Museum Education and Interpretation

This course will expose students to the myriad functions of the educational arm of museum operations and the constituencies it serves: from K-12 students to scholarly fellows, to visitors with special needs to free classes for legal immigrants to pass the naturalization exam. What are the intellectual, innovative, and strategic modes of content delivery for these varied groups? Course will discuss who defines and delivers such content-from education professionals to curators to volunteer docents-and how plans are prioritized and implemented. This course includes a 15-hour practicum that will engage students with professionals engaged in K-12 education; scholarly programs; public programs; digital media initiatives; and visitor services, which will provide a robust working knowledge of the diverse areas impacting museum Education and Interpretation. Students will observe programs in action and gain first-hand experience crafting and scaling learning experience for diverse learners across an array of topics and content areas.