| This study describes the development of the Virtual Gallery 2.0 (VG 2.0) framework and illustrates its application in the Abner prototype. The VG 2.0 framework is a design plan for specialized software tools, such as Abner, that enable users to curate and share digital museum exhibits. Representing an extension of the initial Virtual Gallery research by B. L. Bell, E. V. Dimaraki, and M. K. Brown (1997), the VG 2.0 framework incorporates synergistic instructional models, learning viewpoints, and new technologies. The Abner prototype represents the application of the VG 2.0 framework to a specific subject-matter domain, baseball, by allowing users to create digital exhibits about Jackie Robinson. Specifically, this study has six basic parts. In the first part, the conventional exhibit development process is detailed. The second part describes the learning viewpoints, instructional models, and practical applications that informed the VG 2.0 framework. Third, a review of previous participatory exhibit development programs provides the practical foundations for the VG 2.0 framework, showing that limits on material and staff resources impede the widespread implementation of such programs. Tracing their derivations primarily from the Goal-Based Scenario (GBS) and Instructional Software Design Project (ISDP), the fourth part specifies the framework's eight design principles and a supporting computer-based pattern. The principles, for example, address the user's role, goal, and task environment. The pattern for associated applications incorporates a Web browser/metaphorical museum interface, intermediary programs, and database set. The fifth part presents the prototypical Virtual Gallery 2.0 application, Abner. Because the applications of GBS and ISDP to curating and to learning various subject matters by curating have not been empirically proven, the final part reserves conclusions about educational effectiveness of the framework and Abner pending systematic research. Thus, this final section discusses related issues and opportunities for research and further development, such as whether the sequence and selection of curatorial tasks might affect potential outcomes, and whether the framework can be utilized as a student portfolio platform. |
