Build. Engineer. Tinker. Adapt.
The Beta Lab at UC Davis studies how young people learn and
develop through participation in making and the Maker Movement.
We investigate the nature of learning that occurs during
extended, youth-driven maker projects, and we design learning
environments and tools to support learning through making.
Learn about our making and mentoring during the COVID-19 pandemic
at this
Community Engaged Learning blog post.
Beta Lab
Check out the our robot
petting zoo start page, which we use at our K12 sites. Or
check out our social media channels for updates and more project
ideas:
Spring 2023
Interested in mentoring with us in Spring 2025 and beyond? Fill
out the interest
application and we will get back to you.
About the Name
Beta stands for Build, Engineer, Tinker, Adapt. Our lab
encourages a beta-testing approach to youth projects, where the
work is naturally seen as in process – substantive but imperfect,
where mistakes and setbacks are an expected part of the process
of learning and making.
Project Personnel
Principle Investigator: Lee Martin, Associate Professor
of Education
Graduate Student Researcher: J C Leapman
Project Alumni
Lead Mentors: Ann Rainey, Dorothy Hung, Joshua Lopez, Abby
Uayan,
Graduate student researchers:
Colin Dixon, Sagit Betser, Jade Lee
