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Instrument Development and Validation for Conservation Learning: A Tool for More Rigorous Research and Evaluation
Author(s) -
Mast Fran,
Zhao Lei,
Maldonado Lindsay
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
curator: the museum journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.312
H-Index - 8
eISSN - 2151-6952
pISSN - 0011-3069
DOI - 10.1111/cura.12260
Subject(s) - visitor pattern , informal learning , accountability , context (archaeology) , work (physics) , environmental resource management , computer science , engineering , psychology , geography , political science , environmental science , pedagogy , mechanical engineering , archaeology , law , programming language
Modern zoos and aquariums position themselves as sites of conservation learning experiences. With a mantle of economic and public accountability, zoos and aquariums need to understand and promote conservation learning and its related components. While a great deal is known about conservation learning generally, less is known about how visitor experiences in zoos and aquariums impact conservation learning during a visit. This article outlines the need for more rigorous measurement tools for conservation learning in informal learning settings and provides an overview of Shedd Aquarium's work to validate an instrument that reliably and accurately measures aspects of conservation learning in the context of zoo experiences. Initial trends and limitations associated with this validated tool are described. An overview of future research is outlined as are implications for future use of this tool by practitioners and researchers.