Media for Informal Learning in Museums (MILIM)
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Research
How do digital media influence the
perception and understanding of exhibits by museum visitors? Which
consequences can we expect from contextualizing objects by means of
digital media in terms of visitors' behaviors, communications, and
cognitive processing? These questions were pursued in a number of sub-projects that are mainly
doctoral dissertations. These cover a range of different media (text,
image, interactive and non-interactive video, 3D-visualization, virtual
exhibition) provided on integrated screens or computer terminals, but
also on mobile devices. The research analyzed various aspects of the
learning process: individual prerequisites (previous knowledge,
visitor's agenda), the social aspect of museum visiting (individual
versus collaborative learning), and learning outcomes (knowledge
acquisition, formation of interests, and opinions).
The research was theoretically based on psychological and pedagogical
models of learning and draws on a broad range of empirical methods
combining both field and laboratory studies. As we integrated the results
of the different sub-studies to a more complete picture of visitors' use
of and learning from digital media in museums, we were enabled to derive design
principles that can guide museums in their efforts to tap the full
learning potential of digital media.
The projects are:
Tacit visitor-oriented guidance
Mixed Media in archaeological television documentaries
Integrating representations with new display technology
What do YOU think about nanotechnology? The Potential of an Opinion Terminal for Knowledge Acquisition and Opinion Formation at Science Museums
Collaborative media design tasks for promoting explorative behavior and cognitive elaboration in the museum
Awareness of shared goals & adaptive information presentation to support collaborative learning in museums
The role of learning episodes for knowledge acquisition in museums
The impact of personalized films on learning and retention processes in museums
Mobile learning via situational interest and knowledge exchange in informal settings
