Museum Professionals' Perspectives: Controversy in Science Museums, a Changing Landscape

• In Event: 61.068 - MTCC Roundtable Session 23
  In Roundtable Session: 61.068-11 - Internal Practices and Professional Development Within Informal Learning Environments

Abstract

In this paper we examine museum professionals’ perspectives on controversial science exhibitions. In so doing, we used qualitative data from interviews conducted with museum professionals engaged with controversial science exhibitions in Brazil, Canada, Italy, Finland, U.S. and Zimbabwe. The theoretical lenses of scientific literacy and science communication helped us make sense of our data. During the analyses process, we used constant comparative methods to identify emergent themes. Our findings suggest that museum teams’ perspectives speak about possibilities of challenging visitors’ beliefs, disrupting traditional science narratives and unraveling the communicative potential of dialogue and participation. These findings shed light on the ways in which the science museum landscape is changing and how controversy can help transform dominant practices in these institutions.

Authors

• Ana Maria Navas Iannini, University of Toronto

• Erminia G. Pedretti, OISE/University of Toronto

• Daniel Atkinson, University of Toronto