mimacast

Key Message
This is a Museum and Gallery eLearning Project with Extended Services - within Children’s Services. The outcome of this project was to more closely integrate Cultural Services with Children’s Services. This project sought to demonstrate the flexibility of our sector to work in an innovative and exciting way with local authority Extended Services (ES) teams. The opportunities for the young people to create podcasts (digital media files) during October half term highlighted the valuable contribution museums and galleries can make to the ES core offer of a “varied menu of activities”. This project was unusual because it was led and delivered by ES staff. The project delivers on Diversity – the sector is a safe place to bring together children from different communities, promoting integration and eLearning - an example of the sector leading on making use of innovative digital technology.

Story
This project enabled 60 young people to visit mima during October half term week 2007 for a series of intensive day sessions learning more about mima, the building, commissions, collections, its staff, and its visitors. They then discussed what they had learned, and their personal opinions, via FlashMic equipment, that could be downloaded and edited to form a concise set of information. From 3 days of recordings, the soundbites were then edited into a 20-minute podcast. A CD and booklet was launched at a celebration event for the project on Saturday 1 December, when invitees heard 'mimacast' for the first time, were able to take away a copy, and meet some local VIPs. The most important aspect of the celebration event was that the young people were reunited, and that their families and friends were included and made welcome at mima. The podcasts have also been made available on the mima website and through MGrid, Middlesbrough’s grid for learning.

Target Audience

Children and young people at Key Stage 2. Visitors to mima will benefit from the podcasts when the view work in the gallery.

Aim

The aims of the project were:
# To introduce elements of new technology to mima and the pupils involved.
# To develop an out of hours project that would be unique with a long lasting impact.
# To introduce new participants, and the wider community, to mima.
# To integrate young people from a range of backgrounds, including many inner-city pupils from BME communities.

Process

This project brought together children from different backgrounds and cultures to engage in exciting project to develop podcasts (digital media files) based on a range of themes inspired by mima, Middlesbrough’s new contemporary art gallery. These included discussions around diversity. The project was coordinated by Middlesbrough’s extended services staff, who worked closely with the mima education team.

The project was targeted at Key Stage 2 children from 8 different primary schools in Middlesbrough. Middlesbrough has the highest proportion of minority ethnic communities in the North East. These communities are concentrated in particular areas of the town. Some estates in Middlesbrough have very low levels of minority ethnic population, and head teachers in these schools have expressed concern about racist incidents and lack of cultural awareness. Consultation with parents has demonstrated that they would like more activities for children during school holidays. Consultation with children has also demonstrated a need for more activities. Head teachers have requested activities to support multi-cultural activities for children.

Number of participants

69 children
Families and friends at end of project celebration event – estimated at 200

Impact and outcome

Participants
New experience in a modern and contemporary art gallery, and opportunity to gain knowledge of mima (architecture, commissions, staff etc; development of new skills - interview techniques, new technology, recording, editing - integration with other young people form a wide range of backgrounds and areas of the town and confidence building.
Communities
As above, bringing young people together for the first and allowing them to work together on a new and exciting project; involvement of families in celebration/launch event; longevity of the project through the publication and CD to take home and pass to the wider community; launch event offers families/new visitors the opportunity to meet in a friendly environment, and raised awareness of cultural organizations (i.e. mima) local to them.
Organisation
Development of new audiences (wider families who may not have previously visited mima); ability to purchase new equipment that will have a long-lasting effect in terms of project ideas and putting them into practice; ability to promote the project, and mima, through a range of local and national websites.
Extended Services Team
Change in practice – greater willingness and enthusiasm to work with the cultural sector to achieve their aims and objectives. Increased confidence in bringing different groups of pupils together to work on a joint activity.
Schools Raised awareness of mima, better cohesion between pupils from different cultural backgrounds.

Evaluation

The project was evaluated using a variety of techniques including user surveys with the children, and questionnaires to head teachers. Users of mima will be asked to evaluate the value of the Podcasts. Every young person signed up to a personal mima contract at the start of the project, and wrote down their thoughts on their experiences at the end of their sessions. The recordings themselves are also a testament to their knowledge development, their opinions, and newly learnt skills. The benefits apply to a) knowledge and understanding b) skills c) attitudes and values and d) enjoyment, inspiration and creativity with regards to the generic learning outcomes of Inspiring Learning for All. Comments from pupils were positive:

Lucy S. aged 8: "I loved being at mima. I made lots of new friends"
Rebecca aged 9: "I think that mima is very good, I would love to come and do this again".
Lucy aged 9: "Outside on the roof terrace was the best part, I really liked it".

The resulting podcasts have long-lasting impact, as they will now go on mima’s website, mgrid (Middlesbrough’s grid for learning), and other relevant websites.

Tips

Top three learning points?
1. Partnership working can be problematic, re: reliance on individuals not directly linked to organisations, to carry out roles to an expected high quality and on time.
2. Podcasting is an efficient, quick and easy route to capturing visitor’s opinions, interviewing artists, and disseminating information to the public in a straightforward but effective way.
3. Schools are not always aware or involved enough, in out of school projects such as this, which can lead to a breakdown in communication.

Future development

Sustainability through being put on the variety of websites mentioned above; further opportunities will definitely arise through use of the new equipment. Links developed with Children’s Services to build on in the future.

Project website [1]:

http://www.visitmima.com/media/Podcasts.php