CONCEPTUALISING THE SCIENCE KITCHEN AS A MAKERSPACE

The Science Kitchen, a newly launched learning environment at Tallinn University in Estonia, seeks to connect the everyday knowledge and practical activities of home economics with scientific content.With its emphasis on STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) learning and hands-on experiences, the makerspace concept offers a promising approach to enhance the development of the concept of The Science Kitchen.Makerspaces have gained significant attention as learning environments that foster the development of twenty-first-century skills.These spaces provide diverse opportunities for learners of different ages to engage in hands-on learning and solve tasks as creators rather than as consumers.Although the concept is used in various formal and informal educational settings, there are variations in its definitions and dimensions.This article explores the definitions and nature of makerspaces by relying on scientific studies.A systematic literature review was conducted to identify relevant themes, limiting the search to makerspaces in formal learning.A qualitative content analysis was performed for eighteen relevant articles to systematically categorise and interpret the descriptions and meanings of the makerspace concept.The results reflect the key terms (e.g.doing and tools) used concerning makerspace learning environments, opening up various aspects associated with makerspaces.On the basis of the results, The Science Kitchen concept is defined as a makerspace, which could be used to develop meaningful STEAM-oriented activities in a given learning environment.