This research is an in-depth look into a museum striving to put into practice qualities of a socially responsible museum by providing educational programs for an underserved audience. The purpose of this research is to study the qualities and characteristics of two Community Partnership programs for court-involved youth at the San Diego Museum of Art. Identifying the qualities and characteristics of this particular museum program could be utilized by other museums in creating similar programs. Detailed data collection in the form of observations, interviews, and documentation provided a comprehensive view of this program. The research concludes with recommendations for other museums implementing similar programs and is based on the findings from the San Diego Museum of Art's work with court-involved youth. / text

The purpose of this study was to see how visitors to the Landmarks Video media station in the Art Building at The University of Texas at Austin described how they make meaning while watching video art and what learning models those visitors drew on in their responses. I conducted a qualitative case study using semi-structured interviews to see how visitors described their meaning making process. I used discourse analysis to compare the visitor’s responses to art and film theories to see where the responses and the existing theories overlapped. I applied the results of the discourse analysis to determine how visual literacy and media literacy could be used in museum education surrounding video art. Visitors drew on a variety of background experiences in their responses to the videos Sigalit Landau’s DeadSee (2005) and Dara Birnbaum’s Technology/Transformation: Wonder Woman (1978-1979) including past experiences with art and film as well as experiences with feminism, pop culture, and politics. Their responses also related to a variety of areas within art and film theory. While background knowledge helped the participants begin to make meaning with the videos, it also blocked them when the video touched on something beyond their comfort level. I researched current uses of visual literacy, including uses in the museum, and current trends in media literacy. Due to the fact that the visitors’ reactions related to art and film theory, but they were finding themselves blocked in their meaning making, I conclude that a museum education program that uses current museum education practices in visual literacy, but incorporates techniques from media literacy, would be successful in helping visitors articulate their interpretations of a piece of video art and move past what is limiting them. / text

While historic sites have been used and operated as educational tools in the form of museums and public spaces since the emergence of the field of preservation, educational outreach frequently fails to include preservation concepts within these efforts. This thesis attempts to answer the question of “Why is preservation education lacking or absent at historic sites, and how can it be an integral part of a historic site’s programming, presentation, and interpretation?” To investigate this question, scholarly research was combined with first hand experiences of sites and interviews with stewarding organization staff members. Through this investigation, emerged a contextualization of historic sites within the fields of preservation and museum studies, a relation of the current state of preservation education to the opportunities available by means of physical sites, and a connection of preservation concepts to museum education theory. Multiple means of educational implementation and execution were explored, as were target audiences and organizational management structure. The result is a collection of examples in practice, explanations of missed opportunities, and recommendation for effective implementation. Collectively, these results reinforce the importance of using physical sites available to the public for educational purposes not limited to historic significance, but including preservation in all facets, as a means of introducing the field along with its impact and importance to the general public as a means of generating an interest that will be redirected into their communities. / text

Arts organizations are moving toward a more open space through community outreach programs. This space allows for art-focused dialogue to occur that facilitates interaction between people. This dialogue then opens the door for new relationships to transpire. The move toward dialogical and relational space in arts organizations is based on demographic, economic, and ideological changes in arts fields that reflect a growing opportunity for democratization through the arts. This study utilizes a website and mission statement review, survey responses, and a case study to explore how arts organizations (including museums, arts centers, artists' communities, arts councils, and art and craft schools) are serving community needs by creating a relational and dialogical space within and outside of their walls.

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This study of P.T. Barnum’s American Museum challenges readers to examine Barnum in a new light. An argument is made that P.T. Barnum was a successful museum educator whose philosophies and actions align with three modern museum education discourses: free-choice learning, constructivism, and edutainment. These findings challenge the commonly-held belief that Barnum was simply a showman, best known for his work in the circus and for a quote that has been mis-attributed to him that, “there’s a sucker born every minute.” The research undertaken for this investigation focuses on museums and education in the nineteenth century. This study presents a brief history of the emergence of museums in America, spanning the years 1782–1841. Six museum proprietors are discussed in accordance with their beliefs in three educational philosophies: popular education, useful education and didactic education. A focus is then made towards P.T. Barnum and his American Museum. A brief biography of Barnum prior to his career as a museum proprietor is included. The holdings and organization of the American Museum is described, revealing some of the influence it had on nineteenth-century culture. The thesis concludes by illustrating how Barnum’s American Museum exemplified three forms of education: free-choice learning, constructivism, and edutainment. In it I argue that Barnum was an effective museum educator and his legacy should reflect this important feature of his character. / text

This study documents affective learning during a community-based art museum education program for military and veteran-connected families, which included gallery teaching, art-making, and a final exhibition of participant artwork. A review of literature on public pedagogy, affective learning, museum education, and community-based art education provides the theoretical framework for the study. Narrative ethnography and participant observation were employed by the primary researcher-educator to gather a diverse array of data and construct a holistic narrative of the development of and participant experiences within the art museum program. Data collected includes field notes, personal communications (such as meeting notes and emails), interviews, open-ended survey questions, curriculum artifacts (such as lesson plans and worksheets), and artworks created by military family members. Analysis of the educator goals, participant expressions, and personal interactions informs the final discussion of how affective learning took place within one museum program and how attention to this domain of learning can enrich museum programs for diverse community members.

This project utilized a form of arts based educational research described as analog hypertext to develop interpretative material representing multiple critical, theoretical, and disciplinary perspectives on objects in a university art museum’s object study gallery. Drawing on scholars’ recommendations for postcolonial interpretation of non-Western art, the project created a web of information, which simultaneously revealed and critiqued the underlying ideologies and power structures shaping the museum’s display in an effort to change existing interpretive practice. The project developed five color-coded thematic self-guided tours—art as commodity, spiritual practice, technology and cultural evolutionism, mortuary rituals, and postcolonial perspectives—presented to the public as an interpretive exhibition invited visitors’ contributions. This paper explores how the analog hypertext functions as both a research tool and a content delivery device for the representation of multiple critical perspectives, fostering interdisciplinary perspectives and visitor meaning-making in the process.

The chapter house of the Benedictine priory of Saint John Le Bas-Nueil, currently located in the Worcester Art Museum, is an impressive piece of architecture. However, visitors are currently restricted to admiring the structure and its restoration only, as there is limited information presented in the museum about the room’s original use. The purpose of this project was to produce a low-impact, narrative-driven audio experience designed to increase visitor interest in the museum in general and Benedictine life during the twelfth century in particular. The prototype produced combines elements of traditional audio tours, radio drama, and question-and-answer interaction sequences to provide a self-driven immersive experience.