The MA seminar yesterday to launch the revised 'Common Wealth' got me
thinking about this list.
It will never, of course, replace 'real' networking e.g. via national and
local GEM events and GEM publications, but for a dispersed community like
museum educators it does have particular complementary strengths.
Posts to the list over the past few months cover:
* news of policies/funding (David...any chance of official news on Alan
Howarth's announcements yesterday?!)
* news of projects
* job offers
* training opportunities
* issues of general concern
* requests for specific advice/ideas
We've perhaps not used the list as much for the last two as we might,
although I've had helpful feedback whenever I've asked questions.
Obviously, asking a question does not guarantee a response in this
environment.
I hope we will pick up performance indicators for museum education and
access in the autumn (when I think Eilean is promising something, and
Deloitte/Lord should have finished their work for the DCMS).
People at the MA seminar yesterday also might like to follow up anything
that arose there.
One particular issue raised was the difficulties of supporting small
museums. This is one possible vehicle, for curators of small museums who do
have e-mail access (even at home, since using this list if one does already
have access is very cheap) and for 'lone' museum educators in larger
establishments. There are now over 150 members of this list, largely
practising museum educators. If any of you are aware of colleagues,
especially in smaller museums, who have e-mail access and are not members,
do let them know about the list. David's initial report referred to about
750 museum education posts in the UK, full and part time. We're well on the
way to a critical mass of them linked via this list, indeed we arguably
already have it, but the more coverage we have, the better the profession
can share news and ideas instantly.
Roland
Dr Roland Jackson, Head of Education and Programmes
Science Museum, London SW7 2DD
http://www.nmsi.ac.uk/education/
New phone number: 44 (0)207 942 4710
New fax number: 44 (0)207 942 4712
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