Education Resources at The Melbourne Museum
"Providing a unique learning environment, Melbourne Museum offers activities, programs, exhibitions and excursion packages for students and teachers at all levels. from preschool to adult education" (museumvictoria.com).
Image from: http://www.punthill.com.au/accommodation-news/punthill-news/melbourne-musem/
Image from: http://www.punthill.com.au/accommodation-news/punthill-news/melbourne-musem/
The educational benefits of school excursions and field trips have been well documented within the literature (Orion and Hofstein, 1991). They are generally hands-on, high-impact experiences designed to engage and excite students (Hudson, 2007). Students generally regard school excursions as ‘rewarding and enjoyable’ experiences and as such they may lead to increased student motivation and subsequent increases in learning (Boyle, et al, 2003).
The Melbourne Museum claims to offer its visitors “rich and often surprising insights into life in Victoria” (museumvictoria.com.au). With 18 permanent exhibitions, several temporary exhibitions and countless artifacts it is no wonder they can appeal to such a large range of visitors. Museums aim to enhance students learning experiences by extending and complementing classroom teaching and to introduce students to institutions for lifelong learning (Storksdieck, 2001).
The museum offers educational programs and resources for teachers and students from kinder to year 12, covering subject areas from the arts and humanities, physical sciences and life sciences. The teaching resources are designed around the curriculum and as such will supplement the learning that occurs within the classroom. For some subject areas, the museum also provides pre- and post-excursion activities as well as teacher notes and school-based activities that are available free of charge online (museumvictoria.com.au).
The Australian National Curriculum states that at year 8 level students learn "Sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic rocks contain minerals and are formed by processes that occur within Earth over a variety of timescales" (ACARA, 2012).
One of the activities the museum has for students at this level requires them to use 'I-movie' on an 'I-Pod touch' to record a 50 second clip on a specific topic. Students are required to get into groups of 2-3 and each group is given a different topic such as "We use rocks and minerals in our lives every day". Students then have to search within the museums geology to find two rocks or minerals that we use every day and record a movie explaining these. They are then able to emailed directly to their teacher or to their individual email accounts. Students are given only 20 minutes in which to complete this task so they have to work quickly and efficiently within their groups.
Below is a file, available for you to download, that contains the 50 second video created by myself and one of my peers during a recent trip to the Melbourne Museum. The topic given was "We use rocks and minerals in our lives every day".
The Melbourne Museum claims to offer its visitors “rich and often surprising insights into life in Victoria” (museumvictoria.com.au). With 18 permanent exhibitions, several temporary exhibitions and countless artifacts it is no wonder they can appeal to such a large range of visitors. Museums aim to enhance students learning experiences by extending and complementing classroom teaching and to introduce students to institutions for lifelong learning (Storksdieck, 2001).
The museum offers educational programs and resources for teachers and students from kinder to year 12, covering subject areas from the arts and humanities, physical sciences and life sciences. The teaching resources are designed around the curriculum and as such will supplement the learning that occurs within the classroom. For some subject areas, the museum also provides pre- and post-excursion activities as well as teacher notes and school-based activities that are available free of charge online (museumvictoria.com.au).
The Australian National Curriculum states that at year 8 level students learn "Sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic rocks contain minerals and are formed by processes that occur within Earth over a variety of timescales" (ACARA, 2012).
One of the activities the museum has for students at this level requires them to use 'I-movie' on an 'I-Pod touch' to record a 50 second clip on a specific topic. Students are required to get into groups of 2-3 and each group is given a different topic such as "We use rocks and minerals in our lives every day". Students then have to search within the museums geology to find two rocks or minerals that we use every day and record a movie explaining these. They are then able to emailed directly to their teacher or to their individual email accounts. Students are given only 20 minutes in which to complete this task so they have to work quickly and efficiently within their groups.
Below is a file, available for you to download, that contains the 50 second video created by myself and one of my peers during a recent trip to the Melbourne Museum. The topic given was "We use rocks and minerals in our lives every day".
tinandgold_-_cellular.m4v | |
File Size: | 1758 kb |
File Type: | m4v |
References:
ACARA (2012). The Australian Curriculum v3.0 Science: Foundations to Year 10 Curriculum. Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. Accessed 08/10/2012. http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/Science/Curriculum/F-10
Boyle, A., Conchie, S., Maguire, S., Martin, A., Milson, C., Nash R., Rawlinson, S., Turner, A. and Wurthmann, S. (2003). Fieldwork is Good? The Student Experience of Field Courses. Pedagogic Research in Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences. Planet. Special Edition 5: Part B. December 2003.
Hudson, P. (2007). High-impact Teaching for Science. Teaching Science. Volume 53. Number 4. December 2007.
Melbourne Museum (2012). Museums Victoria. Accessed 07/10/2012.
http://museumvictoria.com.au/melbournemuseum/
Orion, N. and Hofstein, A. (1991). The Measurement of Students’ Attitudes Towards Scientific Field Trips. Science Education 75(5): 513-523.
Storksdieck, M. (2001). Differences in teachers’ and students’ museum field-trip experiences. Visitor Studies Today, 4(1), 8 – 12.
ACARA (2012). The Australian Curriculum v3.0 Science: Foundations to Year 10 Curriculum. Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. Accessed 08/10/2012. http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/Science/Curriculum/F-10
Boyle, A., Conchie, S., Maguire, S., Martin, A., Milson, C., Nash R., Rawlinson, S., Turner, A. and Wurthmann, S. (2003). Fieldwork is Good? The Student Experience of Field Courses. Pedagogic Research in Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences. Planet. Special Edition 5: Part B. December 2003.
Hudson, P. (2007). High-impact Teaching for Science. Teaching Science. Volume 53. Number 4. December 2007.
Melbourne Museum (2012). Museums Victoria. Accessed 07/10/2012.
http://museumvictoria.com.au/melbournemuseum/
Orion, N. and Hofstein, A. (1991). The Measurement of Students’ Attitudes Towards Scientific Field Trips. Science Education 75(5): 513-523.
Storksdieck, M. (2001). Differences in teachers’ and students’ museum field-trip experiences. Visitor Studies Today, 4(1), 8 – 12.