March 2014 internship students

Diane Budden

Learning Assistant Intern with Learning Department of the Mary Rose Trust,
Portsmouth, UK. September–December, 2013

The Mary Rose was Henry VIII’s flagship, which sunk in 1545, was discovered in 1971, and raised from the seabed in 1982. Currently she is being conserved and this process is due to be completed in 2016. Recently a new museum has been built around the Mary Rose and it opened in May 2013, reuniting thousands of artifacts, crew and ship.

The initial project, which was titled “Engaging Portsmouth Schools – A Baseline Survey” was in response to limited numbers of Portsmouth schools booking programs despite being situated closest to the museum. From the results I was able to:

  • gain an awareness of areas within the Learning Department that required further publicity, such as current programs and new facilities
  • identify areas of potential program development
  • recognize barriers to attendance
  • offer recommendations for the Learning Department to meet these challenges including the importance of engaging and collaborating with local partners

Initially the survey was to be the main focus of my internship, however, due to the huge increase in program bookings after the opening of the new museum, it soon became clear that I would be required to assist in a practical way as well. I was, therefore, given the opportunity to participate in a wide range of activities within the Learning Department, museum and community and I worked with as many different participants as possible including children with a wide range of learning styles and abilities, teenagers, adults, museum professionals and VIP guests. Participating in such a wide variety of activities meant that I gained considerable knowledge and experience.

My internship also gave me the opportunity to consolidate my thoughts, feelings and knowledge about being a museum professional. It confirmed my belief that I would like to work within the learning and interpretative field, using collections to communicate and create memorable and thought-provoking experiences. By stimulating and inspiring people we expand their horizon, encourage critical thinking and increase their understanding of the world, which can lead to all sorts of amazing possibilities. It’s exciting to be part of it.

Korina Charpentier

Museum Programming Assistant, Chilliwack Museum and Archives
Chilliwack, B.C. Sept.-Dec. 2013

My placement with the Chilliwack Museum and Archives was an excellent experience. 

The staff was very supportive of my learning objectives and gave me the opportunity to cultivate my own experiences. I learned a lot from my mentors and from this internship. 

Maleah Schmitke

Museum Outreach Facilitator, Cumberland Museum and Archives
Cumberland, B.C. Jan.–April, 2014

Maleah plans to get involved in developing outreach skills including new programming, event planning and outreach strategies. Her internship will allow her to observe how the Cumberland museum undertakes these activities, and to assist in the development of these areas during her time with the museum. She hopes to participate and gain a hands-on understanding of the challenges and strategies involved in developing programming and event planning at the Cumberland Museum.

Visit the Cumberland Museum and Archives website to learn more.

David Mbuthia

Inspiration Through Cultural Objects Exhibition,
Nairobi National Museum, Nairobi, Kenya. Jan-Apr, 2014.

David is involved in the creation of this exhibition, which was installed in the Nairobi National Museum at the end of January 2014. The exhibition's goal is to give children a chance to actively participate in developing museum exhibition content. The objectives include:

  • give at least 30 children a rare chance to display their creative and original work in at the Museum
  • reach at least 1000 primary school students with the theme of creativity and respect for cultural diversity
  • assess the potential for continued children engagement in museum content development.

Click here to learn more about this project.


 

  • Posted March 3, 2014