Shawn Rowe

Value Orientations, Awareness of Consequences, and Participation in a Whale Watching Education Program in Oregon

Whale Watching Education Programs A. Christensen et al. ALICIA CHRISTENSEN, SHAWN ROWE, AND MARK D. NEEDHAM Marine Resource Management Program, College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA Oregon Sea Grant and Department of Science and Mathematics Education, Hatfield Marine Science Center, Oregon State University, Newport, Oregon, USA Department of Forest Resources, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA

Family Engagement at Aquarium Touch Tanks—Exploring Interactions and the Potential for Learning

Animal touch experiences, where visitors get to touch, pet or feed live animals, are a common feature of public, informal science venues like aquariums, zoos, science centers and similar institutions. Public aquariums of almost every size employ touch tanks as part of their educational efforts and spend significant amounts of financial and person-hour effort to maintain and staff these extremely popular exhibits and program elements. This investment appears to be motivated by a general belief that the unique experience of touching or interacting with an animal will help create conservation awareness by facilitating caring about animals and their habitats.

Whale watchers' past experience, value orientations, and awareness of consequences of actions on the marine environment.

This article examines whale watchers’ environmental value orientations, experience in relation to whales and the marine environment, and awareness of consequences of their behavior on whales and their habitat. Data were obtained from surveys of 229 shore-based whale watchers in Oregon (USA). Respondents believed that whales and marine areas are important and require protection, and their daily actions affect them and their habitat. Many respondents visited the ocean and watched programs about whales and marine ecosystems; few volunteered or donated to related causes. Structural equation models showed that experienced viewers had stronger biocentric value orientations and were more aware of consequences of their behavior. Value orientations mediated effects of experience on awareness of consequences.

Reframing Engagement Methods for Climate Change Adaptation

Climate change poses known and unknown risks for coastal communities and also challenges for university faculty and local government staff who communicate about cli- mate sciences. Conceived as a way to move beyond traditional models of science communication, this project involved public and private decision makers in specific at-risk communities in Oregon (U.S. Pacific coast) and Maine (Atlantic coast). Both state projects sought to move behavior toward decisive action that results in coastal communities that are more resilient to climate variability at all scales. To promote engagement between project staffs and publics, a dialogic model of communication was advanced, beginning with interviews and focus groups that in turn shaped further engagement through workshops and targeted video products. This means of communication led to a deeper understanding of participants’ knowledge, beliefs, perceptions, values, and barriers to action related to climate change and its effects. Coinciding with this, project participant evaluations in both Oregon and Maine indicate that the workshops and videos were successful at informing them on this complex issue; and in both states, project participation led to action outcomes. We believe that applied elsewhere our multifaceted and adaptive approach will garner similar results, provided sufficient dedicated staffing and attention to methods.

Seeing satellite data

Complex scientific visualizations are becoming standard parts of many educational experiences, both in and out of schools. We found that satellite visualizations used by ocean scientists were difficult for teachers, students, and museum visitors to understand. The research reported on here documents some of those difficulties and explores alternate visualizations that proved more robust for novice users of the data. Five different visualizations of two ocean properties as sensed by satellites are shown and their affordances and constraints for both scientists and novice users are discussed. We illustrate the importance of incorporating culturally meaningful color representations and measurement scales for designing education materials using satellite data.

Families talking about ecology at touch tanks

Research has demonstrated that conversations among museum, aquarium, and zoo visitors can be a clear indication of active learning, engagement, and participation in scientific reasoning. This descriptive study sought to determine the extent of talk about ecology-related topics exhibited by family groups visiting marine touch tanks at four Pacific coast aquariums. In particular, conversations were examined to determine the kinds of ecology topics discussed and the influence of exhibit features such as tank format and interpretive staff interactions on the extent of talk about ecological topics. Findings suggest limited talk about ecology by families during their visit to the exhibit – regardless of whether the tank resembled a real tidepool habitat or not. However, data revealed that talk about ecology between guests and staff was significantly longer than was ecology-talk among guests only, suggesting that supplemental interpretation by staff members or volunteers may be necessary to explicitly encourage such discourse at touch tanks.

Mediated Action as a Framework for Exploring Learning in informal Settings

Research on learning in informal settings has made huge strides over the last 30 years with a rapid expansion of the number of methods and theoretical frameworks employed across the field. As Phipps (2010) demonstrates, a consistent shift can be seen from studies focusing mostly on observable, easily quantifiable behaviors to studies taking a constructivist approach to studies identifying with various sociocultural approaches. In this chapter we discuss a particular sociocultural approach: mediated action, an approach most often associated with the work of Wertsch (1998). Mediated action is a way of researching how people use all kinds of objects and tools, both physical and psychological to structure their interactions, communicate with each other, and think. Since it is not tied to a particular method of data collection or experimental design, a mediated action approach allows us to use a variety of methods that are hallmarks of research in informal learning. Furthermore, because it attempts to account for the individual, social, cultural and historical contexts within which learning occurs, a mediated action approach can help make connections among interdisciplinary studies of learning across life contexts. In this chapter we briefly discuss the theoretical background of a mediated action approach, and then we explore some of the ways it may be used in research on learning in informal settings, specifically in science museums and home learning settings. Finally, we turn to some of the practical and theoretical implications of adopting a mediated action approach.

Visitor Motivations Across Three Informal Education Institutions: An Application of the Identity-Related Visitor Motivation Model

ABSTRACT Recent studies suggest that visitors’ situated museum identities may be examined through the motivations expressed during visits to zoos, aquariums, botanical gardens, and other museums. This article examines a tool published by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) and J. Falk, Heimlich, and Bronnenkant (2008) for documenting visitors’ motivations at zoos, aquariums, and other informal education settings and compares motivations for visiting across three informal education sites. Surveys were administered to 370 adult visitors to an aquarium, science center, and boat-based eco-tour operator. Findings revealed both different motivations of visitors to these informal education institutions and seasonal changes to those motivations. Moreover, the motivations tool, which was created specifically to document visitor motivations in zoos and aquariums, was able to successfully document visitor motivations in such places as a science center and boat excursion company. It is not clear, however, that it sheds direct light on visitor identity. Modifications to the instrument and underlying taxonomy are suggested and theoretical issues are discussed and used to suggest further areas of research. Findings from the empirical work contribute to discussions of how informal education institutions may use visitor motivations data along with a theory of identity to better understand current audiences and reach new audiences.