Asset-Based Approaches to Visitor Observation in Science and Natural History Museums: A practice brief for program evaluators and informal science educators

Knowledge of the natural world through experiences, culture, exposure to traditions and information are things that visitors bring with them when they step in and engage in science museums. This encounter is instrumental in bringing forth feelings of awe and connection. Visitors are not just receivers of knowledge, but also sources of information, and asset-based orientations to science learning recognize that museums are avenues where visitors not only acquire, but also contribute knowledge that they bring with them as they interact with what museums offer to the public. Asset-based pedagogies play a key role in the design of inclusive programming in museums, requiring the acknowledgement and placing value on visitor knowledge. However, little guidance exists for museum educators to examine how well their programming demonstrates an asset-based orientation.

Our group analyzed 119 project evaluation reports to understand how observation protocols orient to visitor knowledge. We conducted a qualitative document analysis to answer the question, to what extent, and in what ways, do observation protocols used in informal science education reflect asset-based orientations to museum visitor knowledge? We focused on 3 projects that our group believe to best exemplify asset-based observation protocols in science museums. Our analysis indicates that deficit orientations feature prominently in observation protocols, but there are some exemplary examples of asset-based approaches in use. We aim to examine the orientations to visitor knowledge embedded in museums' evaluation of their exhibits and educational programs and develop the concept of asset-based pedagogy within science museum evaluation. A premise of our work is that if museums aim to become more inclusive spaces, they must shift to an asset-based orientation to visitor knowledge.