Summative evaluation of one of four pieces of the Marcellus Matters: EASE project. Formative evaluation of one of four pieces of the Marcellus Matters: EASE project. This study examined how effective a series of "Community Conversations" theater and dialogue/discussion events was at a) communicating natural gas development-related science content and community issues, and b) promoting audience members' openness to dialogue about natural gas development-related issues.
The Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR) at the University of Colorado, Boulder, in collaboration with EcoArts Connections and the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), is conducting an initial planning workshop and related activities which will be the first of three stepwise convenings over the next two or three years to gather experts from the fields of natural and social sciences, arts, energy/water conservation, and related disciplines. The initiative will work to establish an operational strategy for knowledge sharing across collaborating entities, networks, and associations. The major goal is to strengthen collaboration of professionals nationally to better conceive, conduct, and evaluate projects for the public that work at the intersection of science, arts, and sustainability (environmental, social and economic). Many communities around the country have been seeking to address increasingly pressing problems about their ability to sustain the vitality, health and resilience of their regions and the lives of their residents. Bringing inter-disciplinary knowledge and skills to bear on these issues is considered to be critical. Between 24 - 32 professionals will be involved. The workshop will be conducted simultaneously in Boulder, CO and at Princeton University, with communication between the two sites. This project is funded by the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program, which seeks to advance new approaches to, and evidence-based understanding of, the design and development of STEM learning in informal environments. This includes providing multiple pathways for broadening access to and engagement in STEM learning experiences, advancing innovative research on and assessment of STEM learning in informal environments, and developing understandings of deeper learning by participants. Intended outcomes from this first workshop include: 1) identification and preliminary mapping of successful evidence-based best practices in science-arts-sustainability collaborations 2) a strategic vision for interdisciplinary collaboration across networks; and 3) an initial framework for the dissemination of findings that can reach across disciplines. Outputs include 1) preparation of a pre-workshop briefing booklet based in part on interviews of professionals in the various disciplines; 2) a post-workshop white paper; 3) a network of experts from the participating disciplinary fields; and 4) an agenda for the second (larger) convening. The trans-disciplinary strategy promises to more efficiently and effectively bring STEM disciplines to a wider public in collaboration with the arts through sustainability topics that are place-based, targeted to, and meaningful for specific audiences.
This paper provides an overview of the Audience Research Consortium of Toronto, comprised of the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Metropolitan Toronto Zoo, the Ontario Science Center and the Royal Ontario Museum. These groups have a shared vision of attracting a larger and more diverse audience-one that includes nontraditional and multicultural groups. This paper outlines how this group developed, acquired funding, hired a consulting group, and created a proposal and research plan. Preliminary findings are also briefly summarized.
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Art Gallery of OntarioRoyal Ontario MuseumOntario Science CentreMetropolitan Toronto ZooWoods Gordon Management Consultants
This paper describes the evaluation questions that drove two front-end studies conducted by Randi Korn & Associates (RKA) that were not in art museums. This paper also addresses of exhibition development with significant implications for front-end evaluation in the context of the studies. Then, the discussion returns to exhibition development and evaluation in art museums. Following this more abstract examination of the topic is a discussion of two front-end studies conducted by RKA at the Detroit Institute of Arts in 1996, looking at how the process worked there and what benefit the staff
In this article, Marjorie Schwarzer, Professor of Museum Studies at John F. Kennedy University in Berkeley, California, describes eleven of the most influential exhibitions from the 20th century, according to NAME members surveyed for her book "Riches, Rivals and Radicals: 100 Years of Museums in America."
This project comprises the NSF-funded portion of the renovation of a 25,000 sq. ft. natural history gallery called "CHANGING CALIFORNIA." ORIGINAL PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) will develop, implement, and evaluate Hotspot California, a research-based natural science gallery transformation that will explore the educational potential of wildlife dioramas to engage the public in urgent environmental issues. The exhibition will showcase five real places in California that exemplify high biological diversity and complex environmental issues. Innovative approaches to interpretation will emphasize personal connections to these places and infuse static dioramas with visualization technologies that illustrate environmental change over time. The project will explore how such enhancements to dioramas might help visitors develop place-based connections to the natural world. The project has four major deliverables: 1) an innovative 25,000 sq ft gallery exhibition installation featuring five specific California places where California's unique biodiversity is threatened; 2) an application and evaluation of a new participatory exhibit design model involving community contribution, collaboration, and co-design; 3) a two-day "synthesis symposium" for informal science education professionals to consider broad applications of project findings for the field; and 4) "Diorama Dilemmas: A Source book for Museums," synthesizing relevant literature, case studies, and findings from the project's research and evaluation generalizable to the field. The project has evolved since the NSF award, but it remains aligned with its original goals. The team increased the number of California places from five to seven and worked to add a strong human presence within a gallery previously devoted almost entirely to other species. Innovative reuse of OMCA's dioramas and habitat cases continues to be the project's core, but the team's approach has emphasized re-contextualizing rather than revising those exhibits. New elements include iconic artifacts and environments reflecting recent human impact on California, relevant objects from OMCA's art and history collections, digital visualizations of dynamic natural phenomena, and spaces for hands-on investigation. Community focused elements include multiple co-created exhibits and media programs offering inspiring encounters with Californians deeply involved in these seven places.
The Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association (PVMA), a nationally recognized history museum and library, in collaboration with institutional partners, is a grant for an ambitious Interpreting America’s Historic Places Planning Project focused on the compelling story of the early 19th century discovery of three-toed dinosaur tracks along a sixty-mile stretch of the Connecticut River Valley in Massachusetts and Connecticut, and the deep impression these earliest American dinosaur discoveries made on ideas, art, religion, and culture in the United States. The broad public appeal of dinosaurs will engage a wide audience in the stories of the tracks’ discoverers and the first public reactions to these finds.