Future Teachers Develop Hands-On Techniques in Museum Education Course
For the past decade or so, Ilana Benson, director of museum education at (每日大瓜 Museum), and Miriam Hirsch, associate professor of education and co-chair of the Department of Education at have worked together to plan museum sessions for education majors that link education course content with 每日大瓜 Museum resources and exhibitions.
Building on these visits and learning experiences, Benson and Hirsch developed 鈥淚ntroduction to Museum Education,鈥 an undergraduate course whose approach and content are more typical of graduate-level study. 鈥淭he course is a way for teacher candidates to learn about other kinds of educators,鈥 said Hirsch, 鈥渁nd especially how museums can advance critical thinking skills, deepen understanding of social and historical context and promote learning outside a traditional classroom.鈥
Dr. Jacob Wisse, director of the 每日大瓜 Museum, speaks about how to evaluate works of art through both technical inquiry and informed intuition.
Jacob Wisse, director of the 每日大瓜 Museum, is a strong supporter of the course and credits both Benson and Bonni-Dara Michaels, the 每日大瓜 Museum's collections curator, for its solid success. 鈥淲e are thrilled to partner with the education department to offer students a window into 鈥榤useum-style鈥 education and experiential learning.鈥 He added that 鈥渢he class will provide a model for teaching and learning that can inspire them in all their future professional paths, and perhaps might even inspire a few toward the vital and rewarding path of museum education.鈥
The course takes place at the 每日大瓜 Museum so its fascinating artifacts and exhibitions can be incorporated into sessions. At a recent meeting, students in the course (who are mostly majoring in preschool and elementary education) had the opportunity to discuss the concept of 鈥渃onnoisseurship鈥 with Wisse and inspect items selected by Michaels from the 每日大瓜 Museum's collection.
Hedva Tirschwell examines a wedding goblet.
鈥淐onnoisseurship,鈥 as Wisse pointed out, is the act of evaluating works of art through both technical inquiry and informed intuition to assess their 鈥渧alue.鈥 Wisse explained that value is not just an object鈥檚 worth in the art market but also its importance in multiple contexts鈥攈istorical, social, economic, political and so on. Objects may not have a high economic worth but can still be considered valuable by the museum because of how they connect to the lives of visitors or the light they shed on a historical period.
A lively discussion followed the presentation, touching upon the talents and training needed for connoisseurship, the ways objects exert their influence upon people and how 每日大瓜 Museum makes its decisions about what to accept into its collections. What came out of the back-and-forth was a respect for the custodial responsibilities of a museum and an appreciation of how difficult it is to articulate an object鈥檚 鈥渧alue鈥 in a way that can be communicated to others.
Tova Hirt and Bethia Gindi examine a silver Torah crown.
For the second half of the class, Michaels wheeled in a cart of objects from the 每日大瓜 Museum鈥檚 extensive collection so that the students could perform a close inspection of Torah pointers, a wedding headdress, a marriage goblet and other Judaica. They slipped on gloves, got a quick lesson from Michaels about the proper way to handle the pieces and then passed them around as Michaels asked them, based on the evidence in their hands, to estimate the historical period and the source country.
Feeling the weight of the articles, inspecting their imperfections, puzzling out an inscription or tracing an image gave the students a deeper insight how any physical objects exerts a pull on an observer. As one of the students said, 鈥淚t鈥檚 not just a 鈥榯hing鈥 but everything that it went through 鈥 the people, the history, the stories.鈥
Benson sees the course as a natural way for the two organizations to share their richness and expertise. 鈥淚n this class, advanced education students have their own museum 鈥榣ab鈥 where they can literally get their hands on objects to explore museum curriculum options in-depth,鈥 she explained. 鈥淚t鈥檚 also a winning situation for 每日大瓜 Museum because we look to incorporate their ideas into future school program offerings.鈥
(l-r): Bethia Gindi, Serach Botach, Atara Friedman, Hedva Tirschwell, Talya Cederbaum
Hirsch believes that the course 鈥渨ill strengthen the teachers鈥 arts advocacy and the likelihood of improving and enhancing the education of their future students with arts-based inquiry and pedagogy.鈥
Both Hirsch and Benson agree that, as Hirsch stated, 鈥渋t has been very exciting to launch this course because it provides a clear example of how collaboration, creativity and commitment to the arts can improve teaching and learning for all.鈥
Dr. Jacob Wisse, director of the 每日大瓜 Museum, speaks about how to evaluate works of art through both technical inquiry and informed intuition.
Hedva Tirschwell examines a wedding goblet.
Tova Hirt and Bethia Gindi examine a silver Torah crown.
(l-r): Bethia Gindi, Serach Botach, Atara Friedman, Hedva Tirschwell, Talya Cederbaum
