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There are so many behind-the-scenes facets of museum work. And while each of these facets or departments (i.e. management, collections, curation, outreach, etc.) have their own goals, I would argue that ultimately they all feed into a museum’s larger purpose to educate or enlighten its visitors. Perhaps, though, the department working towards this most visibly is the education department! Taking all the behind-the-scenes knowledge held in a museum and translating it into activities for visitors is what I love about museum education and is something that the education specialism module only reaffirmed to me.
You know the phrase, “the best way to learn is by doing”? Well, in the first two weeks we implemented that phrase as learned by doing. While two weeks only allows for a brief overview of techniques, Gemma and Rosie introduced us to many educational activities, games, methods, and theories by allowing us to “do” them. From drawing as a method of more deeply understanding objects to creating our own curriculum in the Smithsonian Institution’s online Learning Lab, we were well-prepared to create a programming brief for Modern Art Oxford’s education department as our culminating group project. While I loved the practicality of the education specialism, I also loved our initial conversations about reflective statements.
Personally, the reflective statement activity was hugely impactful and will continue to influence how and where I work in museums. We began the activity with five minutes of free writing to Rosie’s prompt of, “What can you bring to museum learning and engagement?” From the prompt, I could better identify my true passions within museum learning and engagement and therefore better understand my personal potential impact.
Next, we inspected an institution’s manifesto and compared it with our personal reflective statements, which helped me realize how important it is that my values align with the those of the institutions that I will work for. While this prompt and reflective statement activity were specific to education, they are widely applicable; and thankfully, this is a dynamic, evolving activity!
This module, its fun activities, and the deeper reflective moments have made me only more excited to work in museum education and continue to bring that behind-the-scenes knowledge to visitors!
Written by Brianna Selph Frazier