skip to main content
US FlagAn official website of the United States government
dot gov icon
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
https lock icon
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Explore Research Products in the PAR
It may take a few hours for recently added research products to appear in PAR search results.


Title: The Language Science Station at Planet Word: a language research and engagement laboratory at a language museum
The Language Science Station (LSS) is a research and engagement laboratory operating at the Planet Word museum in Washington, DC, representing a unique partnership between language researchers and a museum dedicated to language. The LSS invites Planet Word guests – ranging from local to international visitors – to participate in research studies and engage in educational activities with student language scientists from diverse academic backgrounds. In doing so, we broaden participation in the language sciences among both the researchers and the participant population. This paper outlines the goals, values, and structure of the LSS, highlighting our dual emphases on research and engagement. We focus on several aspects of the project. These include our novel multi-university researcher-museum partnership, the different considerations that we find are necessary for conducting research in a museum setting compared to the laboratory, and our training of researchers and student research assistants. The paper also provides reflections from students on their interactions with museum visitors. We share our experiences with the broader scholarly community in an effort to lower barriers for other behavioral scientists interested in combining research and engagement in public venues.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
2116959
PAR ID:
10631546
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ;
Publisher / Repository:
DeGruyter
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Linguistics Vanguard
Volume:
10
Issue:
s3
ISSN:
2199-174X
Page Range / eLocation ID:
245 to 255
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. ; ; ; ; ; (, CHI '19 Proceedings of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems)
    Immersive open-ended museum exhibits promote ludic engagement and can be a powerful draw for visitors, but these qualities may also make learning more challenging. We describe our efforts to help visitors engage more deeply with an interactive exhibit's content by giving them access to visualizations of data skimmed from their use of the exhibit. We report on the motivations and challenges in designing this reflective tool, which positions visitors as a "human in the loop" to understand and manage their engagement with the exhibit. We used an iterative design process and qualitative methods to explore how and if visitors could (1) access and (2) comprehend the data visualizations, (3) reflect on their prior engagement with the exhibit, (4)plan their future engagement with the exhibit, and (5) act on their plans. We further discuss the essential design challenges and the opportunities made possible for visitors through data-driven reflection tools. 
    more » « less
  2. ; ; ; ; ; (, Journal of Chemical Education)
    Microplastics have been found in the most remote locations on Earth as well as in where we live, work, and play. Despite increasing research focus on microplastics, efforts to inform the public about their omnipresence have lagged. To bridge this gap between research and public knowledge, we developed a museum exhibit with interactive and informative displays that explain what microplastics are, how they are formed, where they are found, and what individuals can do about it. In a partnership between researchers at the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) and staff at the Dossin Great Lakes Museum (Detroit), the exhibit highlights the impacts of microplastic pollution in the region. Collected survey data revealed that museum visitors were aware of microplastic pollution and are worried about it, that they felt the museum exhibit was helpful and informative, and that they are likely to take simple actions to decrease microplastic pollution. 
    more » « less
  3. ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; (, Limnology and Oceanography Bulletin)
    Abstract The future of our planet relies on scientists' ability to effectively translate knowledge into action, and researchers have an imperative commitment to leverage their understanding. As aquatic early career researchers (ECRs), we draw upon personal experiences to share our learnings about how individuals can drive change. We showcase diverse approaches for ECRs to create meaningful impacts by connecting with other researchers, broader society, and decision‐makers. At the same time, institutional challenges inhibit scientific engagement beyond academia, particularly for ECRs. Such barriers include (1) lack of value and support for engagement activities, (2) limited training opportunities, (3) research siloes, and (4) rigid funding structures. We offer potential systemic solutions, from developing and adopting new performance metrics for academic researchers to enhanced flexibility with grant timelines and spending. Academic systems need to change and so does the way scientists engage. Our future depends on it. 
    more » « less
  4. ; ; ; (, IDC '20: Proceedings of the Interaction Design and Children Conference)
    null (Ed.)
    Over the last decade, large multitouch displays have become commonplace in museums and other public spaces. While there is preliminary evidence that exhibits based on tangible technologies can be more attractive and engaging for visitors than displays alone, very little empirical research has directly compared tangible to large multitouch displays in museums. In this paper, we present a study comparing the use of a tangible and a multitouch tabletop interface in an exhibit designed to explore musical rhythms. From an observation pool of 791 museum visitors, a total of 227 people in 82 groups interacted with one of the two versions of our exhibit. We share the exhibit design, experimental setup, and methods and measures. Our findings highlight advantages of tangible interaction in terms of attracting and engaging children and families. However, the two exhibits were equally effective at supporting collaborative interaction within visitor groups. We conclude with a discussion of the implications for museum exhibit design vis-à-vis visitor engagement and learning. 
    more » « less
  5. ; ; ; ; ; ; ; (, Visitor Studies)
    The museum field has begun exploring the effects of facilitation on visitors’ learning, focusing on facilitation by museum staff inside museum buildings. However, some museum professionals contend that museums have a responsibility to serve their communities in the spaces where community members spend time, rather than expecting the public to come to them. Less is known about the effects of facilitation on visitors in urban outdoor spaces where interactions with facilitators are unexpected. The present study contributes to this line of literature by describing a quasi-experimental study that assessed the effects of exhibition facilitation led by community stewards using a trauma-informed approach in an outdoor, freely accessible civic plaza. Video observation and visitor interview data were collected. The present study found that facilitation increased visitors’ exhibit usage, overall satisfaction, and some but not all assessed areas of affective and metacognitive learning. The study highlights the value of research conducted in partnership and the power of content-humanizing facilitation. 
    more » « less
  • Citation Formats
  • MLA
  • APA
  • Chicago
  • BibTeX
  • Save / Share this Record
  • Send to Email