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The Educational Imperative of a Museum
2001
Her research interests focus on issues of cultural identities within a critical framework, with her recent work directed on questioning what constitutes public pedagogy.
2014
Beyond Pedagogy: Reconsidering the public purpose of museums explores issues standing at the intersection of public pedagogy, memory, and critical theory, focusing on the explicit and implicit educational imperative of art, natural history, and indigenous museums, cultural centers, memorial sites, heritage houses, and other cultural heritage sites that comprise the milieu of educating, learning, and knowing. Taken together, the various essays comprising this book demonstrate that a more nuanced examination of the role of cultural heritage institutions as pedagogical sites requires a critical gaze to understand the function of the authority and ways through which such institutions educate. Beyond Pedagogy also makes a vital point about the complexity of such institutions and the need to comprehend how pedagogy emerges not only as an end result of the museum's educational purpose but also in relation to the historically defined mandates that increasingly come to question the dist...
Museums and Learning Issues: Learning through different windows
Learning Conference Series No.LC02-0080-2002, 2002
Main Description During ‘Children’s Week at the Museum’, a collaborative project between CSU Bachelor of Education students and Albury Regional Museum, issues for learning were identified. The B.Ed students were responsible for devising and conducting arts and technology activities with young children from Pre-school to Year 3. The learning issues concerned both the student teacher’s process of preparing, planning and evaluating their tasks with the young children, as well as the results of the young children’s work. The main issues and topics for discussion in this paper are: 1. Time (limits); 2. Multiple entry points; 3. Dispositions; 4. Social interactions/relationships; 5. Work samples; 6.Children’s comments – Metacognition; and, 7. Behaviour management.
Abstract It is time to revisit the way we describe and advocate for the “learning power” of museums. Museum learning is unique, multi-faceted and inspires higher-order affective and cognitive development. Yet, when museums describe their educational impact to stakeholders, it is often described narrowly, using the measures of formal education rather than focusing on its capacity to model intrinsically-motivated, joyful, open-ended learning that supports self-knowledge and positive social behavior. Museum educators are not doing enough to make a case for the value of museum learning in its own right with political, civic, educational and even museum entities.
Chapter 1 Museums and Schools Working Together
An Alliance of Spirit: Museum and School Partnerships, American Alliance of Museums, Edited by Kim Fortney and Beverly Sheppard , 2010
Chapter One establishes the fundamental requirements at the heart of strong and enduring museum and school partnerships, stressing the need for clear expectations, mutual respect, and a meaningful level of shared values. The necessity for deep collaboration, carefully and thoughtfully developed, is at the core of each succeeding chapter. Museums and schools are natural partners and have, for years, demonstrated the essence of meaningful collaboration. When museums and schools partner, students learn through multiple formats—reading and writing, looking and examining. They use the power of observation to fuel new questions and apply thinking skills to the act of discovery. They learn in a social setting in the museum and in a more solitary process in their classroom studies. These are complementary experiences, providing multiple ways for students to learn. Museums provide the magic of encounter, complementing the more abstract ideas discussed in the classroom. Teachers in both are committed to the same educational goals, and the results of their working together can lead to deep levels of student understanding. No wonder these partnerships have lasted so long!
What we've learned: A research agenda for a museum, 7 years later
Curator: The Museum Journal
We have been learning about the learning of children and youth, teachers, and visitors over the course of 7 years as we developed and deepened a research agenda in education in our natural history museum. In 2016 in this journal, we detailed how we began this effort and the development and initial steps of an educational research agenda. Focusing on our work since then, our team of educational researchers describes how our research has revealed the considerable impact of out‐of‐school learning with youth, educators, and visitors and how we incorporate a focus upon equity across all areas of inquiry. We share main findings emerging from our research, early roadblocks and current challenges, and lessons about engaging in research on learning in a cultural institution with implications for both large and small settings.
2008
The International Journal of the Inclusive Museum, 1, 1 – 8. Abstract: Museums are not only collections of objects for the enjoyment, culture and education of grown-up persons, but also places where children may become gradually acquainted with culture; this may be extremely valuable, among other things, in instilling in them a love of, but also respect of cultural heritage. School teachers, therefore, especially of primary education, have to be aware of the educative potential of museums and of all culturally significant objects available in the immediate or wider vicinity of schools. The study of the relationship between school teachers and museums reveals a lot of important issues in this context: - to what extent are teachers aware of the educative opportunities offered by museums? - what is their attitude towards the relationship between schools and museums? - are the teachers trained to be able to interact with museums in a way that will be fruitful for the education of children? - do they need additional training, in order to be able to use such possibilities? - do the teachers think that they would like to have a decisive role in preparing the “interface” between school and museum, in terms of educational material, the preparation of visits, etc. ? The present paper investigates the relation between school teachers and museums based mainly on research conducted among teachers in Greece, where museum education courses have only recently been introduced in the University curricula, and tries to identify their needs for training in methods of museum visiting and in using museum educational material in the classroom. The research reveals what form of training they wish to have on these matters and the degree to which they expect and wish to have an active involvement in the design of educational programs produced by museums for school children.
Making Museums Relevant for Our Children
Museums have long been known as places of learning, offering unique opportunities to make connections to history, culture, science, and art through artifacts, natural specimens, and works of art. These institutions, while initially perceived as places of study for scholars and other academics, expanded their reach to include the general public and became known for their value in educating citizens, primarily adults. In recent times museums have broadened their thinking about learning to be more inclusive and now develop programs and exhibitions that extend to different audiences, one of which is young children. For some this shift raises questions about what children can learn in the traditional museum and how to make the experience relevant and meaningful. Research studies and understanding of cognitive developmental theory are essential to successfully engaging the audience of young children with history, art, culture, and science through the rich resources that museums offer. This lecture offers a context for understanding the underlying theories and principles related to this growing audience and how museums can contribute to the education of children in our families and communities.