Professional Development

As part of the Makers Empire School Subscription, teachers gain access to an innovative, 13-part professional development (PD) video series in the Teacher’s Dashboard. This series is designed to help teachers successfully teach Design Thinking, implement maker pedagogy and use 3D design and 3D printing as an authentic teaching tool.

This on-demand video series replaces Makers Empire’s original training module and webinar, which used to constitute the professional development component of the School Subscription.

This new series is presented by Mandi Dimitriadis, Director of Learning, at Makers Empire, and includes easy to follow instructions, real-life examples of teachers using Makers Empire with their students, and school-made videos and photos to help inspire your own learning.

Makers Empire’s PD series constitutes 11 videos:

1. Teaching in 3D Unit 
2. Planning Design Tasks – learn how to plan design tasks that help your students achieve specific learning outcomes.
3. Integration – learn how to create richer learning experiences by integrating design tasks with other curriculum areas.
4. Design Thinking – learn Design Thinking principles and processes and how to help your students design solutions for real-world problems.
5. Lesson Plans Unit
   
6. Lesson Library – learn how to navigate the Makers Empire Lesson Library and explore the resources on offer.

Each of the on-demand videos is accompanied by a quiz so that you can check your understanding at each stage to ensure full comprehension.

We know teachers lead busy lives, with countless demands on their time. That’s why we want to help teachers integrate Design Thinking, 3D design and 3D printing into their classrooms as effectively and efficiently as possible.

“The PD video series is a great resource for teachers wanting to make the most of their Makers Empire experience,” says Mandi Dimitriadis, Director of Learning at Makers Empire.

“As a former classroom teacher and curriculum adviser for Australian education departments, I know that professional development has to be manageable, flexible and highly accessible. I’m thrilled that we’ve been able to create a PD series to genuinely meet the professional development needs of our awesome teaching community.”

Makers Empire teachers can access the professional development video series by logging into the Teacher’s Dashboard at the top of this website and then clicking on the ‘Professional Development’ menu item.