This paper discusses a research study that examined the effect of providing, or not providing, museum visitors with specific tasks for learning, in relationship to the visitor's task preference. This study was carried out at the Florida Museum of Natural History and made us of 11 static case exhibits, all of which addressed an aspect of Florida vertebrate or invertebrate biology. Findings from the study are reviewed as they pertain to the effects of visitor perceptions of museums and task preference.
In this article, Jacksonville State University's Ann Cleghorn summarizes a 1993 "Museum Management and Curatorship" article written by Paulette M. McManus. The article cites findings from a study of visitor's memories as indicators of the impact of museum visits. The study analyzed visitors ages 8-50 years, who visited "Gallery 33, A Meeting Ground of Cultures in the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery," an exhibition about human society and includes materials on beliefs, values, customs, and art from around the world.
In this article, Jacksonville State University's Stephen Bitgood and Ann Cleghorn share findings from a study that attempted to assess recall for three different types of exhibit events: visual (exhibit objects), semantic (label content), and other sensory impressions (sounds, temperature, darkness, touch). The aim of the study was to compare recollections for these three types of knowledge across exhibit areas at the Anniston Museum of Natural History.
This proposal requests partial funding for the development of a new paleobiology hall at the University of Nebraska State Museum. This project will give students and the general public a dynamic view of the period of time known as the Age of Reptiles. It emphasizes experience with interactive exhibits that focus on concepts of geologic time, how species adapt and change, relative size, scale and time, the activities of scientists as role models, and it provides reinforcement of these experiences for students in the classroom. This project includes the first use in a museum of SemNet, a software program designed for concept mapping and the representation of knowledge networks, which will be used with a videodisc. Prototypes of all interactive exhibits will undergo formative evaluation to establish maximal audience accessibility, ease of use and educational effectiveness. The exhibit concepts will be disseminated throughout the state of Nebraska through mini- versions, teachers in-service training, and scientist-in- residence programs. This project will also be used as a teaching laboratory for the University of Nebraska's graduate program in Museum Studies.