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MLI at the Hirshhorn Museum

Program Approach
(Draft for Review)

MLI at the Hirshhorn programs are designed to create spaces for young people to engage in new media practices that redefine what it means to learn and to create. This document is intended to provide an overview of the pedagogical and practical approaches that are fundamental to MLI at the Hirshhorn programming. Specifically, it focuses on exploring the three main elements that help to define any learning culture: the physical space, the design principles that guide what takes place in that space, and the actual practices, or rituals, that occur there.

Framing Question
Learner-centered. Collaborative. Interest-based. Learning by doing. Authentic engagement. These words and phrases often come to mind when we attempt to define the elements of an ideal learning space.
Frequently, we imagine a magical, theoretical environment where all young people are instinctively engaged, easily navigate their interests and prior knowledge, and work collaboratively with their peers by intuition. In practice, however, we understand that these learning spaces are not inherent; they are designed through a strategic process that involves a clear understanding of the essential elements that help to define a learning culture.

How do we create a learning culture that puts the young person at the center of the experience, that inspires creativity and innovation, and that actualizes learning by doing- not in theory only but in practice?

Rationale
In order for youth participants to become thoughtful producers of media and remixers of content, programs share a common set of principles and practices that characterize the MLI at the Hirshhorn learning space. Inspired by what takes place at the intersection of pedagogy and practice, this program approach strives to create a culture where participants authentically engage in tasks, drive their own learning, and work with each other to develop their skill development and content understanding.

The Role of Studio-Based Pedagogy


Giving youth the opportunity to play the role of designer, whether as a creator of mobile video tours, museum-based games, or youth-organized exhibits, is at the heart of MLI at the Hirshhorn programming. Studio-based pedagogy plays a fundamental role in how program designers and facilitators shape the learning environment for youth participants. As emphasized by Jim Matthews, program consultant for MLI at the Hirshhorn programming and researcher for the Games, Learning, and Society group at the University of Wisconsin, studio-based pedagogy is one method that has been successful in developing rich and engaging learning experiences for the 21st century learner. Drawing on the work of S Kuhn, Matthews reveals that, although there are several different models, effective design studios share a common set of characteristics. As the graphic illustration on the right demonstrates, the combined elements of an effective design studio cultivate a learning space where youth are active participants and problem-solvers, Graphic Illustration 1. The common characteristics of a design studio environment. where adults play the role of facilitators and experts, and where learning is experiential.1 This core set of design studio characteristics play key roles in the creation of the MLI at the Hirshhorn learning culture. Whether it is at the program design level or during the curriculum development phase, the design studio model is integral to shaping the experience of the youth participant in workshops, afterschool programs, or summer intensives at the museum.

James Matthews, Using a studio-based pedagogy to engage students in the design of mobile-based media, English Teaching: Practice and Critique May 2010: 88.

Learning Culture
The term learning culture refers to the set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and social practices that characterizes MLI at the Hirshhorn program. This learning culture, while flexible to varying time, space, and logistical constraints, is consistent throughout all workshops, afterschool programs, and summer intensives. Integrating the fundamental tenets of studio-based pedagogy, the MLI at the Hirshhorn learning culture can be categorized into three main elements: (1) the physical space, (2) the design principles that shape what takes place in the space, and (3) the consistent practices, or rituals, that occur there. Dwelling heavily on the work of Jim Matthews in Using a studio-based pedagogy to engage students in the design of mobile-based media and James Gee in Learning by design: Games as Learning Machines, the following diagram illustrates the components that are integral to the MLI at the Hirshhorn learning culture.

Graphic Illustration 2. The learning culture of MLI at the Hirshhorn programs.

Physical Space
For 2010-11, MLI at the Hirshhorn programs will take place in the ArtLab. Youth activities and media may be displayed in a variety of spaces in the museum, including the Lerner Room and the lobby. Given this temporary scenario, the ArtLab will be the main setting for formal workshops, afterschool programs, and summer intensives. The physical space at the Hirshhorn Museum is designed in order to provide an environment that welcomes and encourages participants to embrace their role as youth designers. The following table provides an overview of the various characteristics that help to define the physical space in MLI at the Hirshhorn programs.

Defining characteristic

Summary

Example
Specific youth relevant attributes may include strategic use of color and wall designs or artwork inspired by and for youth. Additionally, youth participants in the weDesign programs will work with facilitators and experts to redesign the ArtLab and lobby. Youth designers will offer their ideas on how to make the space more youth-friendly. The tables and chairs in the ArtLab are arranged in a way that reflects a studio instead of a classroom. Depending on the number of students in the workshop, tables may be arranged as one large rectangular work station on the first day so that participants can work on brainstorming ideas for their project. As mentioned below, these table/chair modules can shift to accommodate specific tasks. The physical space easily allows youth designers to transition from a community circle to their teams, or vice versa. Participants are able to move chairs and/or tables in order to switch from one activity to another with ease and efficiency. Or, the room is set up so that there is a designated area for community circles and for team activities.

Youth Relevance

Hirshhorn and MLI staff are dedicated to constructing a learning space that clearly conveys that the ArtLab is a place for young people to be creative learners and new media designers. Youth may play a part in desiging parts of the ArtLab and lobby spaces.

Flexible Modular Design

This refers to ensuring how furniture, such as a tables and chairs, are used. In a design studio model, youth participants are engaging in a diverse set of tasks. The layout of the learning space should be conducive and reflective of this workflow.

Conducive to small and large group collaboration2

Related to the previous element, the design of the room is flexible to allow participants to work individually, in small groups, and in the large collective, depending on the task at hand.

Table 1. The learning culture: physical space.

Matthews 94.

Design Principles
Design principles refer to the specific set of values that shape what takes place in the physical space described above. MLI and HMSG program designers and facilitators use these guiding principles to develop curriculum and implement the program. The following table provides an overview of the various characteristics that help to define the design principles of MLI at the Hirshhorn programs. The Mobile Video Series: City of Ruins program is the focus of the Example section.

Defining characteristic

Summary
Similar to the idea that adults assume certain roles or positions in the workplace, youth participants in MLI at the Hirshhorn programs assume specific identities related to the design task. These roles encourage investment and commitment to the task and the community as a whole.3 Programmatically, program designers and facilitators can structure workshops so that participants create one culminating new media project or several small new media projects that lead to a larger final collective project. Short iterative cycles refers to the latter in which youth designers scaffold up to the final activity or media artifact. Related to short iterative cycles, participants engage in frequent critique with facilitators, experts, and peers in order to offer and share feedback on the new media produced during each cycle. These critique sessions provide a safe space for participants to understand what worked and could work better and offer concrete feedback as they approach their next design cycle. One guiding objective of MLI at the Hirshhorn critique sessions is to avoid situations where only the same two youth designers participate or where the session becomes a conversation between the facilitators and those two students.

Example
In the Mobile Video Series: City of Ruins program, participants will be on an MLI at the HMSG production team that is responsible to creating the City of Ruins exhibit in the Lerner Room. As members of this production team, youth designers may play the role of videographer, editor, or exhibit organizer. In a program where a mobile video series is the part of the final collective project, participants can begin with exploring photography, since the core skills such as framing, lighting, etc. are closely related to videography. Participants can start out in a short task that involves going out to take a photo using the rule of thirds. The next design cycle may involve the students applying this skill to a 5-second video capture of the same object with panning and zooming.

Roles / Identities

Short Iterative Cycles

Frequent Critique Sessions

Using the mobile video series example mentioned above, participants engage in critique sessions after each design cycle: (1) introduction to photography and (2) introduction to video. Ideally, experts, in addition to facilitators, who have experience with photography and videography are available to participate in these critique sessions.

James Gee, Learning by design: Games as learning machines, Interactive Educational Media April 2004: 18.

Dispersed Community

Dispersed community refers to the idea that youth participants would have access to resources and would have the opportunity to make connections with people outside of the classroom.4 This is an integral aspect of MLI at the Hirshhorn programming. Youth designers will have consistent access to the museum, experts, and artists. Furthermore, participants will be encouraged to transfer and connect their program experience to their communities and daily lives. James Gee mentions the paradox related to skill development: People dont like practicing skills out of context over and over again, since they find such skill practice meaningless, but, without lots of skill practice, they cannot really get any good at what they are trying to learn. People learn and practice skills best when they see a set of related skills as a strategy to accomplish goals they want to accomplish.5 MLI at the Hirshhorn programs situate skill development within the specific design task.

In the Mobile Video Series: City of Ruins program, participants will explore specific exhibits at the Hirshhorn Museum, reflect on these pieces, travel off-site to view local ruins in person, and speak with the visiting artist collective, Semiconductor. This aspect of the program extends both learning and the design community beyond the walls of the ArtLab into both the museum and to local neighborhoods.

In the Mobile Video Series: City of Ruins program, participants will play a role in designing an exhibit in the Lerner Room. This exhbit will include youth-produced photos, videos, and text panels that interpret various ruins in their community. In order to succesfully and creatively complete this collective task, it is necessary for participants to develop photography, videography, and writing skills. As Hirshhorn and MLI staff design the curriculum for this program, these skills are situated within the context of the final collective task. As mentioned in a prior section, one of the core elements of studio-based pedagogy is the use of diverse media and presentation. This is also an integral of MLI at the Hirshhorn programming. Youth designers in the Mobile Video Series: City of Ruins program have the opportunity to explore both photography, videography, editing, and exhibit design/organization. While participants will be able to explore each of these new media and museum-related skills, youth will also be able to follow various pathways so that they become an expert in one or more of these. As each youth participant becomes an expert, the collective group will need to draw on these skills in order to complete the final task succesfully.

Skills as strategies

Distributed knowledge

This refers to the notion that it is not necessary for all participants to be experts in every skill or to master understanding of each content area. If designed appropriately, MLI at the Hirshhorn programs may cultvate centers of expertise, in which participants develop specific skills based on their interest and prior knowledge.6 This creates a culture of interdependence and collective consciousness around the design task.


4 5 6

Matthews 95. Gee 21. Matthews 97.

Pleasantly Frustrating

A term coined by James Gee, pleasantly frustrating refers to a scenario in which the learner operates at the outer and growing edge of his/her skill development and content understanding. This creates a situation where learners are motivated by their engagement with the challenge, as opposed to some extrinsic form: Learning works best when new challenges are pleasantly frustrating in the sense of being felt by learners to be at the outer edge of, but within, their regime of competence. That is, these challenges feel hard, but doable. Furthermore, learners feeland get evidencethat their effort is paying off in the sense that they can see, even when they fail, how and if they are making progress.7 The Hirshhorn and MLI facilitators play an important role during both the planning and implementation of programming. The notion of the facilitator as co-designer refers specifically to their role during the workshop, afterschool program, or summer intensive. In order to further support the design culture of MLI at the Hirshhorn programs, faciltators will also engage in creating their own designs alongside the participants. In addition, facilitators will also play key roles in defining social practices and rituals in order to shape the culture of the learning space.

An integral component to creating a culture that facilitates pleasant frustration is creating a safe space for feedback so that participants understand how they can improve. During the Mobile Video Series: City of Ruins program, participants develop video capture and editing skills. Program designers and facilitators construct activities and design task cards that target these skills. This creates two scenarios: (1) youth designers will engage in iterative cycles and critique to understand how they can improve their City of Ruin videos and (2) participants who come to the workshop with prior video capture or editing skills will need to remain challenged so that they still feel that sense of intrinsic motivation.

Facilitators as codesigners

During the Mobile Video Series: City of Ruins program, facilitators will engage in exploring specific exhibits at the Hirshhorn Museum, reflecting on these pieces, and developing an interpretive about a particular ruin. Furthermore, facilitators will also integrate their media into the critique sesssions in order to elicit feedback from the group.

Table 2. The learning culture: design principles.

Gee 19.

Rituals
Rituals refer to a specific set of social practices that are integral to all MLI at the Hirshhorn engagements. These consistent procedures play a large role in shaping the learning culture and reinforce the participants role as designer. These rituals are introduced during the first day of the workshop, afterschool program, or summer intensive and are seamlessly integrated throughout the duration of the engagement. The following table provides an overview of the various characteristics that help to define the rituals that are an essential part of MLI at the Hirshhorn programs. The Mobile Video Series: City of Ruins program is the focus of the Example section.

Defining characteristic

Summary

Example
For the first few sessions of an 8-week long afterschool program, participants and facilitators begin with a community circle. Youth designers and facilitators perform an informal check-in; facilitators address the design objectives of the day and address any open questions. Community circles are integrated throughout the program in order to provide a dynamic, diverse vehicle of communication and workflow. Based on the final design task of the Mobile Video Series: City of Ruins program, the categories for Skill Building the cards will focus on Mobile Photo/Video Capture and Photo/Video Editing. Within each of these categories, there are three to five cards that focus on specific student-centered activities, such as focusing on how to frame a piece of artwork in the Sculpture Garden in three different ways or practicing trimming the ends of a specific video clip in Adobe Premiere Elements. Participants would post the results of these activities on the social network; youth designers and facilitators would engage in a critique session that focuses on the particular new media artifact produced. The Content Understanding cards for this program may focus on Art Interpretation or Text Panel Creation. Within the Art Interpretation category, two to three cards focus on specific student-centered activities, such as exploring and discussing Sugimotos

Community Circles

Similar to staff meetings that take place in the professional world, these large group meetings provide a space for facilitators and participants to discuss objectives or design progress, debrief, address questions, and share ideas or challenges.

Design Task Cards

Design Task Cards in MLI at the Hirshhorn programs fall into two distinct categories: Skill Building Cards and Content Understanding Cards. Skilll Building Cards are a series of cards dedicated to developing expertise around specific new media skills. The Content Understanding Cards develop understanding of a certain content goal. Design Task Cards are introduced formally to offer participants an opportunity to explore the new media skills and content understanding foci of the particular engagement. Once youth designers have an opportunity explore the skills and content and are ready to follow a particular pathway in more depth, they will naturally become invested in this particular skill or content area. At this point, the Design Task Cards assume a more informal role in the workshop, afterschool program, or summer

intensive. Youth designers may select a Design Task Card to take a break from what is emerging as their expertise, or they may select a Design Task Card because they have completed another activity before the rest of their team.

Seascapes with a partner or discussing how color is used similarly in two artworks of their choice. Participants would post the results of these activities on the social network; youth designers and facilitators would engage in a critique session that focuses on the particular new media artifact produced. As the workshop, afterschool program, or summer intensive begins, youth participants would post their emergent ideas for the specific design task on the Community Design Board. For example, designers in the Mobile Video Series: City of Ruins program post their ideas for how they visualize the final exhibit in the Lerner Room. Participants and facilitators engage in a Community Circle to discuss the ideas posted and work towards refining those ideas into a project plan. Once the project plan is concrete, the Community Design Board evolves into a collective workspace that serves to track progress and share ideas related to the final exhibit.

Community Design Board

The Community Design Board is a physical space where youth participants can visualize the collective progress that they are making towards achieving the final design task. Participants use the board to post ideas, actual designs, and resources.

Design Journals

Design Journals are an informal space for youth participants to take notes on emergent ideas or questions and to create sketches or visualizations about their design tasks. Whereas the Design Journals are intended to be a more a informal reflection, idea-generation space, the social network, in contrast, would serve as a more formal online environment for youth designers to post learning reflections and collaborative feedback.

Participants in the Mobile Video Series: City of Ruins program use their Design Journals as theyre developing ideas for the final exhibit as well as their interpretive video. For example, youth designers would record their ideas and sketches for their video in their Design Journal when they visit the ruins in the community.

Table 3. The learning culture: rituals.

From Theory to Practice


The process of effectively actualizing the approach and shaping the learning culture in a program context is integral to the success of MLI at the Hirshhorn. The program development sequence consists of three main phases, beginning with the inception of the idea to the culmination of the youth engagement.

Graphic Illustration 3. MLI Program Development Sequence.

The Planning & Preparation phase, which generally occurs four five weeks before implementation, is a crucial time for developing a framework for how the theoretical elements, outlined previously in this document, will be realized in the learning space of a workshop, afterschool program, or summer intensive. During this initial phase, Hirshhorn and MLI staff work together to design curriculum and materials for the specific learning engagement. With the core characteristics of a design studio model, the elements of the MLI at the Hirshhorn learning culture, and program-specific details in mind, Hirshhorn and MLI staff collaborate to develop individual toolkits for each program.

Graphic Illustration 4. The role of the curriculum toolkit.

The Curriculum Toolkit


The curriculum toolkit reflects how the Hirshhorn and MLI team plan to implement a specific program. Working together and considering the program-specific elements and constraints such as time, space, and logistics, the team develops a written set of materials that embodies the MLI at the Hirshhorn program approach. For 2010-2011, curriculum toolkits will be designed for the proposed programs to date: Mobile Video Series: City of Ruins weArt Wiki, Phases I & II Game Design Studio Podcast Tour Series: Collection in Focus iDesign Mobile Video Series: Liquid Alphabet

The following diagram provides an overview of the various components of a curriculum toolkit. Various elements may be added to the toolkit to accommodate program-specific details.

Graphic Illustration 5. The components of the curriculum toolkit.

Conclusion
MLI at the Hirshhorn programming strives to develop spaces for young people to engage in authentic, transformative learning experiences. Using new media as tools to support this process, MLI at the Hirshhorn programs use a studio-based approached to engage youth designers in exploring the rich content at the museum and in developing activities and media for youth visitors. In order to translate this vision into practice, Hirshhorn and MLI staff work together to develop a series of curriculum toolkits to codify these ideas into practical experiences for 21st century learners.

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