The Bilingual Exhibits Research Initiative (BERI) project is conducting research and producing a series of deliverables that provide the necessary background to advance understanding of how to best develop bilingual (Spanish/English) exhibits in ISE museums and related institutions, thus broadening access to informal science education. The primary target audience for this project is informal science education professionals who plan to employ the most current research results and effective practices in development of bilingual exhibits and related programs. BERI is a partnership among the Institute of Learning Innovation (Edgewater, MD), Garibay Group (Chicago, IL), Miami Museum of Science, and the San Diego Natural History Museum, as well as partners where front-end evaluation is being conducted on bilingual learning in exhibits. The STEM content employed during the research includes socially relevant topics such as biodiversity, health, and climate change.
This BERI Pathways project is developing five principal deliverables: (1) literature review (available online); (2) on-line archive of current bilingual exhibits on the Association of Science-Technology Center's web site at www.exhibitfiles.org; (3) a pilot front-end research study of visitors to five bilingual exhibits located at museums and related institutions; (4) a bilingual exhibit framework (effective practices) document disseminated online; and (5) talks and workshops to disseminate these results and effective practices to the informal science education community.
Once this project is completed, the informal science education community will be better positioned to serve the needs of the Spanish-speaking segment of the U.S. population. The long-term outcomes of this project will ultimately benefit visitors to diverse informal science learning institutions who are bilingual or do not speak English. This project primarily deals with Spanish/English learning in informal science settings. Nevertheless, the general outcomes of this project may also be applicable to learning in other kinds of cultural institutions (e.g., art museums and libraries) and to other bilingual or multilingual exhibits that involve languages other than Spanish. BERI is therefore developing, contributing to, and advancing the infrastructure of informal science education and other fields of learning that are communicated in more than one language.
