Harris and Koenig make a compelling case for the importance of adult “testimony” and its influence on children's developing conceptions of topics in science and religion. This commentary considers how their analysis relates to constructivist and sociocultural theories and discusses several ways in which Harris and Koenig's arguments help to debunk some prevalent assumptions about research on the social context of cognitive development. Finally, a number of additional issues are raised for debate and discussion, and some critiques and suggestions for future research are discussed. The issues
This article presents research relating to how science museum educators perceive their roles, identity, and practice. This qualitative study examines: (1) what brings museum educators to and sustains them in their profession; (2) how museum educators view their roles and work; and (3) what knowledge, skills, and attitudes museum educators identify as critical to their work. Findings show that museum educators have a strong value system that has attracted them to and sustains them in this profession, including a need to "make a difference." They primarily view themselves as educators and get
Building on and extending existing research, this article proposes a 4-phase model of interest development. The model describes 4 phases in the development and deepening of learner interest: triggered situational interest, maintained situational interest, emerging (less-developed) individual interest, and well-developed individual interest. Affective as well as cognitive factors are considered. Educational implications of the proposed model are identified.
This article is a report of the impact assessment of two outreach programs to primary schools run by the Botswana National Museum. The oldest of the programs, Zebra-on-Wheels was officially launched in 1980 and has involved all the primary schools in the country at least twice. The study aimed to establish the impact of the two programs and make recommendations for possible improvements. Thirty-eight schools throughout Botswana participated in the study. Teachers in these schools were interviewed and classroom observation sessions were carried out. Teachers’ observations about the two programs
This paper examines one Australian museum’s commitment to create social awareness of political issues within its community. The paper begins by discussing the challenge of cultural representation of Indigenous peoples in the context of civic engagement. Some of the historical and political issues facing Indigenous Australians and their representation in Museums are discussed. A study of the Indigenous Australians exhibition at the Australian Museum in Sydney investigates visitors’ perceptions of the exhibition. Recommendations are made as they relate to community partnerships, interpretive
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Katherine S. H. BoumanAustralian Museum
Collaboration is a prerequisite for the sustainability of interagency programs, particularly those programs initially created with the support of time-limited grant-funding sources. From the perspective of evaluators, however, assessing collaboration among grant partners is often difficult. It is also challenging to present collaboration data to stakeholders in a way that is meaningful. In this article, the authors introduce the Levels of Collaboration Scale, which was developed from existing models and instruments. The authors extend prior work on measuring collaboration by exploring the
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Bruce FreyJill LohmeierStephen LeeNona Tollefson
This article explains the concepts of disruptive innovation and catalytic innovation, a subset of disruptive innovation. Disruptive innovations challenge industry incumbents by offering simpler, good-enough alternatives to an underserved group of customers, whereas catalytic innovations can surpass the status quo by providing good-enough solutions to inadequately addressed social problems.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Clayton ChristensenHeather BaumannRandy RugglesThomas Sadtler