Futures of Learning

We are very pleased to introduce a new blog series that reports on the literature review conducted as part of the project, Inspiring the Technological Imagination: Museums and Libraries in a Digital Age. Funded by the MacArthur Foundation as part of the Digital Media and Learning initiative, this project addresses one of the four key questions that defines the initiative:  How might institutions change to take advantage of the learning opportunities provided by new digital media?  The work discussed in this literature review seeks to contribute to the development of a field in new media and learning by focusing on the role of museums and libraries as part of distributed learning networks.

The research was directed by Anne Balsamo, PI. The blog postings will be authored by her and other members of the research team: Cara Wallis, Maura Klosterman, and Susana Bautista (University of Southern California). Over the next six to eight weeks, Anne Balsamo and her research team will address the following topics:

* Overview of Digital Archive Library projects: From information preservation to equality of access
* Digital Media in Communities Libraries: New Practices of Participation
* The Case of Virtual Libraries
* Museums and Digital Media: From Hands-on Explorations to Interactive Experiences
* The Creation of Museum Web Presences
* On-Line Museum Experiences
* The Case of Virtual Museums
* From Games to Play: Libraries, Museums and Digital Learning
* Learning from the Edge:  New Practices and Possibilities for Digital Media in Libraries and Museums