THE TEENAGERS’ EXPERIENCE DURING A VISIT TO THE SCIENCE MUSEUM: A STUDY IN THE MUSEU DA VIDA

ABSTRACT:

In this exploratory and qualitative study, our aim is to understand the teenagers’ experience in science museums in a visit out of the school context. In particular, we present the analysis of the visit of five groups, aged between 14 and 17 years, who study in public schools, to the exhibition “Past and Present - science, health and public life”, located in the Castelo Mourisco do Museu da Vida, from Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, in Rio de Janeiro. The results showed that, throughout the visit, this specific public had interacted deeply with the three fundamental actors listed in the theoretical model we adopted: the exhibition, the visitors themselves and the museum explainers. This data, associated with qualitative analysis of specific sections of the group visits, indicates that, when teenagers go to a museum, they can experience situations that make this informal learning setting interesting, exciting and motivating, and consequently, it can offer opportunities of free choice learning and of discussion about the science and related issues.

Keywords:
Public understanding of science and technology; Informal learning; Science museums; Free choice learning