Essence Of An Artifact: A Critical Perspective Of Artifact Interpretation

Authors

  • Lee Brodie Diefenbaker Canada Center, University of Saskatchewan

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.56105/cjsae.v11i1.2067

Abstract

In their educational role, museums offer learners of all ages an opportunity to view and interact with artifacts which complement an aspect of curriculum. It is the role of museum educators to create programs, including field study programs, which provide learners with enriching experiences. Such programs are important community educational resources. Through museum programs, artifacts are used to explain and interpret history and culture. Drawing from the works of critical theorists, this paper assumes a critical perspective of artifact interpretation, and museum program planning. Finally, a hermeneutic approach is offered as an alternative method to reading the artifact, and a template is suggested for museum program development which best enframes the hermeneutic approach to artifact interpretation. The paper is directed towards museum educators involved in the training of adult museum volunteers who deliver programs in cooperation with professionals working informal education systems.

Résumé

Les musées peuvent enrichir les programmes éducatifs existants en offrant aux apprenants la possibilité de dialoguer avec les artefacts historiques. C'est le rôle des musées de créer des activites d'enrichissement telles que des visites dirigées. Dans le cadre des programmes muséaux, les artefacts servent d'outils pour interpréter l'histoire et la culture. Cet article présente un point de vue critique face à l'interprétation muséologique et la création de programmes éducatifs. On y propose approche herméneutique pour l'analyse des objets, et on élabore un cadre pour la planification de programmes reflétant cette approche. Cet article inter- pelle les éducateurs en milieu muséal dont les responsabilités comprennent la formation de bénévoles agissant de cioncert avec les institutions d'enseignement.

Downloads

Published

1997-05-01

How to Cite

Brodie, L. (1997). Essence Of An Artifact: A Critical Perspective Of Artifact Interpretation. Canadian Journal for the Study of Adult Education, 11(1), 71–78. https://doi.org/10.56105/cjsae.v11i1.2067

Issue

Vol. 11 No. 1 (1997)

Section

Perspectives

License

Authors of manuscripts accepted for publication will be required to assign copyright to the Canadian Journal for the Study of Adult Education/L’Association canadienne pour l’étude de l’éducation des adultes (CJSAE). CJSAE requests that, as the creator(s)/author(s) of the manuscript your are submitting assign certain rights to the manuscript to the CJSAE in exchange for undertaking to publish the article in print and electronic form and, in general, to pursue its dissemination throughout the world. The rights the CJSAE requests are:

  1. The right to publish the article in print and electronic form or in any other form it may choose that is in keeping with its role as a scholarly journal with the goal of disseminating the work as widely as possible;
  2. The right to be the sole publisher of the article for a period of 12 months;
  3. The right to make the article available to the public within a period of not more than 24 months, as determined by relevant journal staff of the CJSAE;
  4. The right to grant republication rights to itself or others in print, electronic, or any other form, with any revenues accrued to be shared equally between the author(s) and the journal;
  5. The right to administer permission to use portions of the article as requested by others, seeking recompense when the CJSAE sees it as warrented;
  6. The right to seek or take advantage of opportunities to have the article included in a database aimed at increasing awareness of it;
  7. As the author(s), the CJSAE wishes you to retain the right to republish the article, with acknowledgement of the CJSAE as the original publisher, in whole or in part, in any other pbulication of your own, including any anthology that you might edit with up to three others;
  8. As the author(s), the CJSAE withes you to retain the right to place the article on your personal Web page or that of your university or institution. The CJSAE askes that you include this notice: A fully edited, peer-reviewed version of this article was first published by the Canadian Journal for the Study of Adult Education, <Year>, <Volume>, <Issue>, <Page Numbers>.

BY AGREEING TO THE FOREGOING, YOU CONFIRM THAT THE MANUSCRIPT YOU ARE SUBMITTING HAS NOT BEEN PUBLISHED ELSEWHERE IN WHOLE OR IN PART, AND THAT NO AGREEMENT TO PUBLISH IS OUTSTANDING.

SHOULD THE ARTICLE CONTAIN MATERIAL WHICH REQUIRES WRITTEN PERMISSION FOR INCLUSION, YOU AGREE THAT IT IS YOUR OBLIGATION IN LAW TO IDENTIFY SUCH MATERIAL TO THE EDITOR OF THE CJSAE AND TO OBTAIN SUCH PERMISSION. THE CJSAE WILL NOT PAY ANY PERMISSION FEES. SHOULD THE CJSAE BE OF THE OPINION THAT SUCH PERMISSION IS NECESSARY, IT WILL REQUIRE YOU TO PURSUE SHUCH PERMISSSION PRIOR TO PUBLICATION.

AS AUTHOR(S), YOU WARRANT THAT THE ARTICLE BEING SUBMITTED IS ORIGINAL TO YOU.

Provided the foregoing terms are satisfactory, and that you are in agreement with them, please indicate your acceptance by checking the appropriate box and proceed with your submission.

This copyright agreement was extracted with permission from the "Best practices guide to scholarly journal publishing" (2007), produced by the Canadian Association of Learned Journals (CALJ).