This article presents a metalogue discussion about the two focus articles and the six associated review essays on the topic of conceptual change as it applies to research, and science teaching and learning in a museum setting. Through the lenses of a sociocultural perspective of learning we examine the applicability of the ideas presented in the forum for museums and museum educators. First we reflect on the role that emotions can play in concept development; second, we reflect on the role of language, talk, and gestures to concept development and conceptual change in the short-lived nature of
The Miami Children’s Museum (MCM) contracted RK&A to conduct a summative evaluation of the Construction Zone exhibition, which was funded in part by IMLS. The evaluation focused on understanding the overall experience for walk-in visitors to the exhibition. It also explored visitor experiences with three specific exhibits with attention to problem-solving, experimentation with building materials, and collaboration.
How did we approach this study?
RK&A used two methodologies to evaluate the exhibition: interviews and focused observations. RK&A conducted 51 open-ended interviews with a
RK&A conducted a summative evaluation of the New Glass Now exhibition at the Corning Museum of Glass. The interpretative goal for the exhibition is to challenge visitors to expand their notions of glass in contemporary art and design.
Methodology
The goal of the study is to explore visitors’ experiences in the temporary exhibition—the first exhibition to be evaluated in the contemporary wing of the museum. RK&A conducted 100 timing and tracking observations of visitors in the exhibition; visitors were recruited from all three potential entrances to the exhibition. Observation data
This paper presents the first study ever conducted on the profile of visitors to the Museum of Human Evolution of Burgos (Spain), which exhibits the finds of the Atapuerca archaeo-paleontological sites. The research was guided by the principles of public communication of science and the methodology of the studies on museum visitors. The analysis reveals a positive perception; the Museum is associated with the sites and they are valued as cultural heritage. Complaints are very limited but useful to produce a set of recommendations to further improve the exhibition. In addition, the findings are
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TEAM MEMBERS:
María Eugenia ConfortiMaría Gabriela ChaparroPamela DegeleJuan Carlos Díez Fernández-Lomana
This case study of the development of a cross-cultural museum exhibition illustrates value and difficulties of cross-cultural collaboration. University researchers worked with a class of postgraduate science communication students and designers from the Otago Museum to produce a museum exhibition. ‘Wai ora, Mauri ora’ (‘Healthy environments, Healthy people’) provided visibility and public access to information about Māori work. The exhibition assignment provided an authentic assessment of student work, with a professional output. Working on the exhibition involved cross-cultural communication
Computational Thinking (CT) is a relatively new educational focus and a clear need for learners as a 21st century skill. This proposal tackles this challenging new area for young learners, an area greatly in need of research and learning materials. The Principal Investigators will develop and implement integrated STEM+C museum exhibits and integrate CT in their existing engineering design based PictureSTEM curriculum for K-2 students. They will also pilot assessments of the CT components of the PictureSTEM curriculum. This work will make a unique contribution to the available STEM+C learning materials and assessments. There are few such materials for the kindergarten to second grade (K-2) population they will work with. They will research the effects of the curriculum and the exhibits with a mixed methods approach. First, they will collect observational data and conduct case studies to discover the important elements of an integrated STEM+C experience in both the formal in-school setting with the curriculum and in the informal out-of-school setting with families interacting with the museum exhibits. This work will provide a novel way to understand the important question of how in- and out-of-school experiences contribute to the development of STEM and CT thinking and learning. Finally, they will collect data from all participants to discover the ways that their activities lead to increases in STEM+C knowledge and interest.
The Principal Investigators will build on an integrated STEM curriculum by integrating CT and develop integrated museum exhibits. They base both activities on engineering design implemented through challenge based programming activities. They will research and/or develop assessments of both STEM+C integrated thinking and CT. Their research strategy combines Design Based Research and quantitative assessment of the effectiveness of the materials for learning CT. In the first two years of their study, they will engage in iterations on the design of the curriculum and the exhibits based on observation and case-study data. There will be 16 cases that draw from each grade level and involve data collection for the case student in both schools and museums. They will also use this work to illuminate what integrated STEM+C thinking and learning looks like across formal and informal learning environments. Based in some part on what they discover in this first phase, they will conduct the quantitative assessments with all (or at least most) students participating in the study
The visit to a science museum may be manifested through complex and dynamic motivations which, according to the literature, are under-investigated in a Brazilian context. In this study, an instrument has been modified and applied to 202 visitors up to 15 years in order to investigate motivation for visiting. Combined application of Exploratory Factor Analysis and the Information Bottleneck method revealed that 17 out of the 20 initial items in the questionnaire aligned with three dimensions of motivation. The main motivation was learning desire, while entertainment and interaction motivations
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Ana Cláudia KasseboehmerRosana de Fátima MartinhãoKenia Naara ParraDaniela Maria Lemos Barbato
We review how the Wellcome Collection exhibition ‘Teeth’ enacts meanings from an educational anthropology and Science and Technology Studies perspective. The exhibition tells the history of dental science. It starts with accounts of the painful procedures and social inequalities of early oral healthcare. As it moves towards the present day it shows improved scientific knowledge, tools and public health promotion, and closes with current sophisticated technologies and practices. However it underrepresents contemporary social inequalities. We conclude that science communication exhibition
This document represents the story of Native Universe: Indigenous Voice in Science Museums and how it has unfolded at the project level, the three case study museum sites, and through partnerships between tribal communities and the three science museums. Modeled on the project itself, our research and evaluation team brings together Indigenous and conventional, western evaluation and research practices, through a collaborative partnership between the Lifelong Learning Group, based at COSI’s Center for Research and Evaluation (Columbus, OH) and Native Pathways (Laguna, NM). The results of
Researchers from Ideum and XPRIZE Foundation recently completed a multi-site study of the way people use an innovative experience on health technologies. Funded by the Qualcomm Foundation, the team traveled to three US science centers to see how museum visitors interacted with and learned from the exhibit, which Ideum and XPRIZE designed and developed in 2018.
The exhibit was funded by XPRIZE after 2017’s Qualcomm Tricorder XPRIZE competition, in which teams developed ideas for new kinds of portable medical devices. Running on a custom 65” Ideum Platform multitouch table, the experience
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Exploratorium, the self-described "museum of science, art and human perception," in San Francisco, California and the 10th anniversary of the launching of the National Research Council/National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine report Learning Science in Informal Environments: People, Places and Pursuits. The moment offered me an opportunity to reflect on my own professional journey, which began at the Exploratorium, coincided with a growth spurt of field knowledge-building and has included experiences that inform how I
Exploratorium’s The Phenomenal Genome: Evolving Public Understanding of Genetics in the Post-Mendelian Era project addresses the increasing need to develop genomic literacy in the public at large. The explosion of genomics research over the past two decades has led to an increasingly complex picture of the determinants of human health and human phenotypes, and the applications of this research are now making their way into the clinic, the media, and the hands of consumers. The goal of this project is to create a model for increasing genomic literacy through Informal Science Education programming (ISE), creating a pathway for better decision making for the health of individuals and society at large. The Phenomenal Genome focuses on general science museum visitors and teachers of middle and high school students.
The core of the Exploratorium’s approach to science education is the creation of intriguing, provocative and investigable phenomena that are experienced directly and personally through exhibits, facilitated explorations, programs, and teacher professional development. Over two years, we will develop, test, and iterate inquiry-based professional development to help teachers develop understanding and integrate the principles of contemporary genomics and genetics into their classrooms. 120 middle and high school teachers will be served during this period, and many more beyond that, as the activities and workshops developed become a regular part of our teacher professional development programming. A learning scientist specializing in teacher learning will conduct research to determine which approaches and experiences are most effective for this context, and why.
In a parallel process, we will develop and test exhibits and experiences on the museum floor for museum visitors, using a similar iterative process of prototype testing with an embedded learning scientist to study visitor learning. We plan to define the approaches that work across audiences and contexts, as well as those that work best in particular contexts.
Through this work, we will develop new resources for teaching and learning contemporary genomics and genetics, and identify promising practices in communicating contemporary genomics and genetics in informal spaces across audiences. We will disseminate our findings via conferences, peer-reviewed articles, and workshops for the ISE community.