ABSTRACT

The COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented changes to the museum field in 2020. Significant among these changes are losses in museum education. Using data collected from museum educators and museum directors, the authors document and contextualize what they consider incongruous, detrimental impacts on museum education. Most troubling, when examined in the context of pre-pandemic trends, the losses in education suggest a paradox of sorts. Prior to the pandemic, museum education was taking an increasingly prominent role in the museum field with audience engagement becoming an increasing priority. So, how could museums reduce education departments and their resources at a time when serving audiences is paramount? Ultimately, the losses in museum education reveal its vulnerability. Museum leadership asserts the importance of museum education, but when push comes to shove, makes significant cuts to museum education departments.

摘要

COVID-19 大流行给 2020 年的博物馆领域带来了前所未有的变化。其中重要的变化是博物馆教育的损失。使用从博物馆教育者和博物馆馆长那里收集的数据，作者记录并背景化了他们认为对博物馆教育不协调、有害的影响。最令人不安的是，在大流行前趋势的背景下，教育的损失表明了某种悖论。在大流行之前，博物馆教育在博物馆领域扮演着越来越重要的角色，观众参与变得越来越重要。那么，在服务观众至上的时代，博物馆如何减少教育部门及其资源？最终，博物馆教育的损失暴露了它的脆弱性。博物馆领导断言博物馆教育的重要性，