ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions. ***************************************************************************** Dear Colleagues, Join the Museum Education Roundtable today and receive the summer 2007 Journal of Museum Education, “Critical Thinking in Skills in Museums,” as soon as it is printed! The movement of museums toward an emphasis on critical thinking shows no signs of slowing. It seems worth examining, therefore, whether museums teach critical thinking skills effectively. If our goal is to teach critical thinking, are there best practices in critical thinking development that can be implemented within the museum context? Is it reasonable to claim that students can learn or improve critical thinking skills in one, or even a few, visits to a museum? What research has been done that can support our marketing claims? This issue of the JME, guest edited by Rebecca Shulman Herz of the Guggenheim Museum, will examine these issues through the lens of institutions and researchers who are grappling with them. In addition to the Journal, which is published three times each year, MER members also receive an e-newsletter, Network, packed with information about new initiatives underway at museums throughout the country, profiles of museum educators and upcoming MER events. Membership in MER is just $40 annually, a bargain for a professional journal. Students and people who are retired pay the reduced rate of $30. To join MER or find out more about the organization, please visit MER-online.org. SPECIAL OFFER! Join at the American Association of Museums conference in Chicago, May 14-16, and receive a $5 discount off regular rates! Memberships will be available at the Left Coast Press booth in the exhibit hall, at the Marketplace of Ideas on Monday, 3:30-5:30; and at the MER reception on Tuesday, 5:00-6:30, at the Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies. Speaking of the MER reception at AAM, we cordially invite you to attend! Enjoy a fascinating presentation by Elsa Bailey, Guest Editor of the fall 2006 Journal of Museum Education, on the topic of museum’s educators’ professional relevance. Pick up a flyer at the Left Coast Press booth for directions and more information. We hope to see you at AAM sessions sponsored by MER or chaired by MER board members: • Keeping it Real: The Role of Technology in Object Based Learning; Monday, 10:30-11:45 • New Theories for Interpretation and Practice: Frames, Connectivism, and Transacting; Tuesday, 10:30-11:45 • Are Museum Educators Necessary?, Wednesday, 2:00-3:15 Since 1969, MER has published the Journal of Museum Education, the only journal printed in the United States that is devoted to the theory and practice of museum education. In 2006, MER began co-publishing the Journal with Left Coast Press, a new publisher of academic and professional materials in the humanities and social sciences. MER is a non-profit, volunteer organization with one part-time, paid staff member. Gretchen Adams Education Director Paul Revere House and a MER Board Member ____________________________________________________________________________________ Sucker-punch spam with award-winning protection. Try the free Yahoo! Mail Beta. http://advision.webevents.yahoo.com/mailbeta/features_spam.html *********************************************************************** More information about the Informal Science Education Network and the Association of Science-Technology Centers may be found at http://www.astc.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]