Curator The Museum Journal · 1996 · 159 citations · 2 references
Philadelphia Zoological GardenScience EducationCultural HeritageEducational PsychologyParticipant ObservationEducationMuseum StudiesEarly Childhood EducationSocial SciencesLearning PsychologySocial Learning EnvironmentLearning EnvironmentFamily LearningMuseologyBehavioral SciencesSocial SkillsLearning SciencesPerformance IndicatorsMuseum ConservationInformal LearningTeachingScience And Technology StudiesArts
ABSTRACT This report is based on research findings of a National Science Foundation (NSF)‐funded study conducted by the Philadelphia/Camden Informal Science Education Collaborative (PISEC), which consists of four institutions: The Franklin Institute Science Museum, the New Jersey State Aquarium, The Academy of Natural Sciences, and the Philadelphia Zoological Garden. The first year's study addressed the question “How can we identify and measure family learning in science museums?” It documented a relationship between learning levels and observable behaviors. On the basis of coding family conversations and interview data for level of learning, we see that families do learn from exhibits and that the level of learning is related to specific observed behaviors . Grouping these behaviors as performance indicators provides a useful measure of exhibit learning.
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Social Influences on the Visitor Museum Experience
Stephen Bitgood · 1993 · 21 citations