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New Models for Museums
Best Practices The CLS views the Internet as a powerful teaching and learning tool. IT has made possible a form of teaching and learning that heretofore had been impossible. As the Internet technology (IT) advances it also becomes more available. With an immense diversity of content and cultural expression, it's a real possibility to make the transition from using the Internet as a curriculum supplement to developing entire web-oriented program "with an underlying philosophy of Internet-generated epistemologies" (Nash & Dougherty 1999). To realize this potential, we must get rid of outdated delivery methods in museum studies programs. This will require more than a traditional two dimensional format of the teacher and the taught where information is transferred in linear sequence from one database to another (Nash & Dougherty 1999). There can be no fact-shoveling model of what a museum should be. Too often, we are trapped in what Raschke (2003) refers to as beliefs of "crypto-Ludditism" where we have convinced ourselves that we have added a real dimension to learning by simply using the Internet as an auxiliary to our training. Worse yet, we can become myopic. In Flatland, Abbott (1983) shows how an inhabitant of Spaceland (our own familiar three-dimensional Universe), after explaining in detail the two-dimensional limitations of Flatland, and forcing an inhabitant of the plane to accept the additional (third) dimension, himself falls into a rage when asked to contemplate a fourth dimension. There is a need for us to seek many dimensions and recognize a matrix of differentiated learning practices in the matrix of classroom, teacher, students, and the Internet. As Nash and Dougherty (1999) stress "Don't put your textbook on the Internet" and de Maret (pers. Comm. 09.26.2005) indicated that we cannot simply move from "brick to click". As proposed by Nash & Dougherty (1999), the key to successful online course development is their book The Diamond Solution. Briefly, the there are four indispensable contributors that make up the Diamond, "...a matrix of differentiated learning practices which overcome the traditional duality of the teacher and the taught, the learner and the one who dispenses learning (Rashke 2003)". The four collaborative components are the Student, the Faculty Member, the Network Manager, and the Curriculum Web Site Developer, sometimes referred to as "the four doors" (J. Morrison pers. comm. 11.02.2005). In the Diamond, the components can maximize their experience by working together, interacting, communicating, and performing their roles. Students are the real reason for the educational program but are often overlooked in its design. The faculty member is viewed as the flag- bearers of the subject matter - their interaction with the Student is what makes the teaching/learning environment. As they point out, the faculty member should focus just on being a faculty member and scholar who develops the course content, and not designing or technical tinkering with web sites. The Network Manager runs the network - all the technical and network parts of the courses. The Curriculum Web Site Developer is responsible for building the course web site, a person who understands the nuances of how people view information on the Internet. This person is a specialist who understands academic theory, web site theory, and can speak intelligently to the network personnel. They are not responsible for developing curriculum or setting up servers or handling network issues. The Diamond remains the underpinning of the CLS system. However, CLS has added a Curriculum Coordinator, a fifth facet, who is responsible for assisting the faculty member in organizing and developing content. In addition, CLS has moved its focus toward creating an environment that provides multiple modes and delivery methods. CLS wants its faculty to be highly interactive, establishing a social presence with bearing and respect with the students' learning styles. CLS also is improving its Learning Management System (LMS). Desire2Learn is a new system that permits faculty and students to communicate in a variety of ways such as discussion boards. It also has improved online grading, upgrades to course websites, and features such as a drop box for assignments. An online program such as Oklahoma's has a mixed cadre and cohort of students with a high potential for creative learning. The students can be at the center of course development and learning. The teachers have their own experiences and training. However, the students also bring an extensive assortment of museum training and experiences not found in the typical students in a resident program. The students in a resident program are usually inexperienced and untrained. By contrast, online students can come from all sizes and types of museums located in widely different geographic sites and cultural backgrounds (potentially worldwide) and may have numerous training or learning experiences (e.g., participation in professional museum organizations), which they can contribute to their program. There is a lot to be said for experience in the real world of museums - in fact, there is no substitute for it as indicated by my interviews with fellow faculty in the MSPO. In the complex, competitive, changing and often politically charged world of the museum, leadership develops primarily on the job. Museum directors have huge responsibilities and high-risk expectations. The directors must deal effectively with the parent administration, boards, or trustees, often a time consuming, frustrating, and delicate course. The directors also must be showmen, financiers, diplomats, aestheticians, philosophers and master builders. These are demanding roles that can be contradictory and exhausting. In addition, they must solicit cash, cultivate donors, manage the press, and deal with a curatorial staff that likely is made up of specialists with strong opinions and equally strong egos (Auer 2002, Tirrell 2003). By treating the students, as a new group of potential leaders, there is an inflow and mix of new information and ideas - faculty and students can learn from each other. Therefore, the best practices for an online program must include:
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