博物館教育的演進與研究

Developments and Research of Museum Education

王啟祥

《科技博物》 4卷4期 (2000/07) Pp. 5-19

https://doi.org/10.6432/TMR.200007.0005

並列摘要

The research of museum education that goes on in Taiwan does not include enough localized research, while the research of the development of Western museum education and past research of museum education which appears in local literature is not sufficient to constitute a basic reference resource for the public and those who want to work in museums. This research contains two major parts. First of all it presents an overview of the literature available overseas regarding the development of museum education in the West, present in several groups according to the decade in which they occurred, along with a brief introduction of what was going on at the time. Secondly, it looks at what has happened in museum education research in several subject areas, coveting what has been done in the past as well as what can be expected in the future.
The development of museum education
Museum education has made steady progress from the establishment of the first public museums in the 18th century up until the present century. This history can be seen in several steps including the gestation period; taking toot; sprouting; flowering; and each of these segments has its own special characteristics as noted below.
1. Gestation
This period covets the first 200 years from the 18th century up until about the 1920s. Throughout this period museum education consisted entirely of theme displays and the written information which accompanied them, as well as inexpensive literature and some in- house guides. By the 19th century schools had begun to make use of museums, helping to give museums a higher profile among the public.
During this period much of the educational activities were geared toward youngsters through school-related programs, with only a limited amount of other kinds of events. In addition, independent educational programs received very little recognition and support from museum officials and the public, so there was only a minimum of progress in this area.
2. Taking toot
This period is from the end of 1930 to 1950. By the 1930s many people had begun to take an interest in museums and the opportunities they offer for education. The economic depression of the 1930s brought a sharp focusing on the social responsibility and function of the museum, which offered things like workshops and arts classes to the unemployed to form what academics call the beginning of adult education programs. Subsequently the scope of adult education classes continued to grow steadily even as the museum's duties to society began to subside somewhat.
In 1948 the Journal of Education in Museums appeared for the first time, providing a venue for research and discussion of education- related topics. This marked a milepost in the development of museum education as ir helped to lay the basic foundation for education as it is today.
3. Sprouting
From 1960 to 1970, museums went through a number of changes during this period. Many set up education departments to develop better-planned and organized activities.
There was also a considerable advance in the access of museums to the public, which lead to further widening of educational programs. Some of the new activities included services for the handicapped, outreach programs, traveling exhibits, the opening of branch museums and the inclusion of more cultural viewpoints in museum events.
Another point worth noting is that during this period the applications of educational psychology brought clear goals for displays and exhibitions in children’s museums as well as guidelines for design and content of exhibits, active involvement in displays, and planning of display space (the learning environment). These developments led to greater opportunities for interaction between the museum and the public and the appearance of institutions like the Boston Children’s Museum, the Exploratorium in San Francisco, Old Sturbridge Village in Massachusetts and other museums which ventured away from the conventional approach of museums. These museums stood at the forefront in museum education during this period.
The sprouting period brought many new concepts and methods, although they never reached most museums. This many museums were unfamiliar with the aims, strategies and methods in these activities and were thus reluctant to use them.
4. Flowering
From the 1980s to the end of the 20th century, the role 0f communication in the museum gained in importance during this period, bringing new changes in museum educational activities. New methods such as discovery rooms and interactive displays appeared, and several special characteristics could be seen in museum education.
Chart One. Special features of modern museum education
Category Special features
Target General public
Duration Life-long
Types Self-directed, discovery, fun learning
Contents Life-oriented, contemporary, suited to the needs of both individuals and the public
Materials Real, objects, experiences, DIY
Media Information, computers, science and technology
Forms Multi-faced, lively
Roles Supplying opportunities and resources for learning
Environment Realistic, one-the-scene, virtual reality
Although the status of the museum is well-defined by the rime, whether or not museum education can be called a specialized part of its function has nor been determined.
Research in Museum Education
With the development of museum education has come new research topics in the subject, although in a slightly different direction. At the beginning of the 20th century the impact of the scientific learning movement began to be felt, and the earliest visitor research was focused on gaining an understanding of physiological phenomena among visitors.
By the l940s attention shifted to the importance of psychological factors in learning and the results of research on the special features of museum visitors. These were applied to the weighting of museum displays, strengthening of the visual impact of displays, and improvements in the effectiveness of learning by visitors. Still there was a level of systemization to the research being carried out in these areas.
At the beginning of the 1950s research of the mind-sets of people before and after visiting the museum came to the fore. Museum educators became immersed in changing public attitudes and how people viewed the effects of cognitive learning. Some researchers experimented with evaluations of the affective impact of various displays on the public.
Later some researchers became interested in the social interaction functions of museum visits, taking up topics such as the length of stays and the interactive relationship between visitors and displays. At the same time there was growing attention to the needs and desires of museum visitors.
During the 1970s the focus was on demographic variables such as age, social status, educational background and occupation, and their relation to visits to museums. Researchers confirmed that visitors tended to be those with higher educational levels and social status, and that they were more likely to take part in cultural and social activities.
During the 1980s researchers began to look at the cost-benefits of museum education from the viewpoint of the general public. They discussed things like frequency of visits and the amount of time spent in museums by the public and how much money people were spending during their visits. Other factors being studied were the factors affecting the public's choices of recreational activities and their relationship to museum visits.
The study of museum education involves coordinated efforts in psychology, education sociology, anthropology and other fields of research. It is not limited to a single area of study, and it is extremely useful in determining the principles behind museum education. It should be further developed in order to establish its own body of knowledge.
Generally speaking studies of museum education have tended to focus on realistic discussion, particularly where topics related to the public are concerned. Although some research in recent years has covered visitor behavior, there is still room for much more. During the 1980s and the early 1990s researches and specialists in museums put together basic studies of principles for strengthening museum education and there was talk of developing a system of theoretical knowledge for the field, but so far nothing has come of it.
Conclusions
To summarize the above, advances and studies in the area of museum education can be seen in three main achievements:
1. Regarding advances in museum education
(1) Most museums which were established for and are open to the public have had museum education operations from the very outset, but serious study of the subject did not being until the first part of the 20th century. The earliest systematic development of educational activities came in art museums, which can be said to have been the drivers of serious research in museum education.
(2) Standards were the main focus of early studies in museum education, and the emphasis was later expanded to include adults and those from special backgrounds. The working relationship between museums and schools goes back as far as the middle of the 19th century.
(3) The direction of development in museum education research has tended to follow social rends. Museum education began with the use of tour guides in the museum and phase progressed toward greater diversification, more scientific approaches, and livelier, more interesting presentations over the years.
(4) Most early research of museum education looked at whatever the research happened to be interested in at the time. Later on studies centered more on research of topics related to life and the times, as well as the need for personal and group development.
(5) The l960s were a watershed period in the development of museum education research. This was when museums and children's museums began to utilize principles of psychology to design and arrange their display, setting a precedent for the use of such principles in museum education.
(6) The role of museum education began to shift at the end of the 1 980s, quickly becoming one of the principal functions of the museum. Still, many problems remain to be solved in museum education even today.
2. Regarding research of museum education
(1) Experts discussing museum education research acknowledge that visitor studies are one part of such research. Research of museum education took visitors as one 0f its key targets and topics from the earliest days. Later on other methods and principles of research were imported from psychology, sociology, anthropology and other similar disciplines so that the scope of research of museum education has widened slowly but steadily. Still, the major of research topics still center on how to develop education. There is still very little theoretical study being done, and what is being done is too superficial.
(2) At the end of the 20th century as our changing society looked for ways to satisfy the needs of the people the role and functions of museum education are also going through adjustments and changes. The approach now seen as being most effective for helping museums to cope with all these changes is to strengthen theoretical research of museum education, and establish methods and a body of information for such research so that it can become more professional.
For example, there should be discussions of research of the basic philosophy of museum education, which forms the core of planning of displays and museum education activities. Without the guiding influence of educational philosophy, the displays and events in museums will simply be hit and miss and it will be very difficult to achieve any specific results in education. Moreover, establishing a sociology- oriented basis for museum education will help to strengthen the sociological contents and environment of displays and activities in museums. It will also encourage the development of a variety of sociological functions involving different visitors and different times. Using psychological and anthropological methods of research and establishing principles for research of museum education are both very important parts of these research efforts.