Art museum web sites as resources for educators and students: Development, utilization, and evaluation

This study investigated phenomena associated with the development and utilization of art museum web sites. The first phase of the research required the evaluation of art museum web sites, museum education practices and computer based instruction principles to identify characteristics that contribute to the creation of quality educational resources. The second phase of this research included the design and development of a web site, according to the principles identified in the first phase to be used as an educational resource. After the site was developed a sample population of students and teachers with varied access to the Internet were studied to determine how the new site was utilized and how it was incorporated into the curriculum.;Specifically the researcher utilized qualitative methods to investigate how teachers and their students used the web site for the Imperial Tombs of China exhibition at the Orlando Museum of Art, ;Csikszentmihalyi's (1991) and Keller's (1987) conclusion that interest in the images was essential for learning was proved true by this research. Preparing students for experiences with works of art in the museum by incorporating the art museum's web site into lessons which covered all of the discipline of art education piqued students' interest to truly 'see' objects when they visited the museum. In addition, students who had the opportunity to learn about the art in the exhibition prior to visiting the museum had a starting point from which to continue to understand the significant forms and appreciate the objects at multiple levels.;Students of teachers using the web site who employed learner-centered strategies showed high interest in learning about the works of art both through the web site and while in the museum. Students experiencing teacher directed activities tended to benefit from the web site more than students who were assigned a review or reaction to the site.;Although teachers were able to utilize various resources connected to the exhibition they expressed a high preference for the web site. The teachers identified the interactive nature of the web as a motivator for students. They also confirmed that access to the site stimulated interest in the students to visit the museum to view the original artifacts.