ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions.
*****************************************************************************

I think it is important to distinguish between the behavior and the
technology.  I haven't been in this business for long enough to know, but my
bet is that there were disengaged chaperones long before there were
cellphones and wi-fi.

Personally, I love it when i have access to wi-fi, but lack of wi-fi is no
longer an impediment to web surfing, since i have a smart phone.  I use my
phone to look things up all the time, including when I'm at museum exhibits
and want to show my daughter something or see something for myself. Since
chaperones can be disengaged even without wi-fi, why not just provide it on
the theory that it increases the number of mobile devices that visitors can
use.

One more data point.  The fact that my office can always reach me if they
need me, makes it far more possible for me to do things like be a chaperone
for my daughters class.

Dave Smith

On Mon, Jun 21, 2010 at 2:09 PM, Beryl Rosenthal <
[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
> Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related
> institutions.
>
> *****************************************************************************
>
> I have repeatedly seen chaperones sit on the sidelines and text/check
> mail/talk on the phone instead of being engaged with their charges' learning
> opportunity.  Yes, it drives me nuts.  However, does that mean that everyone
> will do it if wifi is available?  Probably not.  Still, it does raise the
> spectre.
>
> Every time I have had a computer-based kiosk in an exhibit, I have had to
> have them hardwired so people could not break out of the program and engage
> in websurfing.  People will always find a way...
>
> I would be interested to hear from folks who use handheld devices in their
> exhibits as the interactive device.  What are you seeing?
>
> Beryl
> On Jun 21, 2010, at 1:59 PM, Bob Raiselis wrote:
>
> > ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
> > Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related
> institutions.
> >
> *****************************************************************************
> >
> > On Jun 21, 2010, at 1:05 PM, Wendy Pollock wrote:
> >
> >> Last week, there was an exchange about public Internet access in
> museums. Bob and others seemed to be saying they'd like to avoid the
> "Internet cafe" atmosphere. I'm curious about why.
> >
> >
> > We were wondering if a public wifi connection would encourage parents
> (and teens) to sit on the sidelines and surf the web or catch up on email
> while their children/younger siblings were engaged in the exhibits, rather
> than participating with them. I believe there were a couple of responses to
> that question that brought this up.
> >
> > We don't actually have a cafe. If we did that would be a good place to
> catch up on email, probably. The exhibit floor, maybe not so much.
> >
> > So I guess the question might instead be "is it appropriate to encourage
> wireless Internet usage by museum visitors on the exhibit floor?"
> >
> > Bob Raiselis
> > Montshire Museum of Science
> >
> > ***********************************************************************
> > For information about the Association of Science-Technology Centers and
> the Informal Science Education Network please visit www.astc.org.
> >
> > Check out the latest case studies and reviews on ExhibitFiles at
> www.exhibitfiles.org.
> >
> > The ISEN-ASTC-L email list is powered by LISTSERVR software from L-Soft.
> To learn more, visit
> > http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html.
> >
> > To remove your e-mail address from the ISEN-ASTC-L list, send the
> > message  SIGNOFF ISEN-ASTC-L in the BODY of a message to
> > [log in to unmask]
>
> Beryl Rosenthal
> Executive Director, Waterworks Museum
> [log in to unmask]
> 617.277.0065
>
> ***********************************************************************
> For information about the Association of Science-Technology Centers and the
> Informal Science Education Network please visit www.astc.org.
>
> Check out the latest case studies and reviews on ExhibitFiles at
> www.exhibitfiles.org.
>
> The ISEN-ASTC-L email list is powered by LISTSERVR software from L-Soft. To
> learn more, visit
> http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html.
>
> To remove your e-mail address from the ISEN-ASTC-L list, send the
> message  SIGNOFF ISEN-ASTC-L in the BODY of a message to
> [log in to unmask]
>



-- 
David L. Smith
Da Vinci Science Center
Allentown, PA
http://www.davinci-center.org

Please consider the environment before printing this email.

"You can’t buy change. It’s a process, not a purchase. The right shopping
list won’t change education.”
    -Sylvia Martinez http://blog.genyes.com/

***********************************************************************
For information about the Association of Science-Technology Centers and the Informal Science Education Network please visit www.astc.org.

Check out the latest case studies and reviews on ExhibitFiles at www.exhibitfiles.org.

The ISEN-ASTC-L email list is powered by LISTSERVR software from L-Soft. To learn more, visit
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html.

To remove your e-mail address from the ISEN-ASTC-L list, send the
message  SIGNOFF ISEN-ASTC-L in the BODY of a message to
[log in to unmask]