This report presents the findings from a front-end evaluation for an exhibition about tuna, which is currently under development at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Visitors were intercepted on the second floor of the Aquarium and invited to view tuna in the big tank from the lower level of the Aquarium and to review, and ultimately select, one of six prototype interpretive panels, all of which were about different aspects of tuna. The evaluation goals for this study were to determine: • what visitors overall reactions are when they view the tuna in the big tank from the lower level of the aquarium
The purposes of the STUDIO 3D evaluation were to collect information about the impact upon student learning as a result of participating in the STUDIO 3D Project, as well as to elicit information for program improvement. Areas of inquiry include recruiting and retention, impact on project participants, tracking student impacts, and the project as a whole.
Knight-Williams collaborated with five aquaria to solicit the reactions of a random sample of their aquaria members to the PBS broadcast of the Shape of Life series. The collaborating aquaria were located in geographically diverse regions of the country and included: The Seattle Aquarium, Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, Dauphin Island Sea Lab, Shedd Aquarium, and New York Aquarium. The report focuses on questionnaire data provided by both the non-viewer respondents and by viewers of two or more episodes from the series.
This article examines how people learn by actively observing and "listening-in" on ongoing activities as they participate in shared endeavors. Keen observation and listening-in are especially valued and used in some cultural communities in which children are part of mature community activities. This intent participation also occurs in some settings (such as early language learning in the family) in communities that routinely segregate children from the full range of adult activities. However, in the past century some industrial societies have relied on a specialized form of instruction that
DATE:
TEAM MEMBERS:
Barbara RogoffRuth ParadiseRebeca Mejia ArauzMarciela Correra-ChavezCathy Angelillo
Multi-site evaluations are becoming increasingly common in federal funding portfolios. Although much thought has been given to multi-site evaluation, there has been little emphasis on how it might interact with participatory evaluation. Therefore, this paper reviews several National Science Foundation educational, multi-site evaluations for the purpose of examining the extent to which these evaluations are participatory. Based on this examination, the paper proposes a model for implementing multi-site, participatory evaluation.
Community learning of science and technology has undergone radical review in the past few years. This paper outlines changes that have taken place in research methods that have addressed the informal learning of science, particularly in the museum sector. We discuss the shift in perspective that has occurred over the past three decades in the public understanding movement, examine some current issues, and suggest future directions for research. The paper concludes with a personal vision for the future of community learning about science and technology.
One method for studying visitors in museums is to audiotape their conversations while videotaping their behavior. Many researchers inform visitors of such recordings by posting signs in the areas under scrutiny. An earlier study tested the assumption that visitors notice, read and understand posted signs (Gutwill, 2003). Interviews revealed that 75 percent of visitors leaving a recording area had read and understood the signs. This article describes our attempt at increasing this percentage by placing additional signs on the exhibit elements being used, as well as on the camera itself
This article describes a front-end evaluation conducted by researchers at the Wildlife Conservation Society's Prospect Park Zoo in planning for the new "In Living Color" exhibit. The evaluation examined how the zoo's average young visitor--a 5.1 year old--thinks and feels about animal coloration.
This article describes an exhibit evaluation project at the San Diego Natural History Museum, funded by NSF in 2001, which took a participatory approach to better understand their audience. The authors, two participants in this project, discuss their motivations and goals, useful models and lessons learned from a special needs focus group.
DATE:
TEAM MEMBERS:
Nancy Owens RennerMarianna Adams
resourceresearchProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
In this article, VSA President Deborah Perry presents an overview of the work of the Visitor Studies Association over the previous few months. Topics include the Executive Committee, Conference Committee, resource development, Board development, professional development, and publications.
This article describes an evaluation project that measured the effectiveness of particular communication strategies in the Kelp Forest feeding program at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. During the Kelp Forest program a volunteer guide (docent) delivers a narration about the Kelp Forest exhibit and has a conversation with a diver feeding the fish in the exhibit. The program concludes with the diver and the volunteer taking questions from the audience. The communication strategies measured in this study were identified by The Ocean Project (TOP), a collaborative initiative where the Monterey Bay
This article discusses the design of casinos, specifically principles of visitor orientation in casinos, and how these principles relate to museums. Floor plans of casinos are compared to floor plans of museums and other visitor centers. Author Stephen Bitgood advises, "Don't follow casino design if you want to be friendly to visitors."