I have a responsibility for developing new web content for our site, and have therefore come into contact with various other people in London who have similar responsibilities. One thing that comes up frequently in these discussions is the lack of any forum for discussing ideas relating to good practice in terms of content (rather than the technical stuff or collections management issues which seem to be the core concerns of most IT based museum groups).
We have therefore been thinking about meeting informally and perhaps starting a new group or sub-group of MCG to look specifically at educational web content. Perhaps if this went ahead the group could also aim to become an online guide to good practise???
If you would be interested in being involved in such a group, would you like to contact me at the address below? (We were intending to be a local London-based group in the first instance.)
Best wishes,
Jane Sarre
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Interpretation Officer
Museum of London
London Wall
London EC2Y 5HN
t: 020 7814 5772
f: 020 7600 1058
e: [log in to unmask]
www.museumoflondon.org.uk
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05/22/01 02:41 PM
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cc: (bcc: Jane Sarre/lon/Museum)
Subject: Re: Museum Webguide >>> John Benfield <[log in to unmask]> 05/22 2:06 pm >>>
> Having looked at the museum webguide, I can't help thinking that it's
taking a very negative approach. Surely it would
> be better to showcase and celebrate good practice, rather than to 'name
and shame' what a critic feels to be bad
> practice - after all, even the museum webguide site itself contains an
obvious typo... ;-)
> Many museums are charities that are scraping by on a shoestring budget,
it's hardly surprising that some of the things > they do are restricted in
terms of commercial 'polish' - and I'm not just talking about web sites!
> I'm all for raising standards, just not sure that this is the best way to
do it.
Although learning by other people mistakes (and successes) can be a valuable
experience, and one certainly to be shared, I cannot help but be a little
disturbed by the presence of such a web site (in its current format). It
begs the questions: who chooses the sites to be critiqued, do the creators
of the sites have any knowledge that they are about to be critiqued, what
credentials do the critics have and what criteria are being applied?
I think the 'museum webguide' is a potentially good idea, but I would,
similarly, like to see both good and bad aspects pointed out, along with
some kind of guide to good practice, as well as the opportunity to comment
on the sites in question and comment on the comments made by the critics. I
am sure this kind of dialogue would benefit us all, both large and small
institiutions.
John
____________________________
Dr John Benfield
New Media Developer
The Natural History Museum
London, SW7 5BD
www.nhm.ac.uk Tel: 0207 942 5491
email: [log in to unmask] ____________________________
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