Learning and Participation

This chapter provides guidance to tour originators and receiving venues in developing bespoke learning and education programmes, in conjunction with exhibition and tour planning.

To maximise the impact of a learning and education programme on independent exhibition visitors and groups, curatorial and learning staff should collaborate from the beginning of the exhibition development process. Establishing shared learning objectives, exhibition themes and evaluation criteria, as well as the exhibition’s interpretative structure, at the outset will result in a more cohesive and impactful exhibition and learning programme.

There are existing frameworks available to support the development of learning objectives for exhibitions. One example is Inspiring Learning for All produced by MLA in 2008. This framework suggests five categories to help identify intended generic learning outcomes (http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/measuring-outcomes/generic-learning-outcomes) for visitor experience:

• Knowledge and Understanding
• Skills
• Attitudes and Values
• Enjoyment, Inspiration and Creativity
• Activity, Behaviour and Progression

Sharing information about the exhibition’s learning objectives with touring partners will ensure a common understanding of the potential of the exhibition and will facilitate the engagement of curatorial and learning staff with the exhibition subject. Sharing knowledge and practice around learning objectives will benefit both tour originator and receiving venue by offering CPD opportunities and awareness of current practice within the sector.

The learning and education programme supports visitors’ enjoyment and helps them to relate to and interpret the exhibition in a meaningful way. An engaging learning programme can attract new visitors to a venue and consolidate existing audience segments. Promoting the learning and education programme alongside the touring exhibition helps to generate enthusiasm and bookings for the tour.

There are multiple ways in which the learning and education programme can be incorporated into general exhibition promotion, including:

• Creating an independent fact sheet (printed and/or PDF) about the associated programming available with the display. Make it brief, clear and easy to read, to be used in any possible exhibition approval process by the host venue.
• Visiting potential venues with learning and education staff in the early stages of the booking process. This allows early contact between originator and host venue and increases likelihood of positive working relationships in the future.
• Developing online learning resources that are downloadable and suitable for a wide variety of purpose, for example: www.sevenstories.org.uk/learning/books-and-resources. This will allow host venues to explore the exhibition further, grasping the basic concepts and possibilities before agreeing to book the display.
• Include learning information in your exhibition information pack; it is good practice to include:
  1. Outline of key exhibition themes
  2. Generic learning outcomes
  3. Brief explanation of key exhibits
  4. Summary of the relevance to contemporary culture, and current issues and concerns
  5. Target audiences
  6. Suggestions on how the exhibition could provide access to a new and/or target audience
  7. Opportunities for venues to approach interpretation in their own style
  8. Curriculum links and examples of schools offers
  9. Examples of audience engagement activities and projects that can be replicated at receiving venues

Successful learning and education programmes for touring exhibitions can be developed in many different ways. There is great variance between venues within the museum and gallery sector regarding learning and education provision, but careful planning and collaboration can ensure an engaging programme despite resource constraints.

What is best practice to include as an originator, and what should a host venue expect? What could and should an education pack and programme look like? Whatever form it takes, it should be developed by the original venue and promoted to the host venue with the primary aim of maximising opportunities for visitor engagement. Wherever possible, the originator and the venue should collaborate on making the programme specifically relevant to the venue’s audience.

An ‘education and learning pack’ refers to all materials the originator creates ahead of the exhibition to share with all venues and it should provide a framework for the host venue?s programme of events and activities.

What should the originator take in to account?

• Design, scale and nature of the exhibition
• Target visitors and the marketing potential of the exhibition
• Appropriateness of linking to the National
• Curriculum and other relevant qualification frameworks and/or modules
• Relationship to other exhibitions, collections, public art, architecture, popular culture, retailers, the natural environment, performances etc. in the region
• Additional resources and funding opportunities
• Materials and activities that can tour with the exhibition

What should the education pack contain?

Education packs are not definitive and should be specifically tailored to each exhibition. The list below is an example of the information included in a typical Seven Stories education pack for a touring exhibition:

• Details of exhibition themes.
• Details of generic learning outcomes/objectives
• Explanation of exhibition content and key exhibits
• Copies of exhibition interpretation text and object labels
• Gallery activity sheets or discovery trails, applicable to different gallery layouts and flexible enough to be altered slightly depending on changes in exhibition content. The activities should always be linked to the exhibition display. Take into account the expected audience for the exhibition before developing activities. Layered interpretation and open questioning can make activities appropriate and interesting for a wide audience age range
• Example exhibition catalogue (if one has been published) to be made available for sale at the host venue
• Information about handling objects or facsimiles; Seven Stories creates sensory bags to accompany each exhibition that include tactile versions of artwork, facsimiles of paper artefacts as well as props and dressing up
• Access to online resources from the originator’s website. If sites have been created to support the exhibition or films/podcasts created, originators should make the host venues aware of these as a potential tool for learning
• A list of exhibition-related books. These can either be for visitors to the exhibition, or for staff training. Try to provide new copies of books for each venue, or liaise with a library nearby to support the exhibition
• Labels and guides written and designed in collaboration with people who are visually impaired or have additional needs, ranging from laminated large print exhibition labels, to braille text and accessible exhibition tour guidelines
• Labels and guides that are available in other languages and ideas on how the exhibits can be interpreted for people whose first language is not English
• Pre and post school visit resources, applicable to both facilitated and non-facilitated visits to the exhibition and easily dispersed (e.g. in PDF or printed form). Take into account curriculum stages and higher education needs
• Details of the events programme created for the exhibition in the original venue, i.e. lists of events and workshops; details of how these were run; contact details for specialist staff, lecturers or speakers where appropriate. Make sure to take into account a wide range of possible audiences, particularly highlighting sessions which are suitable for people with additional needs
• Guidelines for exhibition familiarisation sessions and CPD opportunities for staff e.g. storytelling skills

A host venue should begin planning the associated education and learning programme to accompany a touring exhibition as soon as a firm booking has been made. The originator should assist the receiving venue in developing a programme that ties in with the ethos of the exhibition, its themes and objectives. By working collaboratively, the potential for the exhibition to have community impact can be realised. All activity at the host venue should be approved in principle with the originator.

What should the venue take into consideration?

• Display period of the exhibition and links to academic year, public holidays, local and religious festivals etc.
• Necessity for admission charges to the exhibition and associated activities/events
• Potential links between the exhibition and the host venue’s permanent collections. Explore the possibility of integrating exhibition content
• Local connections. Explore local history relevant to the exhibition themes. Work with local libraries and cultural venues on joint marketing and associated events
• Engagement of community groups and schools in advance of the exhibition display period to develop local relevance and project work that could be included in the exhibition
• Resources available in-house. Use all specialist staff skills, knowledge and interests i.e. leading artistic workshops, storytelling, ‘in costume’ guides/volunteers etc.
• How the touring exhibition can link with existing, regular educational programmes and traditions
• Potential for raising additional funds. A touring exhibition may provide opportunities to fundraise through the development of new audiences and fresh approaches to learning
• Space available for the programme. Will events/activities be delivered in the host venue or in a community or other partner’s setting?

What could be included in the programme?

• On-site workshops: These could be led by museum officers, in-house or freelance workshop leaders/facilitators or volunteers and can vary from one-off activities for the general public to regular, bookable school visits. Cater for a wide range of users and offer services for groups with additional needs. Use all available spaces in the host venue including galleries, education rooms, breakout spaces and outdoors. Advertise sessions clearly so visitors are aware of what they will receive from the session.
• Off-site workshops: Relevant locations may include schools, colleges, community centres, hospitals, care homes etc. Aim to share the exhibition ethos and experience at the off-site venue. Link workshops with the exhibition themes using handling collections or facsimiles, and arrange a visit to the exhibition for workshop participants if possible. Consider delivering workshops before the exhibition display period to build audience anticipation. Allow groups to display creative outcomes from workshops alongside the exhibition.
• Outreach projects: Develop sustained projects inspired by the exhibition across institutions and disciplines. Project outcomes can be displayed in the exhibition, providing more meaningful and involved experiences for participants and visitors and creating an exhibition legacy.
• Artist involvement: Where exhibitions focus on a particular artist, or are relevant to current practitioners, there is opportunity to provide residencies, demonstrations or even commission a venue specific artwork/installation.
• One-off events: These could include content specific performances, lectures, seminars, courses, gallery talks or guided tours. Consider specific themed days/weekend

How can you get the best from your education and learning programme?

• Project management: The extent of the programme planned by each venue will depend on budget and available resources. Appoint a member of staff as project manager to source funding, resources and expertise as soon as a touring exhibition is booked. Good contacts can be found within local authority departments, schools and higher education, Arts Council England, youth/community leaders and local retailers. To prepare for a programme:
  • Ensure all staff are fully briefed in good time
  • Identify and set budgets early. Ensure all ordering and bookings for required spaces and equipment are made well in advance
  • Use audience research to plan activities and events
  • Consider providing taster sessions for the programme i.e. teachers’ evenings and focus groups with young people/children
• Staffing: The skills, knowledge and interests of staff, including volunteers, are valuable assets in engaging visitors during a temporary exhibition. To ensure that this potential is realised, a skills and knowledge audit could be undertaken prior to the arrival of the exhibition and relevant training implemented. Local experts and specialists, celebrities, artists, community leaders and groups could be engaged to contribute their knowledge, insights and cultural perspectives.
• Health and Safety: When planning any live events, whether in the venue itself or at other premises, the health and safety of all those involved, including visitors, staff and performers, should be the primary concern of organiser and venue alike, and must be ensured at all times. The venue will also need to consider a number of practical and legal implications. National guidelines for safeguarding children and young people must be followed. The programme leader must consider the chosen location as a workplace, which means that they have a ‘duty of care’ to both participants and audience. This requires that the manager ensures that everything reasonably practicable has been done to protect the health and safety of others and to assess potential hazards for the risk that they pose.
• Marketing: The learning and education programme should be publicised with the general exhibition marketing and targeted to specific groups and sponsors with a particular interest in audience engagement. When producing publicity material, ensure that:
  • Tone and language is appropriate to target visitors
  • Marketing materials are available in a variety of formats and languages, and are accessible to those with additional needs
  • Information regarding access to the exhibition and building is clear and accurate, including information on parking, public transport links, catering, cloakroom, lunchroom, toilets, lifts, baby changing and other facilities
  • Procedures for booking and payment are clearly provided
• Evaluation: A venue should record and evaluate its learning and education programme, as a part of its wider exhibition evaluation, measuring impact and achievement against the learning objectives. Evidence provided by evaluation can help secure funding for future events, as well as ensure greater future success. Evaluation should be considered at an early stage alongside establishing learning objectives, methods for collecting data and any associated costs i.e. appointing an external evaluation consultant. Evaluation can be implemented by:
  • Collecting all published material and photographs
  • Collating reviews, editorial, advertisements and other records of events
  • Collating any additional educational material produced
  • Recording visitor figures and information i.e. contact details, demographics etc.
  • Recording feedback from groups via questionnaires for qualitative results and future targeted marketing
  • Collecting written comments and oral feedback where appropriate from independent visitors

http://www.sevenstories.org.uk/exhibitions/touring-exhibitions (link updated 2017)
www.sevenstories.org.uk/learning/books-and-resources
www.gem.org.uk

Authors: Alison Fisher, Fiona Melvin, Gillian Rennie (2015)