Evaluation of the online database system Science Literacy Passport B by relayed workshops

Background: Japan National Museum of Nature and Science develops online database system named "Science Literacy Passport β" (Ogawa et al. AAAS, 2014). The system has two main objects: (1) Construction of a museum utilization model to support fostering scientific literacy, and (2) Establishment of an interactive lifelong-learning system as a new museum function. A prototype system runs since 2013, and 19 institutions join the system as monitors now. To evaluate the effects and possibilities of the system, we focused the learning and changes of participants and curators under collaboration among different types of museums. Methods: Three different types of museums, i.e. an aquarium (MARINE WORLD, Umino-nakamichi), an art museum (The Museum of Kyushu Sangyo University) and a general museum (The Kyushu University Museum), and a workshop planner (CLC works), collaborated and organized a series of educational program as relay style. The curators observed the collaborator’s workshop program and shared their observations and significant notes in face-to-face after each workshop. Curators also uploaded and shared the information of each own educational program, and confirm the information each other on web. Results: Several changes in participants were observed, for example, (1) Participant’s recognitions and knowledge were renewed and become wider through the experience and (2) The volition to further experience and learning was promoted. Communication in workshops between participants-participants and participants-curators promoted further understanding in participants. For curators, the positive effect by the participation and observation for the collaborated museum’s workshop was appeared. On the other hand, in the database system, sharing the implementation records and active information exchange between curators were insufficient, while we could share the basic information of the workshop program in text base. Conclusions:  - Participants and curators usually have small chance to join the educational program organized by a different type of museum because they are sometimes fixed by their own favorite and/or specialty. But a relayed series of the educational program organized by different types of museums was able to promote the participants’ communication, effective learning, and further volition for learning.   - For a curator, the database system is useful to new program development. Reinforcement of the interactive function to extract, feedback and exchange the participants’ interests, learning and passion is essential for effective use of the system.  - Activities in museums are highly depending on real experiences. The way of effective and really user-friendly system to store and share such meta-information is one of an important task in future.