Evaluating the success of markerspace in a public library: The case of Narva City Library MakerLab in Estonia

Arising from the modern IT-driven society, libraries in Estonia face tremendous challenges. They are no longer viewed as collection facilities but rather as knowledge enhancers and creators. Libraries carry a significant potential to make a greater impact on communities by enabling informal ways of learning new skills and technologies. This paper aims to evaluate a pilot project at Narva Library MakerLab launched by the Narva City Government to motivate the citizens of Narva to learn new skills and improve their employment prospects.

The focus of the study was on understanding how a library makerspace makes an impact on users’ skills, knowledge and attitudes. Quantitative measures for indicators were designed to evaluate the new skills and knowledge that participants learn during the workshops. Semi-structured interviews aimed to show values, behaviour, perception and aims for the future.

As an outcome of the study, it was found that the MakerLab project was successful; the participants learned new skills, felt an increase in self-confidence and improved their teamwork abilities. Many users engaged with prototyping and initiated new projects.

Setting up a makerspace in a public library is a recent trend and not much research has been done in this area. The study aims to contribute to the knowledge of the impact of makerspaces in a library environment.