Features the Science Learning Network (SLN) project, an alliance of science center, K-8 schools and Unisys Corp. providing communication capabilities and collaboration opportunities for K-8 teachers in the United States. Partner schools of the science centers; Mission; Distinction from other computer networks; Significance of networked technology; Benefits of the participants.
This book addresses controversial changes in a major cultural organization through the lens of a vital need for a shift in thinking as museums enter the 21st century. Robert Janes is a leading voice in the changes taking place in Canada's cultural institutions. In this case study, the author candidly discusses layoffs, union/management relations, and the urgency of sustainability. Contributions from museum staff highlight the human side of change, and essays by Canadian and international museum directors present thoughtful perspectives.
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Robert Janes
resourceresearchProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
In this letter, Ross Loomis, the president of the Visitor Studies Association, reflects on the VSA Conference in Birmingham and acknowledges key people for making the event possible.
In this article, Janette Griffin of the University of Technology in Sydney discusses a project designed to investigate the applicability of a School-Museum Learning Framework piloted in an earlier study. Implementation of the Framework involved 5th and 6th grade students bringing their own chosen questions or "areas of inquiry" to the museum and students having considerable control over their learning within parameters provided by the teacher.
In this article, Lynn D. Dierking of Science Learning, inc. (SLi) discusses the summative evaluation of the Pacific Science Center's Science Carnival Consortium Project, a National Science Foundation funded program designed to assist new or developing science centers with opening and operating their institutions. The evaluation was designed to determine the extent to which the Science Carnival Consortium fulfilled its primary mission of facilitating the creation of these new science centers, as well as to assess the relative efficacy of the project as a model for future collaborative endeavors
In this article, Ethan Allen (Teachers Academy for Mathematics & Science in Chicago) describes two types of museum collaborations and how they improve visitor experience through different modes. Allen discusses the Chicago Museum Exhibitors Group (CMEG) and the Museum Partners of Chicago's Urban Systemic Initiative as two models of museum collaboration.
This Handbook is geared to the experienced researcher who is a novice evaluator. It orients the researcher to evaluation practice, with an emphasis on the use of qualitative techniques to augment quantitative measures.