Edutainment
Encyclopedia
Edutainment is a form of entertainment
designed to educate
as well as to amuse.
Modern forms include television productions, film, museum exhibits, and computer software which use entertainment to attract and maintain an audience, while incorporating deliberate educational content or messages.
Since the 1970s, various groups in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Latin America have used edutainment to address such health and social issues as substance abuse
, immunization
, teenage pregnancy
, HIV
/AIDS
, and cancer
. Initiatives in major universities, such as Johns Hopkins University
and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, NGOs such as PCI-Media Impact
, and government agencies such as the Center for Disease Control (CDC
) have produced edutainment content.
One form of edutainment popular in Latin America is the educational telenovela
. Miguel Sabido, a producer of telenovelas from the 1970s on, has combined communication theory with pro-health/education messages to educate audiences throughout Latin America
about family planning, literacy, and other topics. He developed a model which incorporated the work of Albert Bandura
and other theorists, as well as research to determine whether programs impacted audience behavior.
to describe the True Life Adventures
series..
The noun
edutainment is a neologistic portmanteau used by Robert Heyman in 1973 while producing documentaries
for the National Geographic Society
. It was also used by Dr. Chris Daniels in 1975 to encapsulate the theme of his Millennium Project. This project later became known as The Elysian World Project. (visit www.elysianworld.com )
Edutainment can be used to describe various learning modules.
has a tip sheet available on its website that provides additional guidance for writers and producers.
The major communication
theories that influence Entertainment-Education include:
Pedagogy
involved with Entertainment-Education include:
Since then, many other computer games such as Electronic Arts
computer game Seven Cities of Gold, released 1984, have also used the term edutainment to describe their product. Most edutainment games seek to teach players using a game based learning
approach. Criticism as to what video games can be considered "educational" has led to the creation of Serious games whose primary focus is to teach rather than entertain.
Simon Egenfeldt-Nielsen (PhD, Psychologist) has spent a great deal of time researching the educational use and potential of computer games and has written many articles on the subject. One paper dealing specifically with Edutainment breaks it down into 3 generational categories to separate the cognitive methods most predominantly used to teach. In his papers he is critical of the research that has been done in the areas of the educational use of computer games cited their biases and weaknesses in method causing them to lack scientific validity in their findings.
, and can still be seen in modern films such as An Inconvenient Truth
.
After World War II
, edutainment shifted towards television. The presence of edutainment is especially evident in children's television series
, such as Sesame Street
, Dora the Explorer
, and Teletubbies
. For older viewers, individual situation comedy
episode
s also occasionally serve as edutainment vehicles. These episodes are sometimes described in United States television commercial parlance as very special episode
s. The American sitcom
Happy Days
produced an especially effective edutainment episode which was reported to have prompted a 600% increase in the U.S. demand for library cards. As early as the 1950s, children-aimed shows like "Watch Mr Wizard" were made which could be considered edutainment.
Discovery Channel is also known for its various shows that follow the theme, such as MythBusters
.
There are many television programs that incorporate Entertainment-Education as well. The Sentinel Award, which is administered by the University of Southern California
's Annenberg Center for Communication
, the CDC
and the National Cancer Institute
(NCI
), is given each year to programs that address health and medical issues in their storylines. 2006's nominees/winners include:
The first ever television series produced in the Pacific Island country of Vanuatu
, entitled Love Patrol
and launched in 2007, was praised as an edutainment series, as it aimed to educate viewers on the issue of AIDS
, while simultaneously providing an entertaining story.
soap opera
The Archers
has for decades been systematically educating its audience on agricultural matters; likewise, the Tanzania
n radio soap opera Twende na Wakati ("Let's Go With the Times") was written primarily to promote family planning
.
Other successful radio programs that have incorporated Entertainment-Education principles include:
within the science museum
community in the United States. This approach emphasizes fun and enjoyment, often at the expense of educational content. The idea is that people are used to flashy, polished entertainment venues like movie theaters and theme parks that they demand similar experiences at science centers and museum
s. Thus, a museum is seen as just another business competing for entertainment dollars from the public, rather than as an institution that serves the public welfare through education or historical preservation.
Entertainment
Entertainment consists of any activity which provides a diversion or permits people to amuse themselves in their leisure time. Entertainment is generally passive, such as watching opera or a movie. Active forms of amusement, such as sports, are more often considered to be recreation...
designed to educate
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
as well as to amuse.
Overview
It can be argued that edutainment has existed for millennia in the form of parables and fables that promoted social change.Modern forms include television productions, film, museum exhibits, and computer software which use entertainment to attract and maintain an audience, while incorporating deliberate educational content or messages.
Since the 1970s, various groups in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Latin America have used edutainment to address such health and social issues as substance abuse
Substance abuse
A substance-related disorder is an umbrella term used to describe several different conditions associated with several different substances .A substance related disorder is a condition in which an individual uses or abuses a...
, immunization
Immunization
Immunization, or immunisation, is the process by which an individual's immune system becomes fortified against an agent ....
, teenage pregnancy
Teenage pregnancy
Teenage pregnancy is a pregnancy of a female under the age of 20 when the pregnancy ends. It generally refers to a female who is unmarried and usually refers to an unplanned pregnancy...
, HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
/AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
, and cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
. Initiatives in major universities, such as Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, NGOs such as PCI-Media Impact
PCI-Media Impact
PCI-Media Impact empowers communities worldwide to inspire enduring change through the creative use of storytelling. Founded in 1985, Media Impact has trained hundreds of organizations and community leaders in the effective use of media to address critical social issues...
, and government agencies such as the Center for Disease Control (CDC
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services headquartered in Druid Hills, unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, in Greater Atlanta...
) have produced edutainment content.
One form of edutainment popular in Latin America is the educational telenovela
Telenovela
A telenovela is a limited-run serial dramatic programming popular in Latin American, Portuguese, and Spanish television programming. The word combines tele, short for televisión or televisão , and novela, a Spanish or Portuguese word for "novel"...
. Miguel Sabido, a producer of telenovelas from the 1970s on, has combined communication theory with pro-health/education messages to educate audiences throughout Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
about family planning, literacy, and other topics. He developed a model which incorporated the work of Albert Bandura
Albert Bandura
Albert Bandura is a psychologist and the David Starr Jordan Professor Emeritus of Social Science in Psychology at Stanford University...
and other theorists, as well as research to determine whether programs impacted audience behavior.
Etymology
The term edutainment was used as early as 1948 by The Walt Disney CompanyThe Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
to describe the True Life Adventures
True Life Adventures
The True-Life Adventures series is a collection of short subject documentary films produced by Walt Disney Productions roughly between the years 1948 and 1960. The film series was exposed in 1982 by the CBC newsmagazine The Fifth Estate for Animal Cruelty and faking nature scenes. It is also...
series..
The noun
Noun
In linguistics, a noun is a member of a large, open lexical category whose members can occur as the main word in the subject of a clause, the object of a verb, or the object of a preposition .Lexical categories are defined in terms of how their members combine with other kinds of...
edutainment is a neologistic portmanteau used by Robert Heyman in 1973 while producing documentaries
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
for the National Geographic Society
National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society , headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical...
. It was also used by Dr. Chris Daniels in 1975 to encapsulate the theme of his Millennium Project. This project later became known as The Elysian World Project. (visit www.elysianworld.com )
Edutainment can be used to describe various learning modules.
Theories
Entertainment-Education uses a blend of core communication theories and fundamental entertainment pedagogy to guide the preparation of the programming. Additionally the CDCCenters for Disease Control and Prevention
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services headquartered in Druid Hills, unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, in Greater Atlanta...
has a tip sheet available on its website that provides additional guidance for writers and producers.
The major communication
Communication
Communication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...
theories that influence Entertainment-Education include:
- Persuasion Theory: (AristotleAristotleAristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology...
, Petty, Cacioppo) Psychological characteristics affect the response of a person to messages. Also indicates the message and source factors that influence a person's response such as the credibility, attractiveness, and expertise of the source. - Theory of Reasoned ActionTheory of reasoned actionThe theory of reasoned action , developed by Martin Fishbein and , derived from previous research that started out as the theory of attitude, which led to the study of attitude and behavior...
: (Ajzen, Fishbein) Social influences affect behavior, including beliefs and perceived social norms. - Social Learning TheoryObservational learningObservational learning is a type of learning that occurs as a function of observing, retaining and replicating novel behavior executed by others...
: (BanduraBanduraBandura refers to a Ukrainian plucked string folk instrument. It combines elements of a box zither and lute, as well as its lute-like predecessor, the kobza...
) People learn by observing others and the consequences of their behavior. If the person so chooses, they then emulate the behavior by rehearsing the action, taking action, comparing their experiences to the experiences of others, and then adopting the new behavior. - DiffusionDiffusionMolecular diffusion, often called simply diffusion, is the thermal motion of all particles at temperatures above absolute zero. The rate of this movement is a function of temperature, viscosity of the fluid and the size of the particles...
Theory: (RogersEverett RogersEverett M. Rogers was a communication scholar, sociologist, writer, and teacher. He is best known for originating the diffusion of innovations theory and for introducing the term early adopter....
) Behavior spreads through a community or group over a period of time. Television may plant the idea, but social networkSocial networkA social network is a social structure made up of individuals called "nodes", which are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as friendship, kinship, common interest, financial exchange, dislike, sexual relationships, or relationships of beliefs, knowledge or prestige.Social...
s reinforce it and cause it to grow.
Pedagogy
Pedagogy
Pedagogy is the study of being a teacher or the process of teaching. The term generally refers to strategies of instruction, or a style of instruction....
involved with Entertainment-Education include:
- Relevance: Learning is more likely when people can see the usefulness of the knowledge they are given.
- Incremental Learning: Learning is most effective when people can learn at their own pace.
- Distributed Learning: (Fossard) Different people learn in different ways over different periods of time. It is important to present information differently so that people can absorb it.
Video games
In 1983, the term "edutainment" was used to describe a package of software games for the Oric 1 and Spectrum Microcomputers in the UK. Dubbed "arcade edutainment" an advertisement for the package can be found in various issues of "Your Computer" magazine from 1983. The software package was available from Telford ITEC a government sponsored training program. The originator of the name was Chris Harvey who worked at ITEC at the time.Since then, many other computer games such as Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
computer game Seven Cities of Gold, released 1984, have also used the term edutainment to describe their product. Most edutainment games seek to teach players using a game based learning
Game based learning
Game based learning is a branch of serious games that deals with applications that have defined learning outcomes. Generally they are designed in order to balance the subject matter with the gameplay and the ability of the player to retain and apply said subject matter to the real world.Games...
approach. Criticism as to what video games can be considered "educational" has led to the creation of Serious games whose primary focus is to teach rather than entertain.
Simon Egenfeldt-Nielsen (PhD, Psychologist) has spent a great deal of time researching the educational use and potential of computer games and has written many articles on the subject. One paper dealing specifically with Edutainment breaks it down into 3 generational categories to separate the cognitive methods most predominantly used to teach. In his papers he is critical of the research that has been done in the areas of the educational use of computer games cited their biases and weaknesses in method causing them to lack scientific validity in their findings.
Film and television programming
Motion pictures with educational contents appeared as early as 1943, such as Private SnafuPrivate Snafu
Private Snafu is the title character of a series of black-and-white American instructional cartoon shorts produced between 1943 and 1945 during World War II. The character was created by director Frank Capra, chairman of the U.S. Army Air Force First Motion Picture Unit, and most were written by...
, and can still be seen in modern films such as An Inconvenient Truth
An Inconvenient Truth
An Inconvenient Truth is a 2006 documentary film directed by Davis Guggenheim about former United States Vice President Al Gore's campaign to educate citizens about global warming via a comprehensive slide show that, by his own estimate, he has given more than a thousand times.Premiering at the...
.
After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, edutainment shifted towards television. The presence of edutainment is especially evident in children's television series
Children's television series
Children's television series, are commercial television programs designed for, and marketed to children, normally scheduled for broadcast during the morning and afternoon when children are awake. They can sometimes run in the early evening, for the children that go to school...
, such as Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
, Dora the Explorer
Dora the Explorer
Dora the Explorer is an American animated television series created by Chris Gifford, Valerie Walsh, and Eric Weiner. Dora the Explorer became a regular series in 2000. The show is carried on the Nickelodeon cable television network, including the associated Nick Jr. channel. It aired on CBS until...
, and Teletubbies
Teletubbies
Teletubbies is a BBC children's television series targeted at pre-school viewers and produced from 1997 to 2001 by Ragdoll Productions. It was created by Ragdoll's creative director Anne Wood CBE and Andrew Davenport, who wrote each of the show's 365 episodes. The programme's original narrator was...
. For older viewers, individual situation comedy
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
episode
Episode
An episode is a part of a dramatic work such as a serial television or radio program. An episode is a part of a sequence of a body of work, akin to a chapter of a book. The term sometimes applies to works based on other forms of mass media as well, as in Star Wars...
s also occasionally serve as edutainment vehicles. These episodes are sometimes described in United States television commercial parlance as very special episode
Very special episode
"Very special episode" is an advertising term originally used in American television commercials to refer to an episode of a sitcom or television drama that deals with a serious or controversial social issue...
s. The American sitcom
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
Happy Days
Happy Days
Happy Days is an American television sitcom that originally aired from January 15, 1974, to September 24, 1984, on ABC. Created by Garry Marshall, the series presents an idealized vision of life in mid-1950s to mid-1960s America....
produced an especially effective edutainment episode which was reported to have prompted a 600% increase in the U.S. demand for library cards. As early as the 1950s, children-aimed shows like "Watch Mr Wizard" were made which could be considered edutainment.
Discovery Channel is also known for its various shows that follow the theme, such as MythBusters
MythBusters
MythBusters is a science entertainment TV program created and produced by Beyond Television Productions for the Discovery Channel. The series is screened by numerous international broadcasters, including Discovery Channel Australia, Discovery Channel Latin America, Discovery Channel Canada, Quest...
.
There are many television programs that incorporate Entertainment-Education as well. The Sentinel Award, which is administered by the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
's Annenberg Center for Communication
Annenberg Center for Communication
The Annenberg Center for Communication at the University of Southern California promotes interdisciplinary research in communications between the USC School of Cinematic Arts, Viterbi School of Engineering, and the separate USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, also funded by...
, the CDC
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services headquartered in Druid Hills, unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, in Greater Atlanta...
and the National Cancer Institute
National Cancer Institute
The National Cancer Institute is part of the National Institutes of Health , which is one of 11 agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The NCI coordinates the U.S...
(NCI
National Cancer Institute
The National Cancer Institute is part of the National Institutes of Health , which is one of 11 agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The NCI coordinates the U.S...
), is given each year to programs that address health and medical issues in their storylines. 2006's nominees/winners include:
- Numb3rsNUMB3RSNumb3rs is an American television drama which premiered on CBS on January 23, 2005, and concluded on March 12, 2010. The series was created by Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heuton, and follows FBI Special Agent Don Eppes and his mathematical genius brother, Charlie Eppes , who helps Don solve crimes...
- for a storyline about the shortage of organ donations. - Grey's AnatomyGrey's AnatomyGrey's Anatomy is an American medical drama television series created by Shonda Rhimes. The series premiered on March 27, 2005 on ABC; since then, seven seasons have aired. The series follows the lives of interns, residents and their mentors in the fictional Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital in...
- for story lines about organ transplantation and cancer. - As the World TurnsAs the World TurnsAs the World Turns is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS from April 2, 1956 to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created As the World Turns as a sister show to her other soap opera Guiding Light...
- for a breast cancer storyline that involved a major character. - The George Lopez Show - for a storyline about a kidney transplant.
- Don Pedro's Diabetes - a telenovela about a major character's struggle with diet, exercise, and medication to control diabetes.
- Ben & IzzyBen & IzzyBen & Izzy is a Jordanian three-dimensional, computer animated children's television series. It was produced by Jordan's rising educational and CGI animation company Rubicon...
- for a storyline about two children, Ben from America and Izzy from Jordan, who form a close bond despite their different cultural backgrounds.
The first ever television series produced in the Pacific Island country of Vanuatu
Vanuatu
Vanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
, entitled Love Patrol
Love Patrol
Love Patrol is a ni-Vanuatu television series. It is the first ever locally-produced television series in Vanuatu. Produced by Wan Smolbag Theatre with financial assistance from AusAID, NZAID and the Asian Development Bank, it is a soap opera with a serious message, intended primarily to educate...
and launched in 2007, was praised as an edutainment series, as it aimed to educate viewers on the issue of AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
, while simultaneously providing an entertaining story.
Radio
Radio can also serve as an effective vehicle for edutainment. The British radioRadio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
The Archers
The Archers
The Archers is a long-running British soap opera broadcast on the BBC's main spoken-word channel, Radio 4. It was originally billed as "an everyday story of country folk", but is now described on its Radio 4 web site as "contemporary drama in a rural setting"...
has for decades been systematically educating its audience on agricultural matters; likewise, the Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
n radio soap opera Twende na Wakati ("Let's Go With the Times") was written primarily to promote family planning
Family planning
Family planning is the planning of when to have children, and the use of birth control and other techniques to implement such plans. Other techniques commonly used include sexuality education, prevention and management of sexually transmitted infections, pre-conception counseling and...
.
Other successful radio programs that have incorporated Entertainment-Education principles include:
- DJ NihalDJ NihalDJ Nihal is an English radio and TV presenter, as well as club night promoter and DJ, currently broadcasting on BBC Radio 1, BBC Asian Network and since August 6, 2010 BBC Radio 5 Live...
's BBC Radio 1BBC Radio 1BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
radio show which centered around 'edutainment'. He mentions this term each time the show is broadcast. - "The Lawsons/Blue HillsBlue Hills (radio serial).Blue Hills, written by Gwen Meredith, was an Australian radio serial about the lives of families in a typical Australian country town called Tanimbla. "Blue Hills" itself was the residence of the town’s doctor....
" - a radio program that was designed to help Australian farmers adjust to new farming methods. - "Tinka Tinka Sukh" - a Hindi-language radio program that results in environmental and health improvements in India.
- Soul City - A successful South African radio serial drama that carried AIDS prevention messages.
- The Donut Shop - A successful internet radio show talk about educational games that they think could be used in today's schools.
- Radio Ado and its radiodrama "Pildoritas de la Vida Real" a Mexican radio soap opera designed to disseminate sexual education among teenagers. This radiodrama was produced by the University of Guadalajara and teenagers from Morelia, Michoacan, Mexico.
Cultural impact
Some college professors have adopted the practice of edutainment in order to keep the interest of adult students in long classroom lectures. Here the instructor entertains the students while meeting course objectives. An important teaching technique of education is to use variety, by utilizing various mediums such as video, in-class skits, demonstrations, and Power Point slides along with lectures. Within the lecture, the instructor can add interesting elements and discussions of personal experiences of the professor or students.Corporate learning
The concept of Edutainment is also being used for building e learning programs for organizations also. High technology is used to make the programs entertaining and educational.Criticism
Edutainment is also a growing paradigmParadigm
The word paradigm has been used in science to describe distinct concepts. It comes from Greek "παράδειγμα" , "pattern, example, sample" from the verb "παραδείκνυμι" , "exhibit, represent, expose" and that from "παρά" , "beside, beyond" + "δείκνυμι" , "to show, to point out".The original Greek...
within the science museum
Science museum
A science museum or a science centre is a museum devoted primarily to science. Older science museums tended to concentrate on static displays of objects related to natural history, paleontology, geology, industry and industrial machinery, etc. Modern trends in museology have broadened the range of...
community in the United States. This approach emphasizes fun and enjoyment, often at the expense of educational content. The idea is that people are used to flashy, polished entertainment venues like movie theaters and theme parks that they demand similar experiences at science centers and museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
s. Thus, a museum is seen as just another business competing for entertainment dollars from the public, rather than as an institution that serves the public welfare through education or historical preservation.
See also
- After school specialAfter school specialThe American Broadcasting Company coined the term after school special in 1972 with a series of made for television movies, usually dealing with controversial or socially relevant issues, that were generally broadcast in the late afternoon and meant to be viewed by school age children, particularly...
- Drama as a tool for education
- Educational softwareEducational softwareEducational software is computer software, the primary purpose of which is teaching or self-learning.-Early History, 1940s - 1970s:The use of computer hardware and software in education and training dates to the early 1940s, when American researchers developed flight simulators which used analog...
- Educational gameEducational gameEducational games are games that have been designed to teach people about a certain subject, expand concepts, reinforce development, understand an historical event or culture, or assist them in learning a skill as they play...
- Educational toy
- InfotainmentInfotainmentInfotainment is "information-based media content or programming that also includes entertainment content in an effort to enhance popularity with audiences and consumers." It is a neologistic portmanteau of information and entertainment, referring to a type of media which provides a combination of...
- Kami (Takalani Sesame)
- LearnalotLearnalotLearnalot Ltd is a British limited company developing and maintaining game based learning technologies. Learnalot hosts and develops the which specialises in mathematics for 11–16 year olds. Formed in Burscough in Lancashire in 2009, the company launched its educational portal at the annual BETT...
- Public service announcementPublic service announcementA public service announcement or public service ad is a type of advertisement featured on television, radio, print or other media...
- Serious gameSerious gameA serious game is a game designed for a primary purpose other than pure entertainment. The "serious" adjective is generally prepended to refer to products used by industries like defense, education, scientific exploration, health care, emergency management, city planning, engineering, religion,...