The Musings of a (NON) Hacker.

Hack. Hacker. Hacking. A word that has different connotations- apparently! I used to think that hack meant to “break into” or corrupt a computer. A “hack” was a cheater or a lazy, good-for-nothin’. Well, in the past few months as I’ve researched MakerSpaces and making, I’ve discovered that the word ‘hack’ has a different nuance to it -  fun, creative, rather positive aura to it. It’s a good thing to hack an assignment or a piece of equipment, a tool or an object, to make it work better for you and your needs. Who knew??! Thing is – I’ve always been a rule-follower. Hacking doesn’t come naturally to me. I just use things as they were built to be, rarely, if ever, making modifications. People who do this all the time have my utmost admiration! The only exception to this is in regards to teaching lesson plans or unit plans. I always work them with my learners in mind – and they change semester to semester.

I wonder if it’s because I feel confident as a teacher? However, with objects/things – I don’t feel that way at all.

So why is this coming up now? I’m taking the Critical Making course at UOIT and I have to make and hack things – yikes!! I don’t even know where to begin!

This is going to be quite a learning journey!