formative/remedial

The Nano Intro Cart Program uses several small demonstrations and experiments to give visitors an introduction to nanoscience basics. The big idea for the program is that “nanotechnology takes small things that act differently to do something useful.” The program’s learning goal is for visitors to “know that self-assembly is a process for creating nanomaterials.” A total of 31 visitors responded to a survey after the program.  Read more

During the NISE Program Workshop at Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, school groups provided feedback on a variety of nano programs. The programs were performed January 16, 2007. Fifty-two visitors (students, teachers, and chaperones) completed self-administered surveys about the Surface Area program. Most respondents (96%) were 13 and 14 year olds. This formative evaluation shows that  Read more

On May 27, 2008 a total of 15 visitors completed self-administered surveys after the Inkjet Printer program at the Science Museum of Minnesota. The visitors were asked a series of questions about their experience to assess how well the program conveyed information about nanotechnology.  Read more

On May 27, 2008 a total of 15 visitors completed self-administered surveys after the Inkjet Printer program at the Science Museum of Minnesota. The visitors were asked a series of questions about their experience to assess how well the program conveyed information about nanotechnology.The InkJet Printer program was enjoyed by 100% of the visitors survey and 86% reported that it was interesting. However, the learning objectives were not expressed by all visitors.  Read more

The Nano Fabrics activity was presented April 19th and 30th, 2009 at the Science Museum of Minnesota. The objective or main idea of the Nano Fabrics activity is to share that special fabrics are coated with nanometer-sized “whiskers” that protect them from stains. The activity has two learning goals. The first is the same as the big idea; in the second, visitors should learn that nano fabrics are an example of nanotechnology that mimics the water-repelling “lotus effect” of some plant leaves. Fifteen visitors completed self-administered surveys about the activity.  Read more

Surveys were completed by 19 visitor groups at the Science Museum of Minnesota during the March 2007 NISE Exhibits and Programs Workshop. Groups were invited to use the Crystals exhibit and then complete a survey together.  Read more

The Museum of Science partnered with the Center for High-rate Nanomanufacturing to create a sequence of professional development experiences in science communication and hands-on learning for graduate students and post-docs. The Sharing Science Workshops were intended to help graduate students who work with the CHN program to improve their abilities to present their research to a variety of scientific and nonscientific audiences. The sequence included a half-day "Sharing Science" workshop, a half-day guided "Practicum" with museum visitors, and optional participation in NanoDays events at MOS. The UMass Donahue Institute undertook an evaluation of the first two programs to better understand their impact.  Read more

The Liquid Nitrogen Nano Ice Cream activity was conducted with visitors at the Science Museum of Minnesota in March of 2010. A total of 12 visitors provided feedback through a survey designed to measure engagement with and comprehension of the activity.  Read more

After completing the Biomimicry: Synthetic Gecko Tape activity, surveys were distributed to fourteen visitors. The survey was designed to elicit information regarding the degree of visitor interest, enjoyment, and ease in understanding the activity. Responding visitors for this activity actually participated in a week-long program; some of their responses reflect their participation in numerous activities.  Read more

The Science Museum of Minnesota conducted the StretchAbility program on January 25th, and February 1st, 2010, and the Children’s Museum of Houston conducted the program on November 10th, 14th, and 25th, 2009. A total of 20 paired adult and child groups provided feedback through a survey designed to measure their engagement with and comprehension of the activity. After the activity, evaluators targeted participating children 8 or younger who were verbal for the interview, and gave a survey to the child’s parent to complete. Paired surveys were used due to the lower verbal nature of the younger audience; by also collecting data from the children’s parents, the evaluators were able to better assess the young visitors’ possible connection to the story.  Read more