By Aziah Siid | Word In Black
(WIB) – Whether it’s catching students up from pandemic learning loss, or simply working to get — and keep kids — on grade level, there’s no denying teachers have their work cut out for them. And if it takes a village to raise a child, cash-strapped schools need plenty of help from the community to ensure students learn.
That’s where community institutions like museums come into play – by supplementing learning and filling in content knowledge gaps both during and after school.
I want us to be a cultural campus,”
ATIBA EDWARDS, CEO OF THE BROOKLYN CHILDREN’S MUSEUM
Museums nationwide make their collections accessible by waiving admission fees for schools, designing exhibits designed to encourage student engagement, and creating specialized programs for teachers. And schools certainly take advantage of the opportunity. According to the American Alliance of Museums, museums receive approximately 55 million visits each year from students in school groups.
However, although studies have linked museum visits with higher test scores — and museums often work with schools and welcome entire schools — students from low-income households are less likely to go to museums than their more affluent peers, according to an analysis by Institute of Museum and Library Services statistician Deanne W. Swan.
That’s why Atiba Edwards, the new president and chief executive officer at Brooklyn’s Children’s Museum, says focusing on student experiences, particularly by ensuring they receive a diverse and culturally immersive time while visiting the museum, is a priority.
“That’s something you’ll see throughout our entire building,” Edwards says. “If the natural sciences are coupled with diversity, we have programs and exhibits that replicate and reflect the diverse audience that is Brooklyn entering the world.”
Edwards is the first Black man to head the museum in its 125-year history. Before coming to the museum, he spent nearly six years working at Brooklyn East Collegiate Charter School. So, he’s seen the benefits of experiential learning first-hand.
To that end, “We offer two types of field trips,” Edwards says. “One is self-guided — you come in, enjoy the museum. And then the other is guided, and all of our guided programming is aligned to the New York State learning standards.”
Driving Student Achievement
Studies show kindergartners who visited a museum had higher achievement scores in reading, mathematics, and science in third grade — including children who are most at risk for educational deficits and delays in achievement.
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Researchers have also concluded learning increases when children observe, ask questions, and interact with adults, rather than exploring exhibits alone.
Museums help teach the “state and local curricula, tailoring their programs in math, science, art, literacy, language arts, history, civics and government, economics and financial literacy, geography, and social studies,” according to research by the Center for the Future of Museums.
Edwards says “working with superintendents of districts” even if it’s just talking to them about what’s happening with students helps museum directors tailor their exhibits to the needs of students.
The museum’s eye-catching yellow building stands in the heart of a residential neighborhood and is also a beacon of educational professional development. The staff hosts “working groups, learning groups, focus groups, and community conversation groups that are tailored to specific programs, including teacher development workshops,” Edward says.
Cultural Competency
In addition to creating space for K-12 students, the children’s museum holds 13 annual cultural festivals that connect back to the communities that make up Brooklyn.
“I want us to be a cultural campus,” Edwards says — which is crucial during an era of anti-Blackness in schools, Don’t Say Gay bills, anti-Semitic attacks, and overall attempts to whitewash history.
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Through these festivals not only are students building their knowledge on what they may already know about holidays like Kwanzaa, but the celebrations also help those who are unaware get a better understanding of what isn’t always taught in schools.
“We know that we have a chance to really amplify and celebrate a community and a culture so that every community’s culture feels uplifted,” Edwards says. “While we’re doing that uplifting and amplification, it’s also people who may not know about that culture and that festival, that celebration to learn humbly, because that’s really the best way to learn.”
Edwards says when it comes to culture and diversity, what happens in schools is a very bite-sized piece of learning — even in a culturally rich area like New York City.
“We work with a diverse group of audiences,” Edwards says. And he wants the museum to work hand-in-hand with schools in a way that ensures everyone knows there’s something for them. “I want to just continue growing,” he says.