Course Description
How museum audiences interact with works of art and how docents can facilitate these experiences. Includes readings, discussions, and activities in the galleries of the Georgia Museum of Art. Students will learn about the museum’s collection and give tours as student docents.
Additional Requirements for Graduate Students:
Graduate students will include a research-based introduction
and conclusion to provide deeper context to their proposed
tours.
Athena Title
Student Docents
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
Using a constructivist framework, students learn about the different ways in which museum audiences engage with works of art and how to facilitate these interactions as student docents. They consider the diverse viewpoints of museum audiences of a variety of ages and backgrounds and give tours to visitors in the Georgia Museum of Art as part of the course. Students will learn how to balance contextual information with interaction with the works of art in the galleries. This course will have a service-learning component, and students will also work together to design and implement a community program in the museum as part of this course. Students design a tour as their final project for the course, incorporating research on objects as well as informal learning theories into their tours.
Topical Outline
I. Getting to know the galleries of the Georgia Museum of Art and the history of gallery teaching II. Constructivism and approaches to learning in museums III. Dialogue in the art museum and the role of the docent IV. Designing a tour: Themes and structure V. Georgia Museum of Art’s collection: American art VI. Georgia Museum of Art’s collection: European art VII. Georgia Museum of Art’s collection: Decorative arts VIII. Context: What do we do with all of this information? IX. Museum audiences: Working with children X. Museum audiences: Teens to college-Age XI. Museum audiences: New visitors XII. Museum audiences: Fifth-grade tours XIII. Multi-disciplinary approaches XIV. Museum audiences: Adults and seniors XV. Diversity and multi-culturalism XVI. Museum audiences: Special needs XVII. Questions and VTS in gallery teaching XVIII. Difficult issues in art XIX. The future of museum education: Where do we go from here?