Comparative analysis of a traditional museum webpage and a 3Dimensional virtual
museum for learning.
Abstract. This mixed methods study will examine usability, knowledge
acquisition, and preferences of learners’ experience in a web-based museum and a
3D virtual learning environment. Initial data is being collected in the fall of 2012
using different methods such as pre- and post-tests, surveys, direct unobtrusive
observations and semi-structured individual interviews. Participants are
experiencing either the webpage or the virtual museum. This study will also
provide suggestions for future research in the area of 3D virtual environments for
learning.
Objective or purpose
3D environments are becoming an important tool for content delivery permitting
individuals to interact and experience aspects of museums through an active and engaging
environment. The purpose of this study will be to measure students’ attitudes, perceptions,
knowledge acquisition, and levels of engagement using a web-based learning environment and
3D online learning environment, which recreate the experience of visiting a museum. Due to
recent budgetary restrictions, schools around America have been forced to reduce the amount of
money spent on field trips. Students are restricted to view important works of art, science
exhibits, archeology exhibits, and other primary artifacts through dated materials. As major
museums recognize this, they have been offering some of their exhibits online in traditional
webpages. This study will focus on the analysis, effectiveness, and evaluation of those sites and
it will provide an alternative presented through a 3D virtual museum. It will compare usability
and knowledge acquisition in both experiences and it will present preferences and perceptions by
the participants through surveys, observations, pre- and posttests, and semi-structured individual
interviews. This study’s intention is not to replace the museum visitations but to provide some
access to these works through online experiences.
Intended audience:
This paper is targeted for organizations that make use of alternative learning
environments, K-12 and higher education groups.
Presentation format:
The research paper will be presented as a brief paper.
Background perspectives:
With the introduction of learning virtual environments, students can experience situations
that would be almost impossible to recreate in real life. Virtual learning environments can
provide a rich immersive experience that would give many learners access to collaborative
opportunities. These environments are powerful tools to deliver different types of content,
including educational and promotional in an interactive and contextual way. More and more
schools, universities, and other informal learning settings, such as museums, are using this
advantage to deliver educational content and to promote their institution policies and programs.
Mclellan (1996) stated that more and more researchers are collecting information about the
utility and value of virtual worlds for education and training.
In recent years, many scholars have focused on the evaluation of traditional web sites for
museums (Cunliffe, Efmorphia, & Tudhope, 2007; Harms & Schweibenz, 2001; Pallas &
Economides, 2008; Menard, Mas, & Alberts, 2010), and many more are analyzing 3D virtual
museums for learning (Schaller, Allison-Brunell, Borun, & Chambers, 2002, Corcoran,
Demaine, Picard, Dicaire,& Taylor, 2002; Urban, Marty, & Twidale, 2007; Syaiou, Mania,
Karoulis & White, 2009). However, there are not many that compare both experiences that use
the same content.
The paper will also discuss the theory of Situated Cognition, which served as the
theoretical basis for the study (Brown, Collins, & Duguid, 1989; McLellan 1991; Clancey, 1997;
Altalib, 2002,) and its application in museum education (Falk & Dierking, 1992;Roschelle, 1995;
Hopper-Greenhill, 1999; Rennie & Johnston, 2004).
Methods, techniques and Modes of Inquiry
Approximately 500 undergraduate students currently enrolled at two major public
universities will be surveyed. The survey instrument includes 21 items with a 6-point Liker-type
scale. The pre-and posttests include 10 questions each with one correct answer and two
distractors. Semi-structured individual interviews will include fifteen initial questions; however,
more might develop during the interview. Basic demographic information (sex, age, academic
standing, basic Internet usage, and online gaming experience) will be collected. All surveys and
pre- and posttests will be delivered through online survey system.
Data Analysis.
Qualitative and quantitative methods will be used to analyze the responses to the different
instruments. Surveys will be analyzed using non-parametric statistics including correlation
(Spearmen) and descriptive data. Coding the interviews will be based on Carspecken’s (1995)
system. To analyze the results of the pre- and posttests, a one-way analysis of variance
(ANOVA) will be used (Anscombe, 1948).
Importance of the study
This study will examine the views of the technology generation, in this instance the
attitudes, perceptions and engagement through a web-based and a 3D online learning
environment used to deliver information related to museum programs and exhibitions. The
unique pieces found in museums are inaccessible to a large group of people who are unable to
attend for different reasons (time, money, and distance). Both web-based exhibits and 3D online
virtual museums attempt to solve this issue. The question would be which is more effective,
enjoyable, and engaging.
References:
Altalib, H. (2002). Situated cognition: Describing the theory. ERIC Reproduction Services ED
475 183.
Anscombe, F. J. (1948). The validity of comparative experiments. Journal of the Royal Statistical
Society. 11(3), 181-211
Brown, J.S., Collins, A. & Duguid, P. (1989). Situated cognition and the culture of learning.
Educational Researcher, 18(1), 32-41.
Carspecken, P. (1995). Critical ethnography in educational research. New York. Routledge.
Clancey, W. (1997). Situated cognition: On human knowledge and computer representations.
Cambridge University Press.
Corcoran, F., Demaine, J., Picard, M., Dicaire, L. & Taylor, J. (2002). INUIT3D: An interactive
virtual 3D web exhibition. Proceedings of the Museums & Web Conference, Boston, MA
2002. Retrieved from: http://www.archimuse.com/mw2002/papers/corcoran/corcoran.html
Cunliffe, D., Kritou, E., & Tudhope, D. (2002). Usability Evaluation for Museum Web Sites.
Museum Management and Curatorship, 19(3), 229-252.
Falk, J., & Dierking, L. (2000). Learning from museums. Visitor experiences and the making of
meaning. Lanham MD: Altamira Press
Harms, I., & Schweibenz, W. (2001). Evaluating The Usability Of A Museum Web Site. In D.
Bearman & Jennifer Trant (Eds.), Museums and the Web 2001 International Conference
Proceedings. Seattle, Washington.
Hooper-Greenhill, E. (1999). Learning in art museums: Strategies of interpretation. In E.
Hooper-Greenhill (Ed.) The educational role of the museum (2nd ed.) (pp. 44–52). New
York: Routledge
Lemieux, K. (2012, February 22). The ISM is back!. Retrieved from
http://slispaceflightmuseum.org/blog/
Ménard, E., Mas, S., & Alberts, I. (2010). Faceted classification for museum artefacts: A
methodology to support web site development of large cultural organizations. Aslib
Proceedings, 62(4/5), 523-532.
McLellan, H. (1996). Virtual environments and situated learning. Multimedia Review, 2(3), 2537
Pallas, J., & Economides, A. A. (2008). Evaluation of art museums ’ web sites worldwide.
Information Services & Use, 28, 45-57.
Rennie, L. J., & Johnston D. J. (2004). The nature of learning and its implications for research on
learning from museums. Science Education, 88(S1), S4 – S16.
Roschelle, J. (1995). Learning in interactive environments: Prior knowledge and new experience.
Public institutions for personal learning: Establishing a research agenda, (pp. 37–51).
American Association of Museums Washington, DC.
Schaller, D., Allison-Brunell, S., Borun, M., & Chambers, B. How do you like to learn?
Comparing user preferences and visit length of educational websites. Visitor Studies Today!
Volume V, Issue II (2002) 4-11 Print
Sylaiou, S., Mania, K., Karoulis, A., & White M. (2009). Exploring the relationship between
presence and enjoyment in a virtual museum. In Int. J. Human Computer Studies. Pp. 243253.
Urban, R., Marty, P., & Twidale, M. (2007). A second life for your museum: 3D multi-user
virtual environments and museums. In J. Trant and D. Bearman (eds). Museums and the
web 2007: Proceedings. Toronto: Archives & Museum Informatics, published March 31,
2007. Retrieved from: http://www.archimuse.com/mw2007/papers/urban/urban.html