interactivity in exhibits

Interactivity in Exhibits

Some Thoughts on

Doing Them Well

About Me…

• Working in museums for 18 years or so

• Started out in Evaluation/Audience Research

• Moved on to exhibit planning and development and project management

• Design firms and museums

About Me…

• At the end of January, I had spent 4+ years at the Boston Children’s Museum

• Groundbreaker in development of hands-on interactivity in museums

About Me…

• As of 1 February – Waterloo Region Museum• West of Toronto• New, $ 25 million museum + exhibits, with

interactive components

Some Myths

• They’re only for kids, not adults

• Only useful in children's’ museums and science centres

• Can’t coexist with artifacts

• Just push buttons

• Just computer kiosks

• Just mechanical

• Always break

• Cost too much

• You can convey the same information with text

• You can explain any complex or abstract concept with them

This Is Not an Interactive…

PISEC – A Way to Look at Them

• 1998 study of family friendly exhibits

• Conducted by Minda Borun

• Included:– Franklin Institute– New Jersey State Aquarium– Philadelphia Zoo– Academy of Natural Sciences

• 7 characteristics of family friendly exhibits

1. Multi-Sided

• Family can cluster around exhibit

Brookfield Zoo

V & A

2. Multi-User

• Interaction allows for several sets of hands or bodies– Tied to multi-sided

V & A

KidStage

Peep’s World

The Common

Game On!

3. Accessible

• Comfortably used by children and adults

Making America’s Music

Making America’s Music

The Common

History is All Around Us

4. Multi-Outcome

• Observation and interactions are sufficiently complex to foster group discussion– Not always appropriate in a non-science

setting– “Open-ended” might be a better term

Raceways at BCM

Raceways at BCM

Children of Hangzhou

The Common

5. Multi-modal

• Appeals to different learning styles and levels of knowledge– This is really very difficult in a single exhibit

element– Best achieved by using various techniques

throughout an exhibit

6. Readable

• Text is arranged in easily understood segments

Peep’s World

Peep’s World

The Common

The Common

Children of Hangzhou

Peep’s World

7. Relevant

• Provides cognitive links to visitors’ existing knowledge and experience– Best achieved using Front-End evaluation– Confirmed using Prototyping

Prototyping

Prototyping

Some Other Thoughts/Examples

Costumes

Computers for Keepsakes

Photo Ops

Integrated with Artifacts

Integrated with Artifacts

Integrated with Artifacts - Touch

Integrated with Artifacts - Touch

Integrated with Artifacts - Touch

Feedback Incorporated in Exhibit

Royal Museum of Scotland

Thank You!

James Jensen

Curator of Exhibits

Waterloo Region Museum

jjensen@regionofwaterloo.ca