KSU Taking Mobile Classroom on Tour

iTeach education Technology Specialist Phil Wagener explains some educational facts about the Kennesaw State University iTeach MakerBus on Wednesday at the Kennesaw Campus, to Suzie Amsberry, Diana Banes, and Deija Patel.

KENNESAW, Ga. (May 4, 2018) —  

Kennesaw State University has introduced a mobile classroom and technology lab aimed at bringing access to education and technology directly to K-12 students.

The university’s Bagwell College of Education rolled out the iTeach MakerBus on campus Wednesday morning. The 30-foot bus is part classroom, part technology lab and part think-tank. It includes a laser cutter, 3D printer, a drone, sewing machine, circuit kits, Wi-Fi, wood and cardboard.

The bus will travel to area schools, many of which are low-income, to expose students and teachers to some of the technology and instruct them how to utilize it in the classroom.
 
The MakerBus is an initiative of the Bagwell College’s iTeach center, which works with classroom teachers providing consulting services and professional development training.

Stephanee Stephens, director of KSU’s iTeach program and its 62-member staff, said the group has already partnered with several metro Atlanta school districts, including Cobb, and will take the bus on the road next week to Birney Elementary.

Several administrators from nearby districts were on hand Wednesday to catch a glimpse of the bus and learn more about the program.

“We get them into a simulation-type experience to feel what it’s like as a learner so they can go back to their schools and develop lessons and curriculum that align,” Stephens said. “Many schools have the same equipment we do, but it’s shuttered up in a closet and they don’t really know what to do with it.”

The nearly $100,000 ADA-compliant MakerBus was funded in-part with a $6,000 donation from the Cobb EMC Community Foundation, Stephens said, but the program is looking for additional sponsors to help fund the bus trips and add new technology to the mobile classroom.

Marietta Daily Journal
April 25, 2018