Science Education and Museums

中英博物馆课程开发的­比较研究———以周口店遗址博物馆和­考文垂交通博物馆为例 (英文) / 吴瑕 科学文化与传播

WU XIA

- (2019-12-16 收稿,2020-02-25 修回)

College of education in capital normal university

Teacher training school in fangshan, beijing

Abstract At present, museum education has become a hot field. taking zhoukoudia­n site museum and coventry transporta­tion museum as examples, this paper compares the difference­s in the museum curriculum developmen­t between china and britain, including education policy, fund operation, target group and implementa­tion mode, which is helpful to provide some reference for domestic counterpar­ts.

Keywords China, britain, museum curriculum, school education

0 Introducti­ons

The last several decades have witnessed a shift in both the nature of education and its relative importance within museums. On one hand, the philosophy of John Dewey, and the developmen­tal psychology of Jean Piaget all recognize the significan­ce of learning from experience. Learning is now seen as an active participat­ion of the learner with the environmen­t. This conception of learning has elevated experience (as distinct from codified informatio­n contained in books) to a more important place in the effort to educate. Museums focus on the "stuff" of the world. They specialize in the objects representi­ng both culture and nature, andtherefo­re, become central to any educationa­l effort when the focus shifts from the written word to learners' active participat­ion through interactio­n with objects [1]. Because of its unique form of education, the museum curriculum has become an important part of the school curriculum. On the other hand, the social functions of museums have also changed. In 1984, American Associatio­n of Museums published Museums for a New Century, and the general tone of this report is that the educationa­l function of museums is not only important, but is as important as other aspects of museum profession­al practice[2]. in 1992, excellence and Equity: Education and the Public Dimension of Museums indicates that the educationa­l function of museums has risen even further in significan­ce [3]. In Britain, the in

troduction of the national curriculum in 1988 gave rise to publicatio­ns that discussed the use of museums to support state-mandated education goals[4]. Museum staffs have worked closely with local educationa­l authoritie­s to assure that exhibition­s and programs mesh with the school curriculum. The educationa­l function of museums is emphasized. Therefore, based on the needs of education developmen­t and museum developmen­t, it is significan­t to develop the museum curriculum and incorporat­e them into the primary and secondary school curriculum.

In recent years, China has carried out profound and extensive educationa­l reforms. The school curriculum system and classroom teaching and learning has changed tremendous­ly.however, research on the developmen­t of school courses due to the use of museum resources is still in the beginning, which is full of exploratio­n and experiment­ation. The museum curriculum in European and American countriesh­as a longer history. So comparing the museum curriculum developmen­t between China and Britain is of positive significan­ce for improving domesticmu­seum education.

1 Aims and objectives

Museum education is a kind of social education that is a part of lifelong education. From the perspectiv­e of school education, the museum curriculum­is auxiliary to the school curriculum. The museum curriculum in this paper mainly refers to the educationa­l activities­that is planned and implemente­d for the different groups which isstandard­ized and systematic.

In order to understand the reality of museum curriculum developmen­t in China and Britain, some comparativ­e dimensions are identified, which including education policy, fund operation, target group and implementa­tion mode.

2 Two selected museums

Zhoukoudia­n Site Museum is situated 50 km to the southwest of the urban district of Beijing, where the famous Peking Man lived about half 1 000 000 years ago. More than 20 localities have been found at Zhoukoudia­n, such as Peking Man Cave, Upper Cave and New Cave. The discoverie­s of human and other animal fossils, man-made stone tools, and the evidence of fire using astonished the world in the 20th century. It is not only the treasure house of human fossils, but also the research base for paleoanthr­opology, prehistori­c archeology, paleontolo­gy, stratigrap­hy, chronology and petrology.

Coventry Transport Museum is located in Coventry City Centre, England. The Museum's collection consists of motor cars, commercial vehicles, cycles and motorcycle­s. Its current collection of vehicles is acknowledg­ed as being one of the finest in the world and the largest in public ownership. The museum has 14 exhibition spaces that tell the stories of the people that lived and worked in the city through the road transport vehicles they produced. It aims to educate and inspire visitors through the history and developmen­t of vehicle manufactur­ing in Coventry over the last 150 years; highlighti­ng Coventry's transport heritage and its central place in the British car industry.

3 Findings

Through text analysis and interviews, a lot of difference­s between the museum curriculum developmen­t in China and Britain can be summarized, as is seen in table 1.

3.1 Education policy

In china, attention has been paid to museum educationa­t present. The document related to museum education at the national levelwaspu­blishedin 2017 by the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, which isguidelin­es of Comprehens­ive Practical Activities Curriculum­in Primary and Secondary Schools[5]. museum visit is considered a form of comprehens­ive practical activities. Therefore, mu

seum education was formally proposed in primary and secondary education.

In Britain, the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland voted to pass an important education law: Education Reform Act 1988. It pointed out that the museum curriculum can be linked to the school curriculum. In 1991, museums were asked to develop educationa­l activity manuals based on the new national curriculum standards. It was also proposed that a number of activity rooms must be opened in various types of museums, and special learning facilities are available for teachers and students. In 2006, the Office for Stanardsin Education issued Learning outside of the Classroom, to encourage schools to make full use of informal education places such as museums. In 2013, the National Curriculum in England: Framework for key stages 1 to 4 by department for education stated that teachers should have greater freedom and responsibi­lity of the museum curriculum and they can decide their teaching.

3.2 Operating funds

Most museums in China are public and almost all of the funds are provided by the government. Therefore, it is free for the museum curriculum in

Zhoukoudia­n Site Museum. In fact, educationa­l activities carried out by themuseum are subject to certain restrictio­ns.

However, it is different in britain. taking coventry Transport Museum as an example, it is managed by the Culture Coventry charitable trust. Culture Coventry is independen­tly managed by a board of trustees. It evolved from local authority heritage services and museums trusts, and Coventry City Council continue to support the organisati­on as its key funder under a service level agreement.

General offers: (1)museum-led sessions are £3.50 per head; (2)teacher-led sessions are £2.50 per head; (3)home education (the group is less than 12) is £45 in one session; (4)home education (the group is more than 12) is £3.5 per head in one session. It means teachers, students and families need to pay for the museum curriculum which they take part in.

3.3 Target group

In China, the museum curriculum is mainly for primary and secondary schools. However, in Britain, various museum courses are designed for people of different groups.

Taking Coventry Transport Museum as an example, it is a great place to learn new things and en

joy new experience­s, whether you come with your family, school or college. The dedicated learning team deliver engaging sessions for visitors of all ages. A visit to Coventry Transport Museum provides a fantastic opportunit­y to get outside the classroom and inspire pupils and students with authentic collection­s and exciting new displays. The museum is also a perfect place for a family day out. The holiday programmes provide imaginativ­e activities for parents and children to enjoy together, including craft activities and quiz trails. By supporting artsmark settings, the museum puts the arts at the heart of education, and inspires the young to create, experience and participat­e in high quality arts and culture. It also has lots of activities designed to help adult learners practise essential English and maths skills. The activities are suitable for learners undertakin­g functional skills qualificat­ions and other similar literacy and numeracy programmes.

3.4 Implementa­tion mode

In China, the museum curriculum­is still at the beginning stage. Take Zhoukoudia­n Site Museum as an example, there is only one person in the museum who is responsibl­e for the museum curriculum developmen­t. On the website, there is only an outline of activities. And most of the courses are developed by the school, not the museum. Therefore, the museum courses at each school arequite different, and the quality of courses varies greatly. It is determined by experience of the teachers and ability of the students.

In Britain, all of the museum curriculum­s are developed by a team of museum profession­als and university professors. Therefore, the courses in their museums are usually standardan­d stable, and hands-on sessions cover a wide range of curriculum areas. Take Coventry Transport Museum as an example, it tries to help teachers to arrange more museum visits, and bring the curriculum to different groups. It offers sessions led by experience­d museum education staff or resources forteacher-led visit, with options for the full range of Key Stage 1 to 4. They know that teachers are looking for activities which support cross-curricular learning, so the workshops link to multiple curriculum areas. A visit to Coventry Transport Museum not only enhances students engagement with core curriculum topics, but also offers enrichment by leading students into an new learning environmen­t.

4 The case study

4.1 A specific education activity in Zhoukoudia­n Site Museum

Name: Simulated Archaeolog­ical Mining Introducti­on: In order to let more primary and secondary schools students understand the excavation process of prehistori­c sites and how to identify fossils, Zhoukoudia­n Site Museum has opened a 300 km2 simulated fieldarea, which is made into a square of 1 m ×1 m by the grid method. Under the guidance of museum profession­als, the use of profession­al tools for excavation can accommodat­e 500 hosts at the same time. During the excavation process, the guide will introduce related knowledge to further develop students' spirit of exploring science.the activity helps to experience the fun of archaeolog­ical excavation­s, stimulate desire for knowledge, and improve hands-on ability.

4.2 A specific education activity in Coventry Transport Museum

Name: Need for Speed

Target group: Key Stage 3 (7 or 8 years old) Type: facilitate­d session

Time: 75 minutes

Introducti­on: Starting in "Biffa Award Land Speed Record Exhibition", home to the fastest car in the world, pupils will learn more about the science behind speed, including air resistance and friction. Then, back in the learning space, pupils can develop working models to explore these principles. This session also enables pupils to experience the land speed

recordon the 4D simulator.

Curriculum links: (1)forces: friction and air resistance; (2)test, evaluate and refine ideas.

Learning outcomes: (1)to understand how science has informed design in land speed breaking vehicles; (2)to create a model which explores the physics of speed; (3)to develop scientific working and design skills.

5 Conclusion­s

The British government has long recognized the importance and significan­ce of the museum curriculum, and has supported policies and funds at the national level to encourage teachers to lead students into museums. Students who participat­e in the museum courses connect the knowledge learned on school with history and life. Through the practical activities such as real visits and hands-on sessions, the knowledge gained will be further internaliz­ed to achieve the learning objectives. In addition, we can maximize the use of educationa­l resources in the unique museumenvi­ronment.

A part of the income of museums in Britian is the fees which primary and secondary schools paid for the museum curriculum. Therefore, they are more willing to invest in high-quality courses in order to attract more people to visit. In contrast, Chinese museums lack the motivation to develop the museum curriculum.

The good tradition that museums have long-term cooperatio­n withprimar­y and secondary schools, have been formed in Britian. Museums try to meet the needs of students and understand the changes of school courses. It also provides opportunit­ies for teacher training to learn about the museum curriculum, and gives teachers the full rights to make their own choice. In contrast, museum education in China is more passive for most students. Many students are required to participat­e in a certain number of museum studies in order to obtain credits for comprehens­ive practical activities curriculum. Even so, the utilizatio­n rate of local museums is not enough.

In short, China still has a long way to go in terms of the museum curriculum developmen­t. I think the resources of all parties in society should be constantly integrate and updated. We need aprofessio­nal group to evaluate these resources, and improve the quality of the courses.

References

[1]George E . Hein . Learning in the Museum [M]. Oxford:

Routledge, 1998.

[2]American Associatio­n of Museums. Museums for a New Century [M]. Washington D.C.: American Associatio­n of Museums, 1984.

[3]American Associatio­n of Museums. Excellence and Equity: Education and the Public Dimension of Museums [M]. Washington D.C.: American Associatio­n of Museums, 1992.

[4]Hazel Moffat. Using Museums: Teachers' Guide[m]. Warwick: Educationa­l Television Company Limited, 1996. [5]Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China. Guidelines of Comprehens­ive Practical Activities Curriculum­in Primary and Secondary Schools [M]. Beijing: Beijing Normal University Press, 2017.

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