This study pursues a twofold objective: first, to assess Physical Science teachers' knowledge in teaching at science centers, and second, to investigate their perceptions of their roles in facilitating teaching within these centers. Employing a qualitative case study method with interviews and observations, eight teachers voluntarily participated.…

In this paper, we emphasize the importance of looking beyond technology itself and including interactional and experiential elements in our research gaze in informal computing education in science museums. We argue that, in these contexts, facilitation can be understood as "design work" that is both complex and challenging. We identify…

School visits to science museums are recognized educational resources that provide students with unique learning experiences, if teachers intentionally plan these. Surprisingly one finds that investigations analyzing teachers adopted practices by systematic monitoring, without researcher intervention, are almost non-existent in the literature. We…

This paper examines the praxeology of informal educational practices (i.e. how participants produce setting-specific practices to make a tour happen) in the Geophysical and Astronomical Observatory of the University of Coimbra through close analysis of a video-recorded excerpt of a guided tour. Guided visits in informal science settings are…

On 25 June 2021, the State Council issued the new "Outline of the National Action Scheme for Scientific Literacy for All Chinese Citizens (2020-2035) (Outline of Scientific Literacy)." In order to provide reference for its implementation, this study analyzes the achievements and obstacles in the implementation of the old "Outline of…

Critical reflective practice is a foundation of socially just pedagogy. This paper focuses on the informal STEM (science, technology, engineering, and maths) learning sector, where there is an acute shortage of support for critical reflective practice despite long-standing, entrenched issues of inequity. We analyse how practitioners used a new…

Informal science learning environments, such as science museums, afford a variety of interactions, sense-making processes, participation modes, and roles. Accumulating research advances our understanding of the cognitive and affective dimensions of science learning in informal environments, including the development of scientific sense-making and…

In this study, it is aimed to determine the opinions and understandings of the visitors coming to the science center, which is an informal learning environment, about the exhibits and labels. For this purpose, the opinions of the visitors about the exhibits and labels, their understanding of the exhibits and labels were examined. The research is…

The annual Ecsite conference is the largest conference in Europe for people working in science museums, science centers and other science engagement organizations. In 2017, the 28th Ecsite conference was held in Porto, Portugal, from the 15th-17th of June. This review includes a short history of Ecsite and its annual conference as well as critical…

The purpose of this research was to design and evaluate the efficacy of a gesture-based exhibit with augmented reality (AR) for understanding complex scientific concepts. In particular, this study focuses on the effect of differently guided conditions in a gesture-based AR. We first present the design and development of a gesture-based AR exhibit…

Out-of-class learning environments are important learning environments because they improve students' mental and physical health as well as providing them with cognitive, affective, and psychomotor skills. However, it is necessary to make a plan, implement and evaluate the teaching processes appropriately to efficient benefit from out-of-class…

In this paper we highlight the issues and opportunities of a participatory action research (PAR) and co-design project, currently being undertaken as engaged research between academics at Durham University and practitioners at the UK's International Centre for Life in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne (CfL; see creativescienceatlife.com for more information and…

This study aims to evaluate middle school students' views about science centers as out-of-school learning environments. The study surveyed 195 5th-, 6th-, 7th-, and 8th-grade students attending Hatice Salih Primary School and Ahmet Cabuk Middle School in Province Bursa. It used a qualitative cross-sectional and longitudinal research design. For…

Today, science is a major part of Western culture. One advantage of informal learning environments is that they are (potentially) open to a wide range of populations with varying levels of interest and knowledge. Because of their informal nature, documenting learning has proven challenging. Studies that assess learning in museums, therefore, must…

This paper presents a methodological discussion of the potential and challenges of involving mobile eye tracking technology in studies of knowledge generation and learning in a science centre context. The methodological exploration is based on eye-tracking studies of audience interaction and knowledge generation in the technology-enhanced health…