Erduan Valdes,EdS,MSEd,CAS
Instructor: Andrew Wallace, MLS
South Portland Schools' Director of Technology
This course challenged me to rethink how learning can be designed through making, experimentation, and problem-solving, rather than through traditional content delivery alone. By exploring maker spaces and consumer-level technologies such as programming kits, circuits, robotics, and sensor-based tools, I developed a stronger understanding of computational thinking as both a 21st-century skill and a powerful instructional approach across classrooms, libraries, and community learning environments.
Engaging with project- and problem-based learning scenarios helped me see technology not as an add-on, but as a creative medium through which learners actively construct knowledge. The course emphasized helping learners become creators rather than passive users of technology, reinforcing the importance of curiosity, iteration, and design thinking in the learning process. Through hands-on exploration of hardware and software tools, I deepened my awareness of how programming concepts and computer systems function together to support meaningful learning experiences.
This course strengthened my confidence in designing learning environments that leverage makerspaces and computational tools to foster creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking, while remaining accessible and adaptable to diverse educational contexts.