Design Thinking & 3D Printing for School Districts, Education Departments & School Groups

Makers Empire offers customised professional Design Thinking and 3D Printing learning programs for education departments, education boards, school districts, large groups of schools, and education initiatives, tailored to suit individual needs and objectives.

Our customised solutions are designed to help classroom teachers and school leaders integrate design thinking by using 3D printing and design as an everyday classroom tool. Through our professional learning programs, teachers learn how to use 3D and design to transform the way they teach students STEM/STEAM subjects and help them develop important design thinking and 21st-century learning skills.

With multi-school programs, Makers Empire and its partners can deliver significant, systemic change and help equip K-8 students with the skills and attitudes they’ll need to not only survive but thrive in the future. We’ve worked with thousands of teachers and hundreds of thousands of students so we have the experience, the skills and the team to deliver a successful, customised learning program for you.

In mid-2017, teachers from 49 primary schools across the state of South Australia undertook the Learning by Design course together in what was then Australia’s biggest rollout of 3D printing in schools.

The project was so successful that in 2018, teachers from 100 primary schools in South Australia will be undertaking the Learning by Design course. In July 2018, almost 50 of the schools held a Showcase Day to exchange ideas and celebrate learning.

“The DECD-Makers Empire partnership is an excellent example of businesses working with school communities to develop learning experiences that involve students in real-world problem solving and challenges them to engage with the critical and creative thinking required to be the future innovators of South Australia,” 

– Linda Olifent, Director of Primary Learners, Learning Improvement Division, Department of Education and Child Development, AUSTRALIA.

In 2016, Makers Empire partnered with New York State public schools and the New York Institute of Technology’s Technology on a successful pilot to introduce its 3D printing learning program to a dozen New York State schools.

“Prior to the pilot most of our schools were struggling to understand how to integrate 3D design and printing into cross-curricula activities. The Makers Empire pilot has provided the beacon for schools to follow that are opening opportunities for students that simply were not on the table before the pilot… We were impressed that they were addressing the use of 3D printing… as a true curriculum enabling tool. We simply had not found anyone else doing the work required to create quality educational activities. The team that they have assembled has the right mix of technologists and educators to create both a platform and a curriculum that will enhance innovation, creativity and technology in our schools,”

– Professor Stan Silverman, Director
New York Information Technology Based Learning Systems, USA.

In 2017, over 2,000 students from 88 schools in Lithuania took part in a Makers Empire 3D Design Challenge to create their own 3D maze.

Students were tasked with the challenge of designing a 3D marble run style maze using Makers Empire 3D software. The top three designers won a 3D printer and a one-year subscription of Makers Empire for their school.

The 2,000 students+ participating in the Design Challenge created 4,920 designs in total. Of these, 663 were considered high-quality designs – a record achievement!

The mission of co-organiser, Coded Success — to provide children access to future technology — was certainly achieved with this great partnership.

Our customised programs and courses include all of the core elements of Makers Empire’s School Subscription, including:

• 3D modelling software
• Over 130 curriculum-aligned lesson plans
• Professional development for teachers
• Teacher’s dashboard
• Analytics

“This was the best PD that I have been involved in for ages… This whole project has been inspiring for teachers and students in empowering students to become changemakers. Our students were so engaged and excited about solving a real-world problem… The fact that they could see they could help someone through their own design, meant their learning was authentic and valued,”

– Bianca Laister, Deputy Principal
Birdwood Primary School, AUSTRALIA.

Our packages for groups of schools can be customised to your particular learning goals. We can help with custom planning and implementation as well as tailored professional development, support and training for teachers. Our packages can include Showcase Days for teachers and students to share their learning as well as 3D printing hardware including 3D printers and 3D printing filament. Our printer sales include training and ongoing support, too, so you’ll never be left stuck with a hardware issue.

“I just wanted to pass on my congratulations to you and your team at Makers Empire for yesterday’s 3D printing showcase. It was a fantastic event, so thoughtfully planned for the children. It was so lovely to see the children’s genuine excitement and their ability to articulate their learning was fantastic. From a design perspective, it was great to see the variety of design thinking models employed and the understanding of student voice and authentic problems to solve has really surfaced. The quality of the children’s work was outstanding and I can see the potential ( as I am sure you can) for entrepreneurship skills to kick in. Some of their solutions and designs have the potential for marketing and it would be lovely for the students to see them progress further.”

– Karen Hogan, Education Manager,
Department of Education (SA), AUSTRALIA.

Mandi Dimitriadis is Director of Learning Improvement at Makers Empire. Mandi has worked with professional learning providers in Australia and the USA to design and deliver professional learning courses on problem-based learning and design thinking.

She has led Australian Curriculum professional learning and pedagogical change programs in various roles for the Department for Education and Child Development, South Australia (SA). Mandi is an experienced primary, junior primary, pre-school, and special education teacher. Previously, she managed education programs at the SA Maritime Museum. 

“…wonderful day. I heard a few teachers talking about this being the best professional learning day they have done in their careers! Great job, we are planning to share with the Governing Council and run a parent information night to follow this up,”

– Grant Small, Principal
Grange Primary School, AUSTRALIA.