,itbringsinelectronics,programming,androbotsciencein
ameaningfulway.Theseyounginventorsexploretheirideasandimplementthemintheir
inventionsorprojects.Whichgivesamoredeepmeaning,thatisproducedbycreativelearning
andselfmotivation.TheMakerFaireisahugepartoftheMakerMovement.It'sagatheringof


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makerswholovetoshowwhattheycando.Includingalltypesofnewtechnology,thatis
presentedbymakerswhoarepassionatetoshowtheirexperiences.`

Eversince2013themakermovementhasbeendevelopingandturningpeopleintomore
makersthanconsumers.I'venoticedthattheyoungerstudentsarebeingdrawnintothe
movementmoreandmore.I'vebeenresearchingstudentswhowereabletoproducetheirtalents,
encouragedbythemakermovement.Forexample,agirlnamedSylviahasaYouTubechannel
calledSylvia'sSuperAwesomeMakerShow.Inherchannelsheteachesanddoesallsortsof
experimentsinvolvingelectronics,suchasarduinos.Shehasahugefanbasewiththousandsof
followerssupportingher.It'speoplelikeherthathasinspiredmillionsaroundtheworld.Her
videosconnectwiththeaudienceduetoherfunandenergeticstylewhenworkingonher
projects.AnotherexampleofayoungstudentbythenameofCain,wasabletobuildanarcade
game,simplymadeoutofcardboardandtape.Asheaccomplishedthearcadegamehedecided
tofilmhisprogressandpostitonYouTube.Notlongafter,hisvideoblewupwiththousandsof
views.Thisvideobecamesopopularthathereceivedinvitationstotraveltodifferentcountries
anddisplayhisworkandtalkaboutit.Notonlythat,hisideawasbuiltofftoformafoundation
wheretheysupportcreativityinkidsacrosstheglobe.


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ActionPlan/Conclusion
Overall,mygatheringsofdatahasledmetomanypossibilitiesandevenmorequestions
aboutthemainidea.Ireferredtolearnersasoutsidethinkersandinventors.Butnoteverybodyis
intothattypeoflearningmethod,whichisunderstandable.Themainpointofthismovementis
tofindtheinnerpassionofproducingmeaningfulwork.Thishasnothingtodowithcontrolling
theeducationalsystems,it'smoreseenasavaluablesourceofproductivitybeingaddedtothe
system.Kidshavebeenstartingtoexperimentwithproductsthatarecomplexandconfusing.But
theyseemtobeunafraidtomakeanymistakes,itgivesthemthemotivationtofigureitout
themselvesandthatsthegoalforeverymaker.Astechnologyhasbeenincreasingthroughout
theyears,peoplehavebeenfindingeasierwaystoworkandaccessmajorcomponents.3D
printingisanexampleofamajorcomponent,it'sacomplexmachinethatisabletoproduce
physicalmodels.Eventhoughit'samachinefullwithvariouscomponents,makerscanregulate


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andquicklyunderstandhowtoproperlyworkit.Everythingthatmakerlabsdocanteachyouan
simplerwaytoproblemsolve,whenusingallthesenewtoolsandformoftechnology.
Questionsstillseemtoremainunansweredwithmydata,theMakerMovementisoneof
manyprogramsincorporatingcreativethinking.Someareverysimilarandsomearenot,my
questionforthatwouldbeHowdoestheMakerMovementstandout,comparedtotherest?.
I'vedoneenoughresearchtofigurethisout,butthereisnoabsoluteanswer.Anotherquestion
thatwascametomewasCanstudents,thathavespecialneeds,beinvolvedintothis
movement?.Ifigurediftherearepeople,whocontainsomeformofdisability,theywouldhave
troublecomprehendingthismethod.Atthesametime,notallschoolshavethesamecurricular
studies,buteveryschoolsystemhasthepowertointegrateapowerfulresourceforyoung
students.

Appendix
Surveytotheroboticsteamandresponses:
1.

WhatdoyouuseatOSML?

TheusefulthingwehaveatOSMLisaspacewherewedon'tbotheranyone,andwherewecan
leaveourstuff(notasamess,butImean,asixfootrobot,andtwowholeHomeDepotworthy
shelvesofstuff).Wealsomakehugeuseoftheclassroomforworkshopswithinourteam.Butthe
toolsareinvaluableaswell.Lastseason,weusedthelasercutterdozensoftimes,andtheOSML
toolchestisatreasuretrovetosaytheleast.Thetoolsandequipmentwedon'tuseareusuallythe
solderingstation,thecraftsstuff,thewoodequipment,andtheweldingequipment.We'veplanned
onlearninghowtousetheCNCmachinesoonaswell.

Toolsandcomputers.

SPACE,laptopswithprogramslikeSolidworksandwithinternet,lasercutter,solderingirons,3D
printer,bandsaw,drillpress,extratape,screwdrivers,measuringtools,hammers

the3dprinterandhopefullythewelderandrouter.


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AllIuseatOSMLcurrentlyisthelaptopsfortheFRCteamlessonsandmeetingsthatarehosted
there.

Drillpress,Lasercutter,BandSaw

Almostallcuttingtools,hammers,lasercutter,3Dprinterandopensolidworksprograms.

Ihopethisresponseisn'ttoolateI'msorryifitis.Ithinkmyfavoritetoolisthelasercutter.Iworked
withCADalotlastyearduringthebuildseason,andmostofwhatImadewascutbythat.Ialso
thinkthebandsawissupernice,andIlikeusingthe3Dprinters.

2.Whatskillsspecificallyhavebeenhelpfulforyou?Whatisthebenefitforyouasastudent?

Asastudentonaroboticsteam,OSMLreallyfacilitatestheexperiencethatisFIRSTRoboticsfor
me,whichgivesmeatonofexperienceinengineering,inteamcoordination,leadership,andetc.

Building,designing,drafting,collaborating.Igettoexperiencewhatitislikeintheengineering
workplace.

Learningtheadvancedmanufacturingtoolshowandwhytousethem,communicatingtomentors
forhelp.IhaveathenstrongerresumewhenenteringSTEMsuniversitiesandknowthe
engineeringprocessforwhenIentercareer

codingandcad.obviousimplications

ThemosthelpfulskillIhavelearnedfromOSMLisproperelectricalcircuitsandbasicprogramming
formachinesandrobots.

Justgenerallybeingabouttothinkaboutaproblemandhowtogoaboutsolvingit.

Problemsolvinganddesignskillsmostly.Beingabletolearnwhatmechanismshavetofollowwhat
programandhowtoapplythemtobuildingarobotandusingdesignandthetoolswehavetocreate
thepartsnecessarytobuildthepiecesoftherobots.

I'velearnedtouseSolidWorksoverthepastcoupleofyears(throughtheroboticsteam),andthat's
askillthatIactuallyuseforschoolonoccasion,inordertomake3Dblueprintsofmyprojects.I'm
sureitwillbeputtogooduselaterinlifeaswell.Inaddition,learninghowtouseallofthedifferent
toolsatOSMLhastaughtmealotaboutdesignthinking,andI'msureIwillbeusingverysimilar
toolsinmyfieldofstudylateron.

3.Whatfieldareyouinterestedinstudyingorcareer?

I'mnotsureyet,butI'mabitinterestedinbothengineeringandart.

AerospaceEngineering

Engineering(undecided)

chemicalengineering
dynamicreactions.

ComputerscienceandgamedesignarethemaincareerpathsthatIwouldenjoytostudy.

MechanicalEngineering

WritingandMotionCaptureDirectionforInteractiveMedia(VideoGames)andScreenWriting


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Ihavebeeninterestedinmechanicalengineeringforawhile,andI'mstartingtobecomeinterested
inbiomedicalengineeringaswell.

4.Whatskillsthatyougothere,didyouimplementatHighTechHigh?

Experiencewithpowertools,andexperiencewiththeengineeringprocess.

Drafting,designing,collaborating,andbuilding.:)

Usingthe3Dprinterandlasercutter,designingprojectoutlines

codingandelectronicmanagement.

Iimplementedthecomputeraideddesignthatwelearnedandusedittomakea3Dmodeltoprint.

Someknowledgeoftoolsandalsohowtoproblemsolve.

ThedesignskillsIhavelearnedhavehelpedcreateprojectsandfinalproductsformultipleclass
andextracurricularprojectssincejoiningtheteam.

I'veusedCADskillsforanassortmentofprojects,creatingblueprintsaswellasitemstobe3D
printed.I'vealsouseddelegationandleadershipskillsfromroboticsinmanyconstructionprojects
throughoutmytimeatHTHNC.

WorkCited
"3DPrintingHistory:TheFreeBeginner'sGuide3DPrintingIndustry."
3DPrintingIndustry
.
N.p.,n.d.Web.17Dec.2015.
"MakerMovementMakerFaire."
MakerFaireMakerMovementComments
.N.p.,n.d.Web.17
Dec.2015.
"WhytheMakerMovementIsImportanttoAmerica'sFuture."
Time
.Time,n.d.Web.17Dec.
2015.
"FACTSHEET:PresidentObamatoHostFirstEverWhiteHouseMakerFaire."
TheWhite
House
.TheWhiteHouse,n.d.Web.17Dec.2015.