Faculty of Education - Theses

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Type: Masters Coursework thesis × Subject: Melbourne × Start date: 2000 × End date: 2005 × Author: Tadich, Ingrid Kryger ×

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    Up close and personal : listening to children's and adults' voices in the children's museum
    Tadich, Ingrid Kryger ( 2005)
    New images of children as competent beings, capable of forming and expressing ideas and opinions have emerged. Young children's voices are now actively being sought to express their views on issues that affect them and there are recent examples of Local and State Govenrment policy makers actively seeking children's persepctives for future planning. Museums as cultural institutions are historically responsive to the societies in which they operate, but with the exception of recent studies of children visiting in pre-school groups , childrens voices are notaby absent in the evaluation and planning of exhibitions that are being developed with them in mind. Are museums relevant to them and what are children saying about their visits and experiences they have there? What are they interested in and how can exhibitions and programs really meet the needs of these younger audiences and enthuse them to play, discover and learn? This study, located in the Children's Museum at Melbourne Museum, actively sought to listen to children's voices, as well as the voices of their parents, to gain insight into their visit and to better understand what they experienced, what they saw and what they were interested in. Twelve families with children from three to ten years old took part in this study. Using digital cameras, all participants took photographs of objects or experiences that interested them, including opportunities for family interaction. At the end of the visit families received their photos and were encouraged to document any follow up discussions or thoughts by writing or drawing in their journals. Families returned for an interview to discuss their photos, their journals, their memories and their thoughts. The results are illuminating, children's voices came out strong and clear and their photographs, which were one of the surprises of this study, were an "up close and personal" record of their interests, their culture of childhood and their visit.