3D Printing as Learning Activity in Higher Education A case study in a robotics’ prototyping course

Abstract

This thesis is inspired by the new opportunities new technologies provide in education and more precisely in higher education. There is a general focus in higher education on supporting student learning beyond learning the existing knowledge, so that students are prepared for taking part in knowledge- generating activities in their future working environment. Technologies can offer new opportunities for exploring and constructing knowledge. The focus of this study is on 3D printing as a learning activity, which is interesting because it denotes both the use of new technology and a process which embodies design activities. Although there has been some research related to the use of 3D printing in educational contexts. There are really few studies focused on learning with 3D printing and the already existing ones, have typically focused on one aspect of the printing activity, rather than the design and printing process as a whole. To get a deeper understanding on the different aspects of knowledge construction and exploration with the use of 3D printing, among higher education students, this thesis was framed with the following research problem: The problem addressed in the thesis is how 3D printing may support learning and knowledge construction in higher education and how this activity relates to students’ learning experience. To tackle this, the thesis aims at answering two research questions: 1) How does 3D printing as a tool and a process provide students with opportunities for exploration and knowledge construction during a robotics’ prototyping course in a university setting? 2) How do the teacher and the students perceive the usefulness of the 3D printing for learning purposes and what challenges do they face? As this study focuses on knowledge construction in technological environments, analytical perspectives were needed that could examine how people construct this knowledge through the use of tools and artifacts. Given this prerequisite, a socio-material perspective on knowledge practices and learning was employed as a theoretical frame. This perspective combines insights from socio-cultural learning theories on the situated and emergent nature of learning with cultural tools, with notions of knowledge-generating practices and of knowledge as inscribed in materiality. Theoretical concepts within this frame like these of knowledge practices, assemblages and mediated activities by artifacts/tools are further explored and applied in the data analysis in order to explore the research problem. Given that the present work aims to study knowledge exploration and the perceptions of the students, this study uses a qualitative research approach. The qualitative choice allows for further communication with the students, providing a deeper insight into their experience of the learning environment. A case study in a specific course in robotics’ prototyping was chosen to provide the ability to follow the design process over some time and to obtain in-depth information about the students’ experiences of the activity. The research took place in a university in Norway. The data was collected from February until May of 2016. The main participants included eight students and the professor of the course. The data material consists of two parts; participant observations and semi-structured interviews with students and the professor. The data material was subjected to a thematic analysis in order to answer the two research questions. To facilitate the understanding of how the design process and 3D printing activity evolved over time, two indicative design processes from the students’ work were selected for presentation in the thesis. The findings show how students take part in a range of knowledge practices during the 3D printing process, such as designing, visualizing, testing out, assembling, redesigning and printing. Through these practices students are involved in knowledge construction and exploration. The whole process is iterative,