Perhaps your local library has one, or maybe your local university does. Makerspaces are even popping up in places like elementary schools and museums, including the FabLab of the Museum of Science and Industry. Makerspaces, which are open creative spaces featuring objects such as 3D printers, laser cutters, and woodworking tools, have become a buzzword for hands-on learning. 

Teachers and administrators are scrambling to bolster learning that increases competency in subjects such as math and engineering. This is especially true in subjects that require a heavy amount of memorization and theory, such as math.  

Now, according to researchers in British Columbia, subjects who participated in a class at a university makerspace, complete with project-based learning, helped participants within post-secondary education in understanding not only how to create a product, but also the social skills behind them as well, such as selling the final product. This was because this form of STEM learning requires not only the creative process of design, but also the creation of a final project that can be used in the real world, such as a new brake on a wheelchair or a cup holder. 

With research conducted on undergraduate university students within engineering, those who participated in doing their work felt more confident and able in their engineering skills.