Inquiry in a Science Museum

Science Museum Educators’ Views and Practices

Bibliographic Data

ID22043925
AuthorsMaria Karnezou (NOESIS—Science Center and Technology Museum of Thessaloniki, 57001 Thermi, Greece, corresponding author), Πέτρος Καριώτογλου (0000-0002-8532-7859, University of Western Macedonia)
Year2022
Volume12
Issue12
Pages865
Publication date2022-11-25
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEducation Sciences (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2227-7102 • E-ISSN: 2227-7102
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/educsci12120865
OpenAlexW4310142561
LanguageEN
References cited29

Our study looks into science museum educators’ views and their practices about inquiry in non-formal venues, such as NOESIS, Greece. On this ground, we developed an interview protocol to use as a basis in the semi-structured interviews conducted with four science museum educators to cast light on their views about inquiry. In addition, an observation protocol was modified in order to observe their practices when implementing educational programs for school groups. Data analysis showed that in regard to the museum educators’ views, they all expressed a slightly different view about inquiry, which was either empirically or intuitively based. They all agreed that inquiry is easier adopted in non-formal settings and argued that students’ main gain when they get engaged in inquiry-based activities is the actual involvement they experience. As regards the museum educators’ practices, a repertoire of teaching approaches was observed, ranging from a traditional teacher-centered approach to open inquiry. Building on our data, we suggest the development and implementation of a professional development course that will enrich science museum educators’ inquiry views and practices and empower them to integrate inquiry-based practices into their own

Best practice · Faculty Development · Mathematics education · Pedagogy · Political science · Professional development · Science education · Sociology · Animal and Plant Science Education · Museums and Cultural Heritage · Psychology · Science Education and Pedagogy

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