2 The Value of Tinkering in the Learning Process

If you bought this book, it’s likely that you already have an instinctive understanding of the value of tinkering. However, I’d like to take a few pages to expose tinkering’s central role in learning and the creation of knowledge, both in the past and within today’s educational institutions.

Why Tinkering Is Essential

Frank Oppenheimer, brother of Robert, who led the Manhattan Project, created the Exploratorium in San Francisco: a museum of art, science, and human perception. For over 40 years it has been an international paradigm of hands-on science museums.

Frank’s great idea was that people can enjoy themselves at a deep level and learn a lot by tinkering around with things, and should thus ...

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