The future and museums: webcast notes
Enjoyed the webcast sponsored by Emerging Museum Professionals at the NEMA conference (and beyond). Futurist Garry Golden presented a range of ideas impacting museums in the hour and half online session. Highlights from my notes include:
- the social media model has broad impact on museum communications distinct from past broadcast models. (In my mind, the issue becomes: "how do we plant the seeds that people want to communicate about?")
- Web 3.0: linked smart data, cloud computing, learning systems. (An online participant commented that the online Salesforce program might be a model)
- demographics in the next 15-20 years highlight the central role that multi-generational learning and family learning will play
- "Lifelong learning" becomes the new model, distinct from past models apprenticeship learning and teacher based learning
- museums can leverage the power of "third places," finding ways to bring museums to places like coffee shops
- museum experience may include modeling based on "gaming mechanisms" — structured programs with goals, challenges, and resources such as Weight Watchers. (In my mind, connects with Elaine Gurian's concept of the "essential museum" in which the museum becomes a resource/tool for visitors' goals)
- a challenge: build smart devices for museum learning environments
Very interesting stuff. I'm reminded of the way children's museums have been focusing for decades on multi-generational family learning and think there is much for the museum community as a whole to learn from children's museums.