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Educational research is a rigorous process of determining the effects of an educational program on the population it was intended to affect. While conducting educational research in museums is difficult, with patience, time, resources, and expertise, it can be done quite successfully. How people learn in museums is not necessarily different from how people learn in other places, but museums offer unique learning opportunities, so it behooves museums to study and understand the nuances and qualities of museum learning.  Teaching Literacy Through Art An educational research project with an art museum Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, NY At RK&A, we undertake educational research to provide our clients with reliable, timely, and objective data about their educational initiatives. We conduct educational research in museums and in schools that have partnered with museums, following a strict procedure to ensure reliable and valid data and fully respecting the regulations and guidelines governing human subject research. RK&A staff work with clients to design rubrics and qualitative and quantitative data collection instruments. We use the rubrics to score outcomes and apply statistical procedures to the data to determine the kind and quality of learning resulting from a program. We synthesize and report our findings to our clients, offering a clear interpretation of the data along with our observations and recommendations. We recently conducted educational research with the following museums. For a complete list of RK&A planning, evaluation, and research projects, please see All RK&A Clients. Michigan State University Museum, East Lansing, MI For additional information or to get started on an educational research study, please see Getting Started. |