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Charles,

I'll let some of the evaluators answer the specifics, but I think within your question there are a couple of vague ideas.  

#1 The idea that Science Centers have been engaged in "Rigorous evaluation" for more than 20 years is questionable - which is probably why you put the term "rigorous evaluation" in quotes.  Certainly exhibits have been evaluated - but the rigor of the evaluation has been all over the place.  Part of the issue is involved in #2.

#2 Many responders are talking about "successful exhibits" and You state: "What are the key concepts that characterize an excellent exhibit or museum...Many unevaluated, free-lanced exhibits have proven popular over the years."  This is true - and we might agree that some unevaluated exhibits are great.  However, this hides part of the problem:  defining success.  Is success popularity?  Increase in educational content?  Increase in interest about science?  Everyone has their own meter-stick.  What I define as success isn't what you might define.  I would argue that some popular exhibits are not successful.  Of course if an exhibit isn't popular at all it isn't successful either (IMHO).  

Certainly part of the increase in evaluation is part of what is defining our politics of the day (no child left behind, developing a more effective and accountable government, etc.).

However, if we look at other fields, we can see that some of their success came due to research.  Medicine is the obvious one - according to an article I read, when the first medical degrees were given, there were no tests, and many of the doctors couldn't read (they simply had to attend lectures).  Puss was believed to be the natural defense of the body and therefore good, so doctors would use instruments that had been used on one puss-filled patient for another.  An argument was made while I was in graduate school (nearly 20 years ago) that uniting research with education would bring about an elevation of education as it did for medicine (which took many, many years).  Is it accurate?  Time will tell.  One issue is still defining success - with a patient, the main success is people living.  Other elements are quality of life (which becomes a bit harder to define).  For education measuring success is a bit tougher.  For informal education it may become even tougher to define because we all have different items we consider important.  Certainly there are some exhibit elements I can point to as having become better within an exhibit due to formative evaluation.  Think about those exhibits you've approached where some element was barely useable because its very design didn't suggest proper use.  Those elements could easily be improved with just a bit of formative evaluation - whether done formally or informally as long as it was approached with an open mind.  For other successes, ask Montshire about their rheoscopic disk and how changing its environment changed the way people used it (this was illuminated by research).  At your own venerable institution, the APE project seems to show that by using evaluation & modifications based on it, you can lengthen time spent at exhibits.

Now one can ask (as you do) whether or not the costs involved with evaluation outweigh the benefits - that's a lot tougher question to answer.  Certainly a number of people I know would agree with you on that element, yet I've also seen huge amounts of money spent on exhibits I think are very poor - could evaluation have helped with that?

-William

William Katzman
Program Leader
LIGO Science Education Center
"Inspiring Science"
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(225) 686-3134

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