Table Of Content

Minds in Motion Vol. 9, No. 2 Winter 1 999-2000 THE QUARTERLY JOURNAL FOR DEDICATED EDUCATORS Questioning Strategies A Questions that Go Beyond the Facts a A Asking Questions Putting the Question Marl< in Central Parl< a AA Guided Research ProgramAsl<s the Right Questions a Involving YourAudience a A Helping VisitorsAsk Better Questions A Framework for Qrganizing Theme-Based, Inquiry Tours a . minds in motion Asking Questions skinteresting,thought- answers. Theyembrace awide mindtothinkdivergently,actingas provokingquestions varietyof responses,andcall upon apryto open thinkingup in order andyouIcnowwhat ourindividualperceptions,thoughts, togenerate new,different,ormore happens? People try and creativityto formulate arange possibilities. Open-endedquestions to answerthem! Whetherthey ofpossibilities. Theyinvite everyone callforthe"creation"ofpossibilities. respond orally, orsimplycontemplate to offertheirideas andjoin in the Creatingpossibilitieswithin a in reflective silence,visitorswill discussion. particulardiscipline iswhatartists do activelyparticipatewhen asked Forinstance, the question when theymake choices abouthowto appropriate questions. "What is the distance in miles conveyideas,whathistorians dowhen No matterwhetheryouteach betweenJacksonville, Florida,and tryingtoreconstructthe past,and with art, history,orscience collec- Los Angeles, California,ifdrivingon what scientists dowhenbeginning tions,you can encourage active Interstate 10?"is closed-ended. Itis to formulate hypotheses. In other thinkingandparticipatorylearningby notsubjectto interpretation. There is words,open-ended questions prompt askingquestions. Letthe objects or a specific,correct answer. However, the many,varied,unique, anddetailed specimens inyourcollection serve as the question"Howmanydifferent ways ofthinkingone needs to CoverPhoto: the focus ofyourtours,butemploy ways mightyou measure the distance produce inorderto fuUyunderstand Evenwithmany questions as catalysts,provoking betweenJacksonville, Florida,and and appreciate art,history,or science. yearsoftouring investigation and reflectionby LosAngeles,Cahfornia?"is open- Questions ortasks designedto experiencein requestingparticipants to consider ended. This question has many provoke agreaterquantityofre- theirrepertoire, and do Something. possible responses,including: sponses often incorporate phrases ChryslerMuseum Not all questionswill engage / bymiles orkilometers; like,"How many ... canyouthink ofArtdocents reflective thinkingand active learning, / bythe time ittakes to drive at of?"or"Develop alistofas many .. PatBrown(left)and however In fact,some can do quite differentspeeds; asyoupossiblycan." Such interroga- BetsyBrowne(right) the opposite. Closed-ended ques- / bythe calories itburns towalk; tives requestfluentthinking. continuetopractice tions,which tcst aperson's recallof / bythe time ittakes to flyon Questions ortasks thatserve to questioningstrategies factual information orchallenge their differenttypes ofaircraft; provoke agreatervarietyofresponses astheypreparefor perceptual abihties, are counter- / byfliel consumption using oftenbeginwithphrases suchas, theirtouring productive. These questions,while differentmodesoftransportation; "Howelse mightyouconsider ... ?" responsibilities. useflilwhen testingmaterialprevi- / bythe geo-political units (states or or"Whatotherkind ofanswercan ouslylearned in aclassroom situation, counties) youwouldpass through; you thinkof .?" These interroga- .. mayimpede participationbyvisitors / bytime zones; tives invite flexible thinking. who are examining an unfamiliar / byhowfar awaythe cities"feel" Questions ortasks thatprovoke objectorsite. when a loved one is inthe other highlypersonaUzed responses should Closed-ended questions test a location; and so on. specificallyrequest this form of person's recallofspecific information. thinkingfrom participants. Phrases Questions such as"Doyou know Howdoopen-endedquestionswork} such as,"Whatwouldyoudo ... ?"or whichyearthe settlers first arrived Just as t—here are twotypes "Come upwithyourveryown ... ." atJamestown?"or"How manytrees ofquestions—closed-ended and can promptoriginalthinkingby doyou see in thislandscape?"request open-end—ed there are two types of challengingparticipants to develop specificandcorrectresponses. thinking convergentanddivergent. individualizedideas. Such questions restrictparticipation Closed-ended questions request Questions ortasks thatprovoke to thosewho knowthe answers, and convergentthinking,challengingthe highlydetailed responses mightbegin lead tojudgments ofaccuracyrather mind to narrowits focus to a specific with suchphrases as"Tellus more thanto involvementand discussion. answer, orspecific setofcorrect about ... ."or"Whatelse doyou Open-ended questions,on the answers. Open-ended questions call knowabout ... ?" Such interrogatives otherhand, are questions thatdo not fortheproductionofideas,thoughts, extractdetailed oradditionalinforma- have presupposed orpredetermined and imaginings. Theyinvite the tion from participants through elaborative thinking. 2 The Docent Educator Winter 999-2000 1 Whatkindsofresponsesareofferedto moreinformation ortounderstand "good answer"andbeingtold"okay." open-endedquestions? howtheperson decidedupon a Thelackofapositivereactionis "Askanopen-endedquestion, particularidea. Then,acceptthe the equivalentofanegativereaction getamultitudeofresponses." reasoningofferedandmove on. to mostpeople. Remain consistent Because theyare designedto encour- Sometimes,participantswiUoffer inboth the type andthe tone of age theproductionofoptions more answers thatthey,themselves,will yourreactions. thansolutions,open-ended questions choosetore-evaluate aftermoreideas Rememberthateveryone seeks willelicitresponsesrangingfrom the are.putforthorwith additionaltime validation from agroupleader. Tryto predictabletothehardlycredible. forreflection. That's fine. Afterall, avoidhavingparticipantsworkfor Somewillseem clever;others may welearnbytrialanderror. yourapproval,ratherthanforthe seem"off-the-wall." Keepinmind, As the facilitator,you should internal satisfaction ofthinkingand however,thatthereasonforasking encourageideaproductionand not investigatingyourintriguingcollection. these questions is tohavevisitors focus onideaevaluation. The Offersuchnon-judgmentalstatements spendtime examiningyourcollection purposeofyourquestions is to slow as"thankyou"when acknowledging andreflectinguponitssignificance, visitors down,encouragetheir responsesfromparticipants. NOT and tohavethemretrievecorrect investigation,andtoprovoke their And,finally,rememberto answersto questions aboutthings they thoughtfulconsideration. Remember bepatient. Do notexpectresponses arenotwellacquaintedwith. thztyouareteachingpeoplehowto toyouropen-endedquestions Rememberthatthe responses thinkaboutart, history, orscienceobjects immediatelyafteraskingthem. youreceivewillreflectdifferencesin orspecimens. Thatresponsibilityis Give participantstimetothink, individualpoints-of-view. Each challengingenoughwithouttakingon reflect, andreconsidersomething participantwillsee,thinkabout,and thefurtherburden oftestingtheir theymayneverhave seenbefore,or decide differentthingswheninspect- knowledgebase. thoughtaboutinthatparticularway. ingmuseum objectsbecause each Thoughitis difficult, avoid personwLUselectivelyfocusandrespond excessiveuseofpositivefeedbackto intheirown,personalizedway. rewardorencourage responses that youlike. Visitorswillquicklylearn Alan Gartenhaus Howshouldadocentreacttotherange the differencebetweenbeingtold. PublishingEditor ofresponsesreceived? Active thinkingcanbeencour- agedordiscouragedsimplybythe mannerinwhichthegroupleader reacts. Participation andthe commu—- nicationofideas arebasedon trust THE QUARTERLY JOURNAL FOR DEDICATED EDUCATORS trustthatone's thoughtswiUbe valued andthatone's attemptswillbe Publisher/Editor TheDocentEducatorisaquarterlypublicationdedicated positivelyrecognized. Ifanyone has AlanGartenhaus toimprovingtheperformance,status,andjobsatisfaction ofvolunteerandstaffeducatorsteachingwithinmuseums, aninklingthathis orherthoughts are notrespected,thatpersonmayquit AssociateEditor historicsites,gardens,parks,zoos,andclassrooms. participating,withdraw,andevenshut JackieLittleton Thepublicationisavailablebysubscriptiontoindividuals, aswellastogroupsandinstitutions. downthoughtaltogether. Yourresponsibilitywhenleading mindsinmotion TheDocentEducatorwelcomesunsolicitedarticles, tours and activities is tofacilitate and TheDocentEducator announcements,comments,generalcorrespondence,and encourage reflNecOtiTon andactive PostOfficeBox2080 advertisinginquiries. Theviewsexpressedorimpliedinthis participation, to sitinjudg- Kamuela,HI 96743-2080 USA publicationdonotnecessarilyrepresenttheofficialposition ment. Beopentonew,wild, phone: (808) 885-7728 ofthepublisher,andeffortsaremadetopresentavarietyof humorous,oridiosyncraticthoughts. fax: (808) 885-8315 viewpointsforthereader'sconsideration. Ifyou,orothersinthegroup,are e-mail: [email protected] puzzledbyaresponse,request Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,orusedin anymanner,withoutthewrittenconsentofthepublisher. elaboration. Withoutseemingto ISSN 1084-0443 Allrightsarereserved. challengethe respondent,askfor The Docent Educator Winter 999-2000 1 Questions that Go Beyond the Facts ^^mj^^^ verybeginningreporter without aglimmerofpressure to Bringingthe question into the WP^^ knows that askingthe "knowthe answer." visitors'own experience is relatively 'Igillllllll "5W's and an H"is the "Whatperiodinhistorydoes this simple. "When didyouthinkyour waytogatherthe facts. furniture represent?" Docentswho kidswere readytoleave home? Or,if Who, what, where, when, why, and how workin ahistorichouse mightbe you'reworkingwith students, "When arebasic. With carefiilembellish- tempted to asktheirvisitors a what willyoube readytoleave home and ment,however,docents can adapt question such as this to determine live onyourown?" Such aquestionis these questions togobeyond mere howmuch thegroup alreadyknows. certain togenerate some la—ughterand, facts,encouragingtheiraudiences Perhaps some ofthevisitorswill maybe, alittle controversy an toobserve, analyze, and evaluate. venture aguess,butmostwouldn't excellentlead-in to adiscussion of "Whopaintedthispicture?" knowthe specific,factual answerthe humanversus animal"childcare." "Whoused this tool?" These questions docentswants. "Although this house Facts aboutthe specific animalbeing are designed to elicit afactual was built in the 1850's,the furniture viewed can easilybe insertedin such a response. "Picasso." "Ashoemaker." is alocalproduct created during discussionwithoutpressuringvisitors In mosttours ofmuseums,gardens, the Reconstruction Period to toproduce the"correct"answer. zoos,science centers,and historic encourage the use oflocalwoods." "Wheredo these smallplants sites,such dead-end questions allow Who knew? seem togrowbest,in the sun orthe someone in thegroup (usuallythe A more creative whatquestion shade?"adocentin abotanicalgarden docent) to showoffhis orher would allowthe docentto sharelocal or nature might ask. It's notahard knowledge orforce atleastsome lorewhile freeingallheraudience to question to answer;theyare clearly ofthe group to admit (ifonly participate. "Ifyouwere apioneer doingwell in the deep shade ofthe to themselves) thattheydon't know farmerwho'dfinally'made it' oaktrees. It's aquestion designedto the answer. Even phrasingthe financially, whatwouldyou do toyour letthevisitorobserve anddrawa question so thatit appears to asktor home to showyourneighbors how conclusion. It's also the kind of avarietyofanswers, ("Who doyou welloffyouwere?" Architecture, question teenagers calla"no-brainer." A thinkused this tool?") is merelya decorative arts,fiirniture design,even differentkind ofwhere poorly-disguised questforfacts. those puddlingdrapes, could enter question encouragesvisitors touse Anotherwaytouse the Whoquestion the discussion asvisitors explore their theirbrainsin a more creative allowsvisitors to examine the ideas of"making it,"andthe docent manner. "Asyoucan see,theseplants painting, artifact, orzoo specimen might add information specific to the seem togrowbestin the shade. to arrive at more useful answers. eraofthe historic sitebeingtoured. Ifyou didn'thave to take suchthings "IfI gaveyou thispaintingto No facts are necessary,unless the as sun andshadeintoconsideration, take home, whoinyourfamilywould docenthas some to share, andvisitors whereinyouryardwouldyouput all like itbest?" This more imaginative are encouragedtobringtheirown the differentplantsyousee here?" Whoquestionopens opportunities for experiences to an imaginarysituation. Answers tothis question,basedon visitors to thinkaboutthepainting "When does ababyelephant each individualvisitor'svision ofhis on adifferent,non-factuallevel. orchimpanzee reach maturity?" orherown space,could allowthe Answers to this question mightlead I've neveractuallyheard azoodocent docentandvisitors to explor—eother to adiscussion ofgenderand/or age askthis question,butI've had several landscapingconsiderations size, preferences,toideas ofmonetaryor teUme an animal'sgestationperiod, color,shape,andfiinction ofplants as aestheticvalue,orconsiderations of aswell as the lengthoftime the well as theirsun/shade requirements. an artist's intended audience. As part animal is caredforbyits mother. "Whydidyou spillyourmilk?" ofthe discussion, adocentcould"slip Ifthe docentwants me to thinkabout "Whyhaven'tyoudoneyour in"facts aboutthe artistand the art, the comparative time thathumans homework?" ifshe thoughttheywere pertinent. and animals carefortheiryoung, Youngvisitors have hadlots of Thevisitors,on the otherhand, a—re whichusuallyis thepointofsuch experiencewith whyquestions,and freedfrom the demands offacts facts, a more interesting when notall oftheirexperiences havebeen theycanimagine,explore,opine question mightbe alotmore fun. positive! Forthis reason, why 4 The Docent Educator Winter 999-2000 1 questionscanbe fraughtwith danger. the docentcanguide them to explore posterboard todrawapicture ofyour Iftheyareusedin a museum setting the "whys"oi\}i\t community's newexhibit." toforcethevisitortojustifyan answer historicinhabitants. "We'vebeentalkingtoday orexplain achoice,—theycan elicitthe Ahowquestion askedin a aboutways thatan artistuses colorto —same defensiveness even in adults museum exhibithallcanbe closed emphasize certainparts ofhis canvas. as "whywereyoulatethismorn- ("Howdoesthebloodflowfrom the Howwouldyouuse colorto make me ing?" Ontheotherhand, askinga heartthrough thebody?") oropen- lookataparticularpartofyour questionthattries toexplain why ended ("Howcouldyouexplain the paintingfirst? Remember,youcan someoneused aparticularpigment life cycle ofabutterflyto achild onlyuse colorto make one partof orstarted acollectionofbutterflies youngerthanyou?"). However,how yourpainting seem more important is simplyanotherthinly-disguised questions are alsoperfectvehicles than others. Nofairdrawing abig searchforfacts. And,unless the forhands-on experiences asthey arrow! Afteryou've finishedyour artistorartisaninquestionlefta encouragevisitors to solve problems. painting,I'mgoingto tryandguess journal,explanations ofwhyareoften "The exhibits in ourhistory which partyouwanted me tolook highlyspeculative. museum are arrangedchronologically. atfirst." However, whyquestions that Howmightyourearrange them ifyou We allworkin fact-filled allowthevisitorto suspenddisbeUef, were the curator? Use shoeboxes and environments,andpartofourjob as to stepinto anothersituationor cut-outs ofthe artifacts to showhow docents is to conveyimportantfacts anotherperson'sUfe,canbe real youwould redesign the museum's aboutthe collectionswithwhichwe eye-openers. "Let'spretendfora collection. Rememberthatthe work. However,allowingourvisitors fewminutesthatyouhavelived galleries usuallyhave some sortof togobeyondthe facts gives them inanothercountryallyourUfe," title inthe museumbrochure,so also ownership ofthe museum experience. adocentatareconstructedhistoric thinkofatitle togowitheach ofyour When adocent's"5W's and anH" communitymightbegin. "Whywould newgalleries." arephrasedto encourage imagination youeverwanttoleave home and "We're notverypleasedwith and creativity, avisitorcan relaxand move to an entirelydifferentcoun- this exhibitaboutthe nervous system. participate,knowinghe's notexpected try?" Byaskingheraudience toplace I knowyou'vebeen studyingthe toproduce"justthe facts,ma'am." themselvesinto an imaginary body's systems atschool. Ifyouwere scenario,the docentenables them to tryingto explain the nervous system become morepersonallyinvolved to avisitortooursciencemuseum, withthe realpeoplewhooncelived howwouldyou doit? Whenyouand in thecommunity. As theydiscuss yourpartnerhave decided howyou JackieLittleton reasonstheymighthave formoving, would solve this problem,use this Associate Editor Submit an Article! Publish and shareyour teachingideas and techniques. DemonstrationsandPresentations Summer2000 Submission deadline: March 1,2000 TargetedPrograms: TeachingTailoredforSpecificAudiences Autumn2000 Submissiondeadline: June 1,2000 TourConclusionsandFollow-Ups Winter2000-2001 Submissiondeadline: September 1,2000 Sendyourtext andphotos to: TheDocentEducator P.O. Box2080 Kamuela,HI 96743-2080. Toreceivewriter'sguidelinessendusaself-addressed,stampedenvelope. Allarticlesareeditedforpublication. The Docent Educator Winter 999-2000 1 A Framework for Organizing You have researchedyour Followingthe theme sheetis apage elseproceeds. Also,havingaspecific newestexhibition for titled"Artwork 1,"whichis divided place towrite thetheme ofthetour months,amassing intofive sections. The firstsection requires awellthought-outand by extensive materialon asks forthe artist,title,medium,and developedfocus. Robyn eachworkofart. The openingis date ofthework. The second section As anexample,letususethe quicklyapproachingandyou,as a focuses on the mainpoints to relay UCLAArmandHammerMuseum Murgio docentorgalleryteacher,needto aboutthis artworkorhaveyour ofArtandCulturalCenter'sperma- bepreparedtotourthe exhibition. audience self-discoverduring nentcollection,which consistsmainly This tourwill notbe alecture in conversation aroundthe object. ofpaintingsbyEuropean artists whichyou regurgitate thevolumes In the third section,attention shifts to spanningthe sixteenthcenturyto ofinformationyou have acquired to a howthese mainpoints relate backto the earlytwentiethcentury. WewiU passive audience. Instead,itwillfocus the overalltheme,listed on the cover use the themeofhowlightingand on the exchange ofinformation,the sheet. The fourth section designates coloraffectmoodinan artwork. give-and-take ofquestioning and space to Ustimportantquestions to Afterdeterminingthe theme,youcan answering,the discoveries made askaboutthisworkofart. Finally, select a numberofworks to commu- through discussion. Howdoyou the fifth section provides an opportu- nicate thisideabyUstingthe artist translate hundreds ofpages of nityto detail the transition from this andtitle ofthose objectsunderthe information into asuccinct,sixty- artworktothe nextincluded in the theme. Whetheryou supportthe minute,interactive tour? This is a tour. This segmentworks as avehicle conceptoftouringeighttotenworks questionwe allhave faced. to moveyouthe nextpage,titled ofartin an hour-longtouroronly This article suggests one solution "Artwork2"which is identicaltothe coverthree in thatsameoftime,this to this problem bysummarizinga tool formerpage. There is one ofthese practice requires narrowingdown aU calledthe TourFramework Worksheet. pages foreachofthe tenworks ofart theworkin the exhibition to afew You can use thisWorksheetto included in the tour. Takingthe time representative objectsbytakinginto organize anenormous amountof to fiU in theworksheetfromwhatyou accounthowstronglyeach artwork information into aflexible,theme- have learned through researchand supports the theme,probablyone of based tourthatidentifies the artwork trainingensures atheme-basedtour the mostdifficultcomponentsof in the exhibition,supplies important thatidentifies the artwork, articulates theworksheets. points abouttheseworks, and the importantpieces ofinformation Onceyouhave decidedonthe connects these main points backto abouttheworks,connects these artworkyouwilldiscuss,youcan the overalltheme ofthe tour,while ideasbackto the theme,andbuilds establishthe orderinwhichyouwiU promotingquestioningandleaving in questioningtechniques and examinethese objects,considering room fortransitionsbetween transition from one artworkto the placementoftheworks ofartand artworks. This toolfunctions in a next. Byusingthis tool,youestablish movementthroughthegalleries. verysimple,straightforwardway, and thebasic information andformatof Bylayingoutthe tenworks ofarton like anyothereffective tool, itis a yourtourbeforeyoueven step into the tour,youcan see ifthe selection flexible one thatis open to modifica- thegalleries to starttouring. ofartworkslendsitselfto smooth tion accordingtoyourparticular transitions andan evenrepresentation institution,collections,orexhibitions. TheTheme: TheRootofAllInquiries ofthe exhibitionorcollection. The TourFramework Worksheet Onceyouhave decided on a Forexample,ifallthechosenworks consists ofelevenpages thatcan assist theme foryourtour,itis important arebymale artistsandhalfofthe youin organizingyourtour. On the to summarize the theme in afew works in theexhibition arebywomen coversheet,the firstdirections succinct sentences. Recordingthe artists,Ustingthe artworks makesit indicate aspace towrite the theme theme as the firstpiece ofinformation clearthatitmightbe appropriateto ofthe tourandthenUsttenworks of on theworksheetkeeps itatthe include amorebalancedportrayalin artthatarticulatethis theme. forefrontofthetourfromwhichall ordertodepicttheexhibitionin a 6 The Docent EducatorWinter 999-2000 1 Theme-Based, Inquiry Tours more thorough and ofcomprehensive accuratemanner. facts,the Withthetheme sheet essentials ofthe completed,youcan move artworkbecome onto thebulkofthe easyto remember worksheet,whichfocuses forboththe onthe identifiedartworks docentand the youwillexplore on public. Withthis the tour. approach,even in a conversation TheBasics: OneArtwork thatdigresses,the ataTime mainpoints Thefirstpartofthe remain atthe individual"Artwork" forefrontofthe sheets asksforthe"vitals" questioning oftheobject: artist,title, strategies. medium,anddate. The third UCLA Inexaminingthe section asks for HammerMuseum's this artwork's collection,wewilldiscuss connection to the Rembrandtvan Rijn's overallba—sis of Juno, anoilpaintingfrom thetour how 1662-1665. The second dothose main sectionrequests the"main points aboutthis points"torelayaboutthe specific artwork artwork,followedbya tie intothe fewnumberedlines. tour's theme? One importantpiece of RembrandtvanRijn,]uno,c. 1662-1665. ForJuno, TheArmandHammerCollection, UCLAattheArmandHammerMuseum information aboutthe the issue of ofArtandCulturalCenterLosAngeles, California. workis recorded oneach Publishedwithpermission, courtesyoftheArmandHammerMuseumand Rembrandt's line (three orfourin CulturalCenter. darkpalette total). For Rembrandt's anduse of Juno, theinformationonthefirst and definition ofRembrandt'suse chiaroscuro directlyrefertothe line clarifieswhoJuno is of"chiaroscuro"(theuse oflight theme's investigationoflightand (thegoddess ofsuch things as and darkareas to create andimply color. Byfocusingonthis link,you marriage,the state,andwealth). contourandform) is described canbettercreate asolid,cohesive tour The secondlineexplains howyour throughobservingthe limitedpalette thatflows from thetheme and applies audience canidentifyJunoby and sharp contrastsbetweenlight toeachwork. examiningthe"attributes"thatare and shadow. This sectionguidesyoutoward portrayedandhowtoreadthem in Establishingthese mainpoints makingalogical,conscious correla- thispainting. Onthethirdline,the entails narrowingdown anenormous tion amongallthe objectsyouexplore storybehindthe artworkisexpressed; amountofinformation to afew andtheirrelevance to each other as itwascommissionedbyarichbanker, significantpieces ofknowledge that wellas theoverarchingtheme. whichis connecttothe subjectmatter willbe atthecore ofthe inquiry ofJuno asthegoddess ofwealth. aroundthis artwork. Bybreaking Continued Onthefourthline,anintroduction theobjectdowninto asmallnumber onpage 8. 7 The Docent Educator Winter 999-2000 1 A Framewofk for Organizing Tfieme-Based, inquiry Jours Continued from page 7. CreatingQuestionsandMovingOn cohesive movementthrough Atthispoint,you have laid out thegalleries,tyingthewhole allthe basic information aboutthe tourtogether. artworkthatyouwantto include on the tour. Now,you can move to the Conclusion fourth section byconsidering In summary,the TourFramework importantquestions to askabout Worksheetis a simple toolthatyou can this piece. The questions here are use toorganizeyourthoughts and notgeneral questions thatcould be information into awell-thought-out, included in a discussion around any unifiedtour. Bystartingwiththe workofart,butare inquiries specific theme ofthe tour, movingthrough to this one object. In reviewingthe the specificworks to be included on mostpertinentpoints ofinformation the tour,andthen focusingon each listed above,you can create questions ofthese objects individually,youcan around those ideas to assistthe group clearlyestablish allthe information in reachingthesebits ofknowledge or andquestioningstrategies to incorpo- topush thegroupbeyond these basic rate on an interactive tour. pieces ofinformation. Forinstance, There are manyapplications for whenlookingatJuno, certain theWorksheetbeyond art museum questions mightassistyouraudience galleries. Itcan be—used in avarietyof in discoveringthe technique of otherinstitutions historichouses, chiaroscuro. "Where on the canvas science museums,andeven zoos and isyoureye drawn? Howdoes gardens. The formatofthe Rembrandt drawyour attention Worksheetitselfis also extremely to these areas?" Layingoutafew flexible. Itwouldbe easytoexpand specific questions in advance helps oradd sections to the existingform. you plan howto approach each Overall,the TourFramework artworkand drawinformation out Worksheetcan serve as arubric ofyouraudience. tocreate a succinct,stimulating, Section five oftheworksheet interactive tourwith the theme at asks foratransition idea or statement the center, movingyoufrom a sea to move thegroup from this artwork ofbooks and information to awell to the nextworkon the tour. Transi- thought-throughjourney. tions canbe quite simple;they certainlydo nothave tobe deep, profound connections. Formoving A from Rembrandt'sJunotoJean- AntoineWatteau'sFestivities inHonor oJ'Pan, 1710-1711,the nextpainting RobynMurgioworksatthe UCLA on ourtourin the museum's collec- ArmandHammerMuseum ofArtand tion,we can examine the comparison CulturalCenterinLosAngeles, CA. As between the two artists'use oflight theeducationassistant,shecoordinates and shadoworthe contrastof boththevolunteerandstudentdecent Watteau's more colorfulpaletteversus programs, inadditiontoassistingwith Rembrandt's darkercolorscheme. teachertrainingandadultprograms. These simple links helpyouraudience Ms. MurgioalsoservesasthePublic change mindsets from one objectto Relations ChairpersonfortheMuseum the next,while creatingasmooth. EducatorsofSouthern California. 8 The Docent Educator Winter 999-2000 1 Sharing successful techniques, thoughts, and ideas. readthe article"PedagogicalTechniques (whenI requestedthemtodoso) thatthekids forBeingaMore EffectiveTeacher," couldn'tdistinguish. whichappearedin theprevious issue of Iwentdown to BirminghamMuseum ofArt TheDecentEducator, (Auturhn 1999) thenight anhourbefore the tourtobe sure aUofmymuseum beforeI had myfirstfallchildren's tourwith objectswereondisplayandchanged afewchoices thirdandfourthgraders. The teacherswanteda forbalance. Iwanted contrastsbetweencontempo- highlights tourofthe museum soIhad assumed raryand classicalpaintingand sculpture. I changed itwouldbetheeasiesttype—oftourandthatI'd moreenroutebecauseoftimerestraints and covermyfavorite subjects inotherwords, because the childrenwantedtoincludeone object "no sweat." But,afterreadingyourexcellentarticle, theyfound. I realizedthatIwas takingmyfirstassignmenttoo Well,Ihadagreatproblem. Therewas so lackadaisicallyandthatthekids deservedbetter. muchexcitementthatitwas difficultattimes Whileyoudidn'trevealnewtechniques tocon—trolthe chaos,butthe adultswere agreat forme,youremindedme ofallthegreatideas help theydidn'tinterferebutkeptthe noise ofteachingthatI carelesslyletfadetotheobscure levelunderaroar. Thankheavenstherewere peripheryasI settledinto aroutinejob. Thanksfor nonearbytours. thejolt! Youremindedmeofthe affectionIhold forthe subjectmatterandmyjob. Youalso Then,I evaluated. The results ofmyevaluation remindedmetocommunicationwonder,while were: delightinginandshovnngrespectforourvisitors. 1. Nexttime,Iwillhavetheentire tourgroupwork Iplannedthelessonas ifitwere myfirst withthe same tools atthe sametime. time andexpendedtheperspirationthis firsttour 2. Fifteenkids andfive orsixadults inatouris too demanded. Sincetheseyoungvisitorswere large agrouptohavethe amountofparticipation probablycomingtoamuseum forthefirsttime, thatIlike.Ten kidsisbetter. I chose as myobjective"toprovide tools to make 3. I accomplished myobjective:Toprovidetools theirartmuseumvisitftin andexciting." Iwould tomake eachartmuseumvisitfianandexciting. dividethetourintothreegroups offive each and IknewI hadachieved the objectivebecause in this allotthetoolsforeach. Onegroupwouldhave tourthe students demonstrated theirfiin and coloredconstructionpapertomatchwiththe excitement. By"tools"intheobjective,I'm not colorsintheobjects. Where colors didn't match, speakin—gofpencils andpaper,butthe sharpened wewouldopenaconversation aboutthe emotional senses to see howcolors and shapes areused response to color. The secondgroupwouldbe intheworks andhowthesenses canbe activated. givenapencilandfoldedindexpaper(stiffenough I realizelearningrequiresreinforcementandI hope todrawon) tofindanddrawshapes theysawin theteacherprovides it. Tothatend,I sentafollow- theworks. Thethirdgroupwouldbringtheirown upnote totheteacher. tools: theirsenses. Theseyoungsterswould teUme theirfive senses,andthenhowtheycouldimagine Thanksforremindingme ofabetterwaytohave usingthem ateachobject. one ofmyverybesttours. Eventhefive adultescorts andthe teacher wouldgetintothe act. Iwouldhavethetaller BudJohnson,decent ofthemfindandreadthings toohighfortherest BirminghamMuseum ofArt ofus. Atothertimes theywouldfindthings Birmingham,Alabama The Docent Educator Winter 999-2000 1 Helping Visitors Asli Better Questions #1 spartoftheweekly converse inthiswayis unexpected, andthatthepurpose ofwhatyoudo comedytelevision show andin turn,humorous. Itis as if here is nottofind answersbuttoask WhoseLineis itAnyway? listeners are hangingon the edge, questions. You mightsay,'Not comedians aregiven a waitingforwhatyears ofexp—erience everyone sees the same things inthis varietyofimprovisationalchallenges have taughtthem to expect object. Howmanydifferentquestions by designed to entertain. In onegame, an answer. come to mindwhenyoulookatit? Michael the comedians mustcarryon a Today's societyisveryanswer- No one has anybetteranswers than conversation usingonlyquestions. oriented. There is greatattention anyone else,butsome questions help Nelson While attlrstthe"Question Game" puton uncoveringtherightanswer, us togo fartherthanothers."' sounds relativelyeasy,afterfive orsix withoutgivingmuch importance to The secondlessontaughtbythe exchanges even these experienced the question itself Eric Booth,in his "QuestioningGame"is thevalueof performers struggle to keepgoing, book TheEveryday WorkofArt developingimprovisationalskills. findingitdifficultto come upwith addressesthishabit,saying, The dictionarydefines improviseas yetanotherquestion. "Thevalue ofquestioningis grossly the ability"to fabricate outofwhatis Athirty-minute comedy overlooked in the high-demand convenientlyon hand." This seems a television program mayseemworlds quick-fix nature ofourlives and fairlyaccurate descriptionofwhata awayfrom the education thattakes ournation. We are answer-oriented docentdoeswhencreating an A place atyourinstitution,yetit can everywhere,havingbeen trainedto atmosphere oflearning. good offerdocents afewpracticalstrate- this through schoolingthatis almost docentis afacilitatorwhois able to gies. The"Question Game"gets us entirelyright-answerdriven." takethe resourcesreadilyavailable, thinking a—boutquestions fortheir He goes on to pointoutthatthe root (e.g.,the objects onview,the students' own sake notquestions in search oftheword question is quest. Aquest minds,the docent's experience) and ofanswers. Askinggood questions is a search and a challenge,but not weave orfabricate a meaningfiil is becoming an increasinglyvaluable withoutrewards. experience. Youcan teachyour skill. I believe thatdocents candoa So,howcanyou set the stage students to dothe same. Byencour- great service forvisitors if,in addition forthe participants onyourtourto agingthem touse theirown minds as to askingtheirgroups questions, askquestions? One suggestion is one oftheirresources,youwiU docentsencouragevisitorstostrengthen beginningyourtourbylettingthe enhance the qualityoftheirlearning. theirown questioningskiUs. group knowthatyouvaluewhateach Jerome Bruner,authorof What strategies canyou develop individual is bringingto the experi- severalbookson education,wrote, to assistyourvisitors in askingbetter ence. Make itclearupfrontthatyou "Acquired knowledgeis mostto a questions? You can use some ofthe will notbe lecturing and thatinstead learner, moreover,whenitis'discov- same ideas putforth in the television you hope to engage in dialogue about ered'through the learner's own game, namely,encouragingyour the things thatare ofinteresttothem. cognitive efforts,foritis thenrelated students to: (1) rise to the challenge, As agroupyouwiUshare ideas, to and used in referencetowhatone (2) improvise, and (3) stretch for stories, and questions. has knownbefore." Ifyouchallenge "yet another"question. Dr. DavidCarr,Professorof studentsto improvisebyusingtheir The firststrategy,risingto the Information and LibraryScience at own minds,theirpeers'ideas,and challenge, suggests thatit canbe theUniversityofNorth Carolinaat the objectsyou are exploring,you difficultyto engage in extended ChapelHiU,has oftenpointed out wiUhelp them constructtheir questioning. This is partofwhythe thevalue ofattendingto thoughtfiil own meaning. "Questioning Game"on WhoseLine questions. In his keynote presenta- Howcan improvisinghelpyou is sofiinny. Focusingon questioning tion atthe 1996Wisconsin Docent on a tour? Well,lets sayyourinitial ratherthan answeringtakes us outside Symposium,he suggested,"You may plan foratourwas to focuson a ofournormalrealm. Watching wantto sayexplicitly [toyourvisitors] selectedworkorobjectin agallery, performers on stage forcedto thatthere are no keys orsecrets here butupon enteringthe areayounotice The Docent Educator Winter 999-2000 1