An other place: the Australian War Memorial in a Freirean framework

Abstract

My thesis is that museum exhibitions developed according to Freirean praxis would constitute a better learning opportunity for visitors, facilitate the process of evaluation, and enact the favoured museum principles of dialogic communication and community-building. ¶ This project constitutes a cross-fertilisation of adult education, cultural studies and museum practice. In the last few decades, museum professional practice has become increasingly well informed by cultural critique. Many museum institutions have been moved to commit to building communities, but the question of how to do so via exhibition spaces is yet to be squarely addressed by the museum field. In this thesis I produce a detailed evaluation of a museum's informal learning program; and demonstrate the potential value of adult education theory and practice for enacting museums' commitment to dialogic communication and community-building. ¶ To investigate the value of adult education praxis for museums, I consider the Australian War Memorial's signifying practice - the site and its exhibitions - as a program for informal learning. ...