Colloquium - Eisenberg

Traditionally, the field of educational technology has placed a heavy emphasis on "schools, skills, and screens", devising screen-based software to teach and reinforce skills in classroom settings. The work of the Craft Technology Lab runs counter to this tradition. The ongoing projects in our lab focus on using new computational and material technologies to enrich the practice of children's crafts. Thus, instead of a focus on computer screens, our work urges an integration of computational and physical media; instead of a focus on isolated skills, we view creative activities as the basis of a sense of vocation in children; instead of an exclusive focus on classrooms, our projects are based on a portrait of children's lives and interests that (happily) extends beyond school settings.

This talk will present an overview of ongoing projects in the Craft Technology Lab -- projects that explore the role of embedded computation, powerful output devices, and novel materials in the design of children's craft activities.