Parental Mediation of Children’s Learning in a History Museum: Learning in an Informal Environment

• In Event: Poster Session 12
  In Poster Session: Increasing Engagement Through Designed Learning Environments

Abstract

We examined mothers' and fathers' mediation of a history museum curriculum to their children while visiting the museum. Explicit behaviors (practices, gestures, conversations) of 10 parent-child dyads were recorded using a small head-camera on each dyad member and a videocamera held by the researcher who followed them. Recorded data enabled observation of chosen routes and artifacts, durations, and transcriptions of conversations as related to gestures. Data were analyzed according to grounded theory principles and additional literature-based criteria. Findings revealed that parents demonstrated common patterns of mediational modes and strategies that both promoted children’s knowledge and raised metacognitive awareness of museum components and behavioral norms.

Authors

• Billie Eilam, University of Haifa

• Merav Yosfan, University of Haifa