Families talking about ecology at touch tanks

Abstract

Research has demonstrated that conversations among museum, aquarium, and zoo visitors can be a clear indication of active learning, engagement, and participation in scientific reasoning. This descriptive study sought to determine the extent of talk about ecology-related topics exhibited by family groups visiting marine touch tanks at four Pacific coast aquariums. In particular, conversations were examined to determine the kinds of ecology topics discussed and the influence of exhibit features such as tank format and interpretive staff interactions on the extent of talk about ecological topics. Findings suggest limited talk about ecology by families during their visit to the exhibit -regardless of whether the tank resembled a real tidepool habitat or not. However, data revealed that talk about ecology between guests and staff was significantly longer than was ecology-talk among guests only, suggesting that supplemental interpretation by staff members or volunteers may be necessary to explicitly encourage such discourse at touch tanks.

Parent–Child Conversations About Animals in Informal Learning Environments

“…Prior research has found that differences in early opportunities for direct experience with animals (e.g., Anggoro et al, 2010;Medin et al, 2010;Ross et al, 2003;Unsworth et al, 2012; and conversations with parents (e.g., Tarlowski, 2006) impact early biological reasoning. Especially for urban children who may have few opportunities to encounter live animals, zoos and museums are an ideal setting for exploring the content of parent-child interaction about animals (Allen, 2002;Ash, 2003;Kisiel et al, 2012;Kopczak et al, 2015;Patrick & Tunnicliffe, 2013;Rigney & Callanan, 2011;. Thus, exploring parent-children interactions about animals in these ILEs can reveal the kinds of opportunities for learning that can impact the development of children's early biological and psychological theories about living things.…”

“…A growing body of research has examined how parents and children interact at live animal exhibits in both zoos and science museums (Allen 2002;Ash, 2003;Kisiel, Rowe, Vartabedian, & Kopczak, 2012;Kopczak, Kisiel, & Rowe, 2015;Patrick & Tunnicliffe, 2013;Rigney & Callanan, 2011;. Surprisingly, few studies of family engagement at live animal exhibits have focused on conversational analyses specific to the development of biological or anthropomorphic knowledge about animals.…”

The Development of a Standardized Assessment Framework for Animal Exhibits

“…For example, Ross, Melber, Gillespie, and Lukas (2012) found that visitors spend more time in and moved more slowly through the naturalistic African ape exhibit, than within a more traditionally structured exhibit. There is also evidence that interactive opportunities in zoos and aquariums, such as touch tanks (Kisiel, Rowe, Vartabedian, & Kopczak, 2012;Kopczak, Kisiel, & Rowe, 2015), touch tables (Lindemann-Matthies & Kamer, 2006), and live animal shows (Moss, Esson, & Bazley, 2010), stimulate a rich learning experience for visitors and for school children (Kimble, 2014).…”

An investigation of the role of learning conversations in youth’s authoring of science identities during an informal science camp

“…Earlier studies have explored topics such as how families use epistemic resources to make sense of science content Zimmerman et al, 2010;, types of learning talk (Allen, 2002), how parents support children's inquiry and scientific reasoning skills (Ash, 2003;Crowley et al, 2001;Kisiel, Rowe, Vartabedian, & Kopczak, 2012), how parents and children interact at live animal exhibits (Geerdts, Van de Walle, & LoBue, 2015; Kopczak, Kisiel, & Rowe, 2015; Patrick & Tunnicliffe, 2013; , and the role of cultural tools and technology in supporting family learning Martell, 2008;Zimmerman, Land, McClain, Mohney, Choi, & Salman, 2015;Zimmerman, McClain, & Crowl, 2013).…”