Abstract There is increasing evidence that zoos and aquariums do, as intended, educate their visitors. However, even though most zoos offer a wide array of educational experiences, few studies have considered if the duration of an educational experience affects learning or whether learning lasts beyond the immediate visit. The current study used matched-pairs surveys to investigate children’s knowledge, attitude and knowledge of positive behavior during both a five-day zoo camp and six months after an aquarium visit. The participants of the study included children aged 9–12 years some of whom had participated in a purposefully designed educational intervention. First, the impact of a five-day zoo camp experience on children’s learning was investigated. Second, learning retention was investigated six months after a school tour at an aquarium. Results showed that during the camp learning was positively affected by participation in the educational intervention and by previous zoo experience. Girls were more likely than boys to have an increase in learning six months after an aquarium visit. The study demonstrates that learning persists, but that education can be enhanced with longer programs. Thus, zoos can play an increasingly important role in igniting pro-environmental behavior.

中文翻译：

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量化动物教育的长期影响：在动物园和水族馆学习的研究

摘要 越来越多的证据表明，动物园和水族馆确实按照预期对游客进行了教育。然而，尽管大多数动物园提供广泛的教育体验，但很少有研究考虑教育体验的持续时间是否会影响学习，或者学习是否会持续到即刻访问之后。目前的研究使用配对调查来调查儿童在为期五天的动物园营地和参观水族馆后六个月的积极行为的知识、态度和知识。该研究的参与者包括 9-12 岁的儿童，其中一些人参与了有目的的教育干预。首先，调查了为期五天的动物园营地体验对儿童学习的影响。其次，在学校参观水族馆六个月后对学习保留情况进行了调查。结果表明，在营地期间学习受到教育干预的参与和以前的动物园经历的积极影响。在参观水族馆六个月后，女孩比男孩更有可能提高学习成绩。该研究表明，学习是持续的，但可以通过更长的课程来加强教育。因此，动物园在激发环保行为方面可以发挥越来越重要的作用。