scholarly journals The State of Play: An Exploration of Games and Their Value in  museum Exhibitions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Anton Berndt
Keyword(s):  
Research Question ◽  
Museum Studies ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Central Research ◽  
Contemporary Culture ◽  
Museum Exhibitions ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Museum Practice ◽  
New Museology

<p>In the field of museum studies there has been very little consideration of games and their application to exhibiting practice. This represents a significant gap in the theory on current museum practice given the frequency of games in exhibitions and the scale of the commercial games industry in contemporary culture. This study begins to redress this issue by exploring how a significant and influential museum operating within the paradigm of the new museology views the role of games in its exhibitions. The thesis considers the central research question: what do practitioners currently think about games in museum exhibitions and how could museum games be improved. Following an interpretivist methodology the study seeks to answer this question through a case study of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. Seven practitioners affiliated with this museum were interviewed about their understanding of games and their application in a museum context. The research findings illuminate the current understanding of games held by these practitioners and factors that inhibit the successful implementation of games at Te Papa. It was found that the practitioners’ opinions had not been influenced by the available theoretical literature on games. It was also found that practitioners thought games in exhibitions at the museum have not been particularly successful in achieving either the goals of exhibitions or the potential that games offer. It is concluded that the introduction of theories on play and on games into museum theory and practice has potential for significant advances in this area of exhibition development. In contemporary museums there is a shift away from presenting absolute, positivist understandings of knowledge toward the subjective, construction of meaning. Museums are also increasingly required to maintain economic efficacy while offering a valuable service to the populace. This thesis responds to this situation by proposing that a greater knowledge and utilisation of games in exhibitions offers a valuable approach in negotiating these two trends. By presenting an understanding of games, their potential value for museums and perspectives on what currently inhibits their successful application this research offers the field of museum studies a basis from which to develop knowledge of this under-theorised aspect of museum practice.</p>

scholarly journals The State of Play: An Exploration of Games and Their Value in  museum Exhibitions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Anton Berndt
Keyword(s):  
Research Question ◽  
Museum Studies ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Central Research ◽  
Contemporary Culture ◽  
Museum Exhibitions ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Museum Practice ◽  
New Museology

<p>In the field of museum studies there has been very little consideration of games and their application to exhibiting practice. This represents a significant gap in the theory on current museum practice given the frequency of games in exhibitions and the scale of the commercial games industry in contemporary culture. This study begins to redress this issue by exploring how a significant and influential museum operating within the paradigm of the new museology views the role of games in its exhibitions. The thesis considers the central research question: what do practitioners currently think about games in museum exhibitions and how could museum games be improved. Following an interpretivist methodology the study seeks to answer this question through a case study of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. Seven practitioners affiliated with this museum were interviewed about their understanding of games and their application in a museum context. The research findings illuminate the current understanding of games held by these practitioners and factors that inhibit the successful implementation of games at Te Papa. It was found that the practitioners’ opinions had not been influenced by the available theoretical literature on games. It was also found that practitioners thought games in exhibitions at the museum have not been particularly successful in achieving either the goals of exhibitions or the potential that games offer. It is concluded that the introduction of theories on play and on games into museum theory and practice has potential for significant advances in this area of exhibition development. In contemporary museums there is a shift away from presenting absolute, positivist understandings of knowledge toward the subjective, construction of meaning. Museums are also increasingly required to maintain economic efficacy while offering a valuable service to the populace. This thesis responds to this situation by proposing that a greater knowledge and utilisation of games in exhibitions offers a valuable approach in negotiating these two trends. By presenting an understanding of games, their potential value for museums and perspectives on what currently inhibits their successful application this research offers the field of museum studies a basis from which to develop knowledge of this under-theorised aspect of museum practice.</p>

scholarly journals Protecting Your Assets: an Evaluation of Museum Emergency Planning Practices in New Zealand Museums

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Emily Murray
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Museum Studies ◽  
Emergency Planning ◽  
Local Context ◽  
Central Research ◽  
Emergency Plan ◽  
The World ◽  
Museum Practice

<p>Museums around the world are often affected by major catastrophes, and yet planning for these disasters is an often neglected aspect of museum practice. New Zealand is not immune from these events, as can be seen in the recent series of serious earthquakes in Christchurch in 2010 and 2011. This dissertation considers how prepared the New Zealand museum sector is to handle unexpected events that negatively affect its buildings, staff, operations and treasured collections. The central research question was: What is the overall state of emergency planning in the New Zealand museum sector? There was a significant gap in the literature, especially in the local context, as there has been only one other comparable study conducted in Britain, and nothing locally. This dissertation makes a valuable contribution to the field of museum studies by drawing on theory from relevant areas such as crises management literature and by conducting original empirical research on a topic which has received little attention hitherto. The research employed a number of methods, including a review of background secondary sources, a survey and interviews. After contextualising the study with a number of local examples, Ian online survey was then developed an which enabled precise understanding of the nature of current museum practices and policies around emergency planning. Following this I conducted several interviews with museum professionals from a variety of institutional backgrounds which explored their thoughts and feelings behind the existing practices within the industry. The findings of the research were significant and somewhat alarming: almost 40% of the museum and galleries in New Zealand do not have any emergency plan at all, and only 11% have what they considered ‘complete’ plans. The research revealed a clear picture of the current width and depth of planning, as well as practices around updating the plans and training related to them. Within the industry there is awareness that planning for emergencies is important, but museum staff typically lack the knowledge and guidance needed to conduct effective emergency planning. As a result of the analysis, several practical suggestions are presented aimed at improving emergency planning practices in New Zealand museums. However this study has implications for museum studies and for current museum practice everywhere, as many of the recommendations for resolving the current obstacles and problems are applicable anywhere in the world, suggesting that New Zealand museums could become leaders in this important area.</p>

scholarly journals Protecting Your Assets: an Evaluation of Museum Emergency Planning Practices in New Zealand Museums

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Emily Murray
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Museum Studies ◽  
Emergency Planning ◽  
Local Context ◽  
Central Research ◽  
Emergency Plan ◽  
The World ◽  
Museum Practice

<p>Museums around the world are often affected by major catastrophes, and yet planning for these disasters is an often neglected aspect of museum practice. New Zealand is not immune from these events, as can be seen in the recent series of serious earthquakes in Christchurch in 2010 and 2011. This dissertation considers how prepared the New Zealand museum sector is to handle unexpected events that negatively affect its buildings, staff, operations and treasured collections. The central research question was: What is the overall state of emergency planning in the New Zealand museum sector? There was a significant gap in the literature, especially in the local context, as there has been only one other comparable study conducted in Britain, and nothing locally. This dissertation makes a valuable contribution to the field of museum studies by drawing on theory from relevant areas such as crises management literature and by conducting original empirical research on a topic which has received little attention hitherto. The research employed a number of methods, including a review of background secondary sources, a survey and interviews. After contextualising the study with a number of local examples, Ian online survey was then developed an which enabled precise understanding of the nature of current museum practices and policies around emergency planning. Following this I conducted several interviews with museum professionals from a variety of institutional backgrounds which explored their thoughts and feelings behind the existing practices within the industry. The findings of the research were significant and somewhat alarming: almost 40% of the museum and galleries in New Zealand do not have any emergency plan at all, and only 11% have what they considered ‘complete’ plans. The research revealed a clear picture of the current width and depth of planning, as well as practices around updating the plans and training related to them. Within the industry there is awareness that planning for emergencies is important, but museum staff typically lack the knowledge and guidance needed to conduct effective emergency planning. As a result of the analysis, several practical suggestions are presented aimed at improving emergency planning practices in New Zealand museums. However this study has implications for museum studies and for current museum practice everywhere, as many of the recommendations for resolving the current obstacles and problems are applicable anywhere in the world, suggesting that New Zealand museums could become leaders in this important area.</p>

scholarly journals "Walking the Talk"? An Ethnography of Biculturalism at Te Papa

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Tanja Schubert-McArthur
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Museum Studies ◽  
Social Institution ◽  
Negotiation Process ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Central Research ◽  
Complex Processes ◽  
Settler Societies ◽  
Meaningful Experiences

<p>This thesis examines the implications of a bicultural framework for the everyday interactions of Māori and non-Māori staff at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa (TP thereafter). The research addresses gaps in the New Zealand literature on biculturalism, which has not hitherto explored the internal dynamics of cultural organisations in depth,as well as issues in the international literature of anthropology, museum studies and related fields to do with museums, indigenous people and cultural identity. The central research question is: how does biculturalism work in practice at TP? The approach is qualitative using mixed-methods, based on twelve months intensive fieldwork behind the scenes at New Zealand’s national museum. Drawing on 68 interviews and participant observations with 18 different teams across the organisation, the thesis explores how biculturalism is enacted, negotiated, practised and envisioned on different stages within the complex social institution that is the museum.  Rather than seeing TP as a single bicultural entity, my analysis suggests that TP is a convoluted amalgam of several stages encompassing ‘contact zones’ where Māori and non-Māori engage to varying degrees. I propose that TP’s marae is the centre stage for Māori activities and rituals that serve a number of functions: to position people through mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion, display power, facilitate intercultural dialogue, empower Māori, and transform non-Māori through meaningful experiences. Throughout the thesis, I argue that biculturalism is neither an innocent aspiration nor a means to an end, but an ongoing struggle and negotiation process.  The importance of ethnography to the anthropological enterprise and museum studies research is reaffirmed through this study; not only does this ethnographic study provide insights into museum practices, but also the complex processes of ‘grappling with biculturalism’, interactions between diverse museum staff as well as positioning of indigenous peoples in settler societies.</p>

scholarly journals Conversation Analysis Tool as an Effective Means for Teaching the University Courses of English and World Literature

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roksoliana Kokhan ◽  
Lidiia Matsevko-Bekerska ◽  
Yuliia Lysanets
Keyword(s):  
Conversation Analysis ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
World Literature ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Analysis Tool ◽  
Central Research ◽  
Classroom Conversations ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Senior Students

This paper aims to demonstrate the effectiveness of the Conversation Analysis Tool in the context of teaching world literature to senior students majoring in English philology. The authors present their experience of undertaking a three-month online course “Constructive Classroom Conversations: Mastering Language for College and Career Readiness,” hosted by Stanford University, and discuss the benefits of applying this tool at universities. The study describes the basic mechanisms of the Conversation Analysis Tool aimed at developing specific communication skills in students of English for Speakers of Other Languages. The central research question is whether this method is as feasible for teaching literature as it is for language classrooms. The authors demonstrate their takeaways from applying this technique in teaching world literature, namely, analyzing literary dialogues in different classroom activities. The research findings indicate that the Conversation Analysis Tool is an efficient method for the formative assessment of senior students in the world literature classroom. This technique helps students reveal the pragmatic features of fiction dialogues, the writer’s narrative intentions, and the reader’s expected reception. The suggested method also demonstrates students’ progress in the studied topics and identifies possible gaps in mastering the educational content. The significance of the study extends beyond the specified context, as the search for novel instruction techniques targeted at improving communication skills in the 21st-century globalized world is relevant for any educational sphere. Consequently, the research findings of this paper can be applied in different teaching settings.

scholarly journals "Walking the Talk"? An Ethnography of Biculturalism at Te Papa

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Tanja Schubert-McArthur
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Museum Studies ◽  
Social Institution ◽  
Negotiation Process ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Central Research ◽  
Complex Processes ◽  
Settler Societies ◽  
Meaningful Experiences

<p>This thesis examines the implications of a bicultural framework for the everyday interactions of Māori and non-Māori staff at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa (TP thereafter). The research addresses gaps in the New Zealand literature on biculturalism, which has not hitherto explored the internal dynamics of cultural organisations in depth,as well as issues in the international literature of anthropology, museum studies and related fields to do with museums, indigenous people and cultural identity. The central research question is: how does biculturalism work in practice at TP? The approach is qualitative using mixed-methods, based on twelve months intensive fieldwork behind the scenes at New Zealand’s national museum. Drawing on 68 interviews and participant observations with 18 different teams across the organisation, the thesis explores how biculturalism is enacted, negotiated, practised and envisioned on different stages within the complex social institution that is the museum.  Rather than seeing TP as a single bicultural entity, my analysis suggests that TP is a convoluted amalgam of several stages encompassing ‘contact zones’ where Māori and non-Māori engage to varying degrees. I propose that TP’s marae is the centre stage for Māori activities and rituals that serve a number of functions: to position people through mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion, display power, facilitate intercultural dialogue, empower Māori, and transform non-Māori through meaningful experiences. Throughout the thesis, I argue that biculturalism is neither an innocent aspiration nor a means to an end, but an ongoing struggle and negotiation process.  The importance of ethnography to the anthropological enterprise and museum studies research is reaffirmed through this study; not only does this ethnographic study provide insights into museum practices, but also the complex processes of ‘grappling with biculturalism’, interactions between diverse museum staff as well as positioning of indigenous peoples in settler societies.</p>

Museums and the Things in Them Should Be Alive

2008 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 189-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Busse
Keyword(s):  
Theoretical Work ◽  
Contemporary World ◽  
History Museums ◽  
The People ◽  
Museum Exhibitions ◽  
Museum Programs ◽  
Complex Relationships ◽  
Museum Practice ◽  
First Time ◽  
New Museology

Over the last 20 years, museums have attracted unprecedented academic attention. For the first time in their history, museums as institutions have been the subject of theorizing as well as intense academic and public debates about their place in the contemporary world. Much of the theoretical work has taken place in the context of the New Museology, a critical goal of which has been to rethink the manifold and complex relationships between museums and the societies in which they exist. Advocates of the New Museology have prominently sought ways to make museums less elitist but more inclusive, that is more directly and democratically involved with their various constituencies such as the people who create and use the objects that museums collect or the audiences who visit museum exhibitions and participate in museum programs. Unfortunately, the New Museology has been rather long on theory and rather short on detailed explorations or accounts of the implications of its theoretical formulations for museum practice, that is for the day-to-day activities and interactions comprising the work that goes on in and around museums.

The Future of ASEAN Sovereignty?

2019 ◽  
pp. 213-232
Author(s):  
Laura Southgate
Keyword(s):  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Humanitarian Intervention ◽  
Research Question ◽  
State Theory ◽  
Responsibility To Protect ◽  
Central Research ◽  
The Future ◽  
Research Findings

This chapter concludes by analysing the research findings to provide a definitive response to the central research question advanced in this book. In doing so, it assesses the applicability of vanguard state theory to sovereignty violation in Southeast Asia, and concludes by considering the potential effects of humanitarian intervention and the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) on the future of ASEAN sovereignty.

scholarly journals Conversation Analysis Tool as an Effective Means for Teaching the University Courses of English and World Literature

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 307-318
Author(s):  
Roksoliana Kokhan ◽  
Lidiia Matsevko-Bekerska ◽  
Yuliia Lysanets
Keyword(s):  
Conversation Analysis ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
World Literature ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Analysis Tool ◽  
Central Research ◽  
Classroom Conversations ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Senior Students

This paper aims to demonstrate the effectiveness of the Conversation Analysis Tool in the context of teaching world literature to senior students majoring in English philology. The authors present their experience of undertaking a three-month online course “Constructive Classroom Conversations: Mastering Language for College and Career Readiness,” hosted by Stanford University, and discuss the benefits of applying this tool at universities. The study describes the basic mechanisms of the Conversation Analysis Tool aimed at developing specific communication skills in students of English for Speakers of Other Languages. The central research question is whether this method is as feasible for teaching literature as it is for language classrooms. The authors demonstrate their takeaways from applying this technique in teaching world literature, namely, analyzing literary dialogues in different classroom activities. The research findings indicate that the Conversation Analysis Tool is an efficient method for the formative assessment of senior students in the world literature classroom. This technique helps students reveal the pragmatic features of fiction dialogues, the writer’s narrative intentions, and the reader’s expected reception. The suggested method also demonstrates students’ progress in the studied topics and identifies possible gaps in mastering the educational content. The significance of the study extends beyond the specified context, as the search for novel instruction techniques targeted at improving communication skills in the 21st-century globalized world is relevant for any educational sphere. Consequently, the research findings of this paper can be applied in different teaching settings.

scholarly journals Examining Museum Visits as Literacy Events: The role of mediators

2013 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keiko Yasukawa ◽  
Jacquie Widin ◽  
Vic Smith ◽  
Karen Rivera ◽  
Michael Van Tiel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Practice ◽  
Museum Studies ◽  
Literacy Studies ◽  
New Literacy ◽  
New Literacy Studies ◽  
Literacy Events ◽  
Museum Exhibitions ◽  
Museum Experience ◽  
New Museology

Museum exhibitions are literacy rich environments. Visitors may engage with a range of texts including texts that constitute the exhibition objects themselves, those that convey information about the objects and those that instruct visitors about how the visitors are expected by the museum to navigate through the exhibition. The ways in which visitors engage with these diverse texts are important defining factors of the visitors’ museum experience.For museums, understanding how texts in their exhibitions are influencing the museum experience, and the possibility of a museum experience for the broad public community is important in the fulfilment of their public mission as cultural and education institutions. In this paper, we adopt a view of literacy as a social practice, the perspective of New Literacy Studies (NLS), that offers a fruitful way for museums to consider the interactions between exhibition texts and their audiences. Such considerations, we argue, can inform museums’ approaches to broadening their visitor demographics to more strongly fulfill their public mission. We show that the goals of NLS resonate with some of the goals of the New Museology movement in museum studies, a movement that aims to democratize what museums represent and how. From NLS, we employ the concept of a literacy event to describe an exhibition visit through a literacy lens, and the concept of a literacy mediator to examine the literacy event not exclusively as an individual event, but a collectively produced event. The paper draws on data on how the literacy events of two groups of ‘non-traditional’ visitor groups were mediated in an exhibition, and show how they reveal the range of different literacies that visitors need to negotiate in a museum exhibition.

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