A Place for Kids? The Public Image of Natural History Museums

Strager, Hanne; Astrup, Jens

doi:10.1111/cura.12071

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…A measure of opportunities for science learning out of the home environment was generated from questions asking the parent whether (1) since the beginning of the academic year, they attended a school event, such as a science fair, with their child; (2) whether in the past month, they visited a zoo, aquarium, or petting farm; (3) if they have visited a state or national park with their child; (4) whether their child attended a day or overnight camps; and (5) whether they visited an art gallery, museum, or historical site over the last summer. Although this last question asked about art or science museums, it was included as an opportunity for science learning given that children are noticeably more likely to go to science museums and natural history museums than to art museums (for a review, see Strager and Astrup 2014). The opportunities for learning variables were made by creating z-scores for parent responses on each item and predicting a factor based on regression scores.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Socioeconomic gaps in science achievement

2018

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BackgroundIn contrast to the extensive research on socioeconomic gaps in reading and math achievement, little attention has been given to socioeconomic disparities in science skills, particularly during the early years of schooling. This emphasis on later years may be problematic because large socioeconomic disparities emerge in the early years, thus it is crucial to document the size of disparities in science achievement and begin unpacking the range of factors that contribute to these disparities. Additionally, it is crucial to know which components of socioeconomic status are more strongly linked to children’s science skills so that resources can be more effectively targeted to address disparities. Using nationally representative data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (N = 9250), this study examines disparities in science achievement across elementary and middle school related to parental income and parental education separating their effects from each other and from a range of confounding factors. Additionally, it considers whether characteristics of children, families, and schools are pathways through which socioeconomic disparities emerge.ResultsResults show moderate gaps in science achievement related to both household income and parental education. The primary pathways through which parental education and family income influenced science achievement was through mathematics and reading achievement. For parental education gaps, smaller indirect effects also operated through access to informal science learning opportunities both inside and outside of the home environment.ConclusionFirst, this study highlights the importance of considering the contributions of multiple measures of socioeconomic status, instead of a composite. Second, it shows that socioeconomic disparities in science achievement emerge early and that programs and policies aimed at addressing these gaps may need to target children during the early elementary and preschool years. Third, our findings suggest that elementary instructional approaches that simultaneously address science instruction with reading and/or mathematics instruction will likely be especially important for improving overall science outcomes.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Socioeconomic gaps in science achievement

2018

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“…Просвітницька діяльність природничих музеїв зазвичай сприймається як засіб впливу лише на дітей та юнацтво, а громадськість, журналісти та навіть дослідники часто сприймають природничі музеї як установи, орієнтовані на дітей, і в такому аспекті їхній публічний імідж радикально відрізняється від іміджу художніх музеїв (Strager & Astrup 2014;Chervonenko 2015). Важливою задачею природничих музеїв є змінити цей імідж дитячого розважального закладу, оскільки в такому разі вони ризикують втратити свій авторитет потужних наукових центрів, провідну роль в інтерпретації науки для дорослих і у їхньому залученні до обгово рення широкого кола наукових питань.…”

Section: наукова і просвітницька роль природничих музеївunclassified

Interpretation of evolution as part of science popularization in natural history museums

Barkaszi,

Kovalchuk,

Maliuk

2021

GEO&BIO

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The paper presents a brief review of the scientific and educational role of natural history museums, particular-ly in the field of interpretation of organic evolution. The scientific and social value of collections that are stored at natural history museums are highlighted. The history of interpretation and popularization of basic ideas of the theory of evolution are considered, as well as the perception of evolution by the society and vari-ous categories of museum visitors. Analysed are the main tools of interpretation available in natural history museums as well as basic principles of display of palaeontological specimens, particularly in dioramas as pe-culiar museum tools for interpretation. The main approaches to the interpretation of evolution are considered in the context of selection of interpretation methods and tools and in regard to the specifics of various groups of museum visitors. Minimum professional skills of interpreters who take part in exhibiting and educational ac-tivities of natural history museums are discussed. The possibilities of interpretation of evolution are shown on the example of the palaeontological exhibition of the National Museum of Natural History at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (Kyiv, Ukraine). A brief description of the palaeontological display is given, particularly on the general principles of its structure and on examples of exhibited specimens that demonstrate the evolution of various groups of vertebrates (e.g. fishes and mammals). Dioramas of the palaeontological exhibition are presented, which are especially valuable visual tools of interpretation of evolution in the muse-um. The main issues of further existence and development of natural history museums are discussed in the context of their role as powerful research and educational centres, maintaining a high level of attendance by visitors, and involvement of the public in the activities of these museums in times of high competition of lei-sure offers by various entertaining facilities. The need for the modernization of earlier exhibitions using mod-ern interactive tools and visualization techniques in underlined in order to increase public interest and expand the pool of visitors.

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“…Danish science researchers Hanne Strager and Jens Astrup (2014) study the public image of natural history museums and find that they are seen as aimed at children and families with children. Strager and Jens Astrup (2014) also discuss the challenges in visitor communication resulting from these associations.…”

Section: How To Study Museum Viewsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Young people’s own museum views

Drotner

Knudsen

Mortenesen

2017

Museum Management and Curatorship

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Taking a mixed-methods, visitor-focused approach to views on museums, this article examines what views young Danes aged 13-23 years (n=2,350) hold on museums and how these views can be categorized and articulated. Arguing that studying views of museums as socially situated meaning-making practices adds theoretical and empirical depth to existing research and practice, we apply semantic categorization, speech-act theory, and cognitive linguistics as analytical tools. Our results demonstrate that respondents' most prevalent semantic categories are 'exciting,' 'educative,' and 'boring.' Their responses fall into two main types: assertive speech acts providing factual descriptions and expressive speech acts providing more evaluative judgments. In general, young Danes make sense of museums along three different routes. One group wants museums that expand and challenge prior perceptions and knowledge, another group prefers museums that cater to existing interests, while members of a third, smaller group take it upon themselves to make museum visits enriching experiences.

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A Place for Kids? The Public Image of Natural History Museums

Cited by 5 publications

References 20 publications

Socioeconomic gaps in science achievement

Socioeconomic gaps in science achievement

Interpretation of evolution as part of science popularization in natural history museums

Young people’s own museum views

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