1.
<ul><li>Professor John H. Falk </li></ul><ul><li>Professor Lynn D. Dierking </li></ul><ul><li>Oregon State University </li></ul><ul><li>USA </li></ul>

2.
<ul><li>We currently know quite a bit about the nature of learning; learning not the way we used to think it was. </li></ul><ul><li>We also currently know quite a bit about the factors that significantly contribute to learning. </li></ul><ul><li>We are just beginning to understand how these multiple factors individually and collectively interact to determine the course and nature of learning. </li></ul>

3.
<ul><li>Behaviorist-Positivist Model </li></ul><ul><ul><li>Known Learner + Known Intervention = Known Learning Outcome </li></ul></ul><ul><ul><li>(Learning Passive Process of Responding to a Stimulus in a Controlled Environment) </li></ul></ul><ul><li>Constructivist-Relativist Model </li></ul><ul><ul><li>Unique Learner + Constructs Meaning from Interventions = Multiple Learning Outcomes </li></ul></ul><ul><ul><li>(Learning Active Process of Making Meaning in a Complex Real World) </li></ul></ul>

4.
<ul><li>Learning begins with the individual. </li></ul><ul><li>Learning involves others. </li></ul><ul><li>Learning takes place somewhere. </li></ul><ul><li>Learning occurs over time. </li></ul>

6.
<ul><li>Prior Knowledge and Experience </li></ul><ul><li>Prior Interest </li></ul><ul><li>Expectations and Motivations </li></ul><ul><li>Perceived Choice and Control </li></ul>

7.
<ul><li>We can only learn what we are capable of learning. Those capabilities are determined by what we already know. </li></ul><ul><li>Current knowledge and experience creates a lens through which all subsequent knowledge and experience are viewed. </li></ul><ul><li>Understanding is always “constructed” – adding to and embellishing upon existing understanding. </li></ul>

8.
<ul><li>Humans are curious creatures, always seeking new information and new understanding. </li></ul><ul><li>Past experiences strongly shape what we consider interesting; a person is more likely to be curious about something they already know a little something about than something they know nothing about. </li></ul><ul><li>Interests change over time, but often a person’s interests are quite consistent over a lifetime. </li></ul>

9.
<ul><li>Expectations and motivations drive learning. </li></ul><ul><li>Motivations can be internal – intrinsic – or they can be external – extrinsic . </li></ul><ul><li>Learning is either for the purpose of demonstrating competence or building identity. </li></ul><ul><li>Most free-choice learning, particularly in settings like museums is for the purpose of building identity. </li></ul>

10.
<ul><li>Explorers </li></ul><ul><li>Facilitators </li></ul><ul><li>Experience Seekers </li></ul><ul><li>Professional/Hobbyists </li></ul><ul><li>Rechargers (Spiritual Pilgrims) </li></ul>

11.
Motivated by Personal Curiosity I come here primarily because it interests me and I like it.

12.
Motivated by Other People I come here primarily because it will satisfy other people’s needs

13.
Motivated by Desire to See & Experience Place I come here primarily because it is an attraction or thing to do in this community; its reputation.

14.
Motivated by Specific Knowledge-Related Goals I come here primarily because it relates to my work or is something I actively pursue as a hobby.

15.
Motivated by Contemplative or Restorative Experience I come here primarily because it helps me feel refreshed or focused or appreciative

16.
<ul><li>Learning is most effective when individuals feel they have some control over what and why they are learning. </li></ul><ul><li>Learning is most effective when individuals perceive they have choice in what to learn and with whom. </li></ul><ul><li>Too much choice is as problematic as no choice. </li></ul><ul><li>Settings like museums are so effective because they afford individuals appropriate amounts of choice and control over their learning. </li></ul>

17.
<ul><li>Learning is a cumulative process that occurs over time and space. </li></ul><ul><li>What someone learns is largely framed by their entering experience, knowledge, interests and expectations. </li></ul><ul><li>What someone learns is also shaped by their subsequent experiences – memories are formed and consolidated over time. </li></ul>

18.
<ul><li>“ Intelligence and understanding are rooted not in the presence and manipulation of explicit, language-like data structures, but in something more earthy: the tuning of basic responses to a real world that enables an embodied organism to sense, act and survive.” </li></ul><ul><li>Andy Clark, 1997, Being There: Putting brain, </li></ul><ul><li>body and world together again . </li></ul>

19.
<ul><li>Cultural Values </li></ul><ul><li>Within group social interactions </li></ul><ul><li>Interactions with others outside of social group (e.g., teachers, guides, other visitors) </li></ul>

20.
<ul><li>Orientation </li></ul><ul><li>Advance Organizers </li></ul><ul><li>Nature of Physical Environment </li></ul><ul><li>Design of Educational Intervention </li></ul>

21.
Links <ul><li>John H. Falk, Ph.D. more </li></ul><ul><li>Lynn D. Dierking, Ph.D. more </li></ul><ul><li>Oregon Sea Grant - Free-Choice Learning faculty </li></ul><ul><li>Oregon U. Science and mathematics education Ph.D. Program </li></ul><ul><li>The Institute for Learning Innovation </li></ul>