The Makerspace is a free, creative resource within the UCSB Library available to all students, faculty, and staff. We offer access to technology including 3D printing, laser cutting, sewing, electronics prototyping, and more.
For many students, a writing class conjures images of textbooks, lectures, and solitary essay composition. However, Andrew Baker, faculty member in the English for Multilingual Students program, is demonstrating how hands-on learning in the Library's Makerspace can transform the academic writing experience for international students. In his Academic English course for international students, Baker integrates a unique assignment that takes learning beyond the traditional classroom.
"On the first day of class, I lead students on a short walking tour of sculptures on campus," he explains. "As they look at the works of art, they discuss how they are made, what they represent, and how they engage the public." This exploration of public art sets the stage for their first assignment: prototype a sculpture of their own.
Using flexible pipe cleaners, students build a small-scale model of a sculpture they would like to install on campus and write a journal entry describing their concept and its purpose. In the following class period, students present their models and collaborate in small groups to design a more detailed sculpture model, taking on roles like team leader, designer, communicator, or editor.
The project culminates in the Library's Makerspace, where students bring their ideas to life. "Working together on a hands-on project forces students to communicate and negotiate—key skills for language learners," notes Baker. Equipped with their designs, groups use Makerspace tools like 3D printers, sewing machines and the laser cutter to fabricate their sculpture models while expanding their technological literacy along the way.
One group’s 3D-printed model of a Gaucho hat exemplifies this hands-on learning. The hat features a wide brim that doubles as a bench and a USB charging station. The students' design decision was rooted in their belief that "the most effective public art is both familiar and functional." They proposed installing it in front of the Library’s Paseo West entrance, creating "a space that is not only admired but also regularly used."
The assignment emphasizes the process over perfection. Students document their journey through sketches, descriptions, photos, and progress reports. "This is a writing class,” Baker notes. “ They’re not graded on their artistic ability or even the successful completion of their model. If they experience setbacks, they can describe them in their writing." This approach empowers students to embrace challenges as learning opportunities. The final deliverable is a group process essay that details their design and fabrication process, justifies their sculpture's proposed location, and connects their work to principles of socially engaged art the students explored in their readings.
The impact of this approach is clear. "In course evaluations, students often remark how surprised they were to leave the classroom 10 minutes into the first day of class and how much they enjoyed creating something together," shares Baker. "I once heard a teacher ask, 'Why read the syllabus on Day 1 when there are so many other interesting things you can do in a language course?' With the sculpture project, I finally have an answer."
This integration of the Makerspace into an academic English course exemplifies how creative technologies foster collaboration, problem-solving, and critical thinking and transform abstract concepts into concrete real-world experiences that strengthen language skills and academic confidence for UCSB's international students.
Interested in learning more about how you can adopt emerging technologies into your course curricula? View our Instructor Guide to the Makerspace for help with developing or facilitating creative assignments for your next course, or contact Maddie Wishart, Makerspace Manager.
Image Captions
- Andrew Baker
- A hand holding the 3D printed prototype of the Gaucho hat sculpture
- The prototype of the Gaucho hat sculpture in front of the Library's Paseo West entrance at night
