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The JASON Project in the United Kingdom 1993-96
Museum
Munogemrnr
and Curamship, 16, No. 2, pp. 1 I l-130, 1997 Q 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd All rights reserved Printed
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The JASON Project in the United Kingdom 1993-96 DAVIDABBOTT,ERIC PETERREED
GREENWOOD,BARBARA
HOPE,PHILIPPHILLIPSAND
Introduction An American educational project designed to bring the excitement of live scientific exploration to students, the JASON Project uses the most up-to-date communications technology, presenting it in an imaginative and exciting way. The Project revolves around a research expedition, which takes place in spring each year, to a scientifically interesting site, and for two weeks live transmissions are relayed by satellite to and from audiences of students at a network of downlink sites. These Primary Interactive Network Sites (PINS) are equipped as control centres where the live signals are displayed on large video screens. Students can then interact with the expedition site, operating remotely controlled cameras and equipment, and ask questions of the research scientists. In 1993, the National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside (NMGM) introduced the Project to the United Kingdom for the first time, and the first live transmissions, from an expedition to Baja California in Mexico, attracted considerable attention. This led to sponsorship by Barclays Life for a further three years to cover expeditions to Belize (1994), Hawaii (1995) and Florida (1996), and in 1994, the Gulbenkian Award for the Most Imaginative Education Work in Museums was awarded to NMGM for the Project. The issues raised and the lessons learned from the introduction and development of the JASON Project have already proved valuable in developing and managing educational programmes within the NMGM and they provide a model for future interactive interpretation programmes at the NMGM and elsewhere. Beginnings When Dr Robert Ballard conceived the JASON Project in 1989 he was conscious of a deep malaise in science education in the United States of America. It was not fashionable to study science at school and it was clear that within relatively few years a crisis would hit American industry as insufficient scientists became available to sustain their activities and thus the prosperity of the nation. Ballard recalled how, as a boy, he had been inspired to become an oceanographer, and his work in deep ocean research had also led him to the conclusion that using manned submersibles to study the ocean depths was an inefficient way to use human resources because so much time was taken in commuting to and from the ocean floor. He was convinced that there had to be a more efficient way to carry out the majority of this exploration and following his location of the wreck of the R.M.S.
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Titanic in 1985, Ballard received some 16,000 enquiries from young people asking how they too could become oceanographers and scientists. Half of these enquiries were from the United Kingdom. These various ideas and thoughts found expression in the JASON Project where Dr Ballard could use his professional work to inspire others and improve the image of science in education and as a career. “I launched the JASON Foundation because I wanted the kids to get hooked too.” (Dr Ballard interviewed by A. Raymond, 1993). Telepresence The JASON Project depends upon the concept of ‘telepresence’. This involves the transmission of live pictures from exploration sites to audiences located thousands of miles away. The downlink sites or Primary Interactive Network Sites (PINS), are a network of museums, research institutions, universities and other centres. To explore the deep seaand other inaccessible or hazardous environments, Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV) have been developed which can be driven from the PINS during the expedition live transmissions. The communication system required to facilitate this mix of live television and interactivity involves a combination of line-of-site microwave links, land lines and digital satellite technology. The expedition in its turn communicates with its control centre using a variety of technologies, such as microwave and fibre optic cables. The various audio, video and data signals are integrated and transmitted by satellite to the PINS where the live transmission is projected onto a large screen and enhanced by extra video and graphic material displayed on side screens. At first, a group of organisations cooperated informally to run the project and the first expedition, to the Mediterranean, was transmitted in 1989 to a group of twelve museums, science centres and marine laboratories in the United States of America and Canada. This expedition centred around an investigation of life near hydrothermal vents and an exploration of the debris field left from an ancient Roman shipwreck, and it was on the return trip that Ballard, using these techniques, located the wreck of the German battleship, Bismarck, off the French coast. The response to thesefirst live transmissions was positive, particularly from the teachers who expressed enthusiasm about the associated curriculum materials. These had been produced in collaboration with the National Science Teachers’ Association (NTSA) and were widely used to prepare classesfor their visits to the PINS. An evaluation undertaken at the Royal British Columbia Museum (Kool and Traynor, IWO) concluded that the project had been worthwhile and met expectations. AS a result of such comments the JASON Foundation for Education was established and a further expedition was planned for the following year. Consequently, in 1990, Ballard led an expedition to Lake Ontario to map and investigate the condition of two wooden warships, Hamilton and Scourge, and to undertake a feasibility study to determine if they should be raised to the surface. This expedition was broadcast to a widening network of PINS across North America. NMGM
Becomes Involved
With these successful expeditions to the Mediterranean and the Great Lakes, the JASON Project had demonstrated some successin fulfilling its mission of stimulating United States students about science and technology. In a study at one of the
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PINS, Lehigh U niversity, data was collected from questionnaires issued before and after the transmissions and reflected significant gains in attitudes towards science among both male and female students (Bazler and Spokane, 1991). On a visit to the United Kingdom in 1991, Dr Ballard stated in a broadcast interview that he had received a large number of enquiries from there and that he would very much like to seeJASON being transmitted to the United Kingdom, and, in particular, Liverpool. This led to discussions between the NMGM and Dr Ballard and his colleagues in the United States, followed by discussionsand visits there to view the transmissions from the Galapagos Islands in December 1991. It was then decided to make every effort to receive the I993 live transmissions from the Seaof Cortez, Baja California, Mexico. However, although the Project was seen to be exciting and innovative, a careful study was needed to ensure that it could be developed within the aims of a United Kingdom museum and that it would indeed offer something beneficial in the context of the United Kingdom educational system. So, why should a museum get involved in an educational project of this sort? The NMGM has a well-developed education service to fulfil its corporate mission of promoting the public enjoyment and understanding of art, history and science. This service is based on the collections of the museum, its unique feature, but not all aspects of art, history and science can be illustrated by reference to them. Thus, the JASON Project was seen as an inspirational way of presenting the relevance of science and technology in an exciting package. Furthermore, it would fit in well as an element of the wider interpretation programme it was hoped to develop at the Liverpool Museum which already, through its displays, covered most of the cultures and natural environments of the world. The marine environment was a major lacuna in the displays at that time, although Merseyside and Liverpool are famous for their maritime links and oceanographic studies. In particular the University of Liverpool and the Proudman Institute of Oceanographic Sciences are world famous for their teaching and research laboratories. In the event, the relevance of such projects for museums was confirmed after the first series of JASON 1ive transmissions in 1993. Of a sample of 312 respondents to a questionnaire, 95% thought that JASON was relevant or very relevant to a museum (Figure 1).
100 l80
t
1. Perceived relevance of Projects like JASON to museums.(Data from questionnaire given to generalvisitors, 1993).
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In parallel with the United States experience, a downtrend in the popularity of science subjects in United Kingdom schools and in the uptake of scientific careers was also giving rise to some concern (Figure 2) and it was believed that the JASON Project would be able to play a useful part in addressing this problem. These issueswere to achieve greater prominence during 1992 and culminated in the British Government’s White Paper, Realising our Potential (Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, 1993), which stressed the importance of the public understanding of science, while the National Curriculum, introduced in the early 199Os, brought changes in the requirement of practical science assessment.The assessment of children’s performance in practical science had often been undertaken using isolated and prescriptive experiments which concentrated on particular skills or activities, but assessmentsfor Standard Assessment Tests (SATs) and GCSE were now to be undertaken in the context of full investigations which the students would be required to plan, carry out and evaluate. This is very much the ethos created by the JASON Project, which presents scientists actually planning and carrying out investigations in genuine research situations.
Equipment Notwithstanding the potential educational benefits of the Project, it was clear from the outset that its introduction to Liverpool would require some major investment in equipment and expertise and that cost would be a major factor in any decision to proceed. The JASON Project sets out to demonstrate how information from sites which are remote or too fragile to be visited by more than a few people can be brought to a wider audience. As an early trial the NMGM was able to demonstrate the technique in the summer of 1992 by using a ‘Remotely Operated Vehicle’ (ROV) sub merged in the Albert Dock, Liverpool. Live pictures were brought into the lecture theatre of the adjacent Merseyside Maritime Museum where a commentary on what was being seen was given by specialists from the Museum and from Liverpool University. The project was then highly experimental and made possible through MarineTech North West which, together with the University of Liverpool, wanted a ‘real’ situation to test a new stabilising technique for a ROV. Inspired by the successof the first experiment, the local TV stations
56r
49
2. Pupils
1989
starting
A-level A-level
I
I
I
I
1990
1991
1992
1993
coursescontaining a science component (as a percentage courses). From: Statistics of Education, 1994.
of all
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were invited to see what was happening, and following that evening’s news broadcasts the Museum put on three sessionsa day for a week to full houses. The successof the Roving Dockwatch venture hasled to it being repeated in subsequent years. Part of the excitement for the public was due to their amazement that so much life now lived in the docks which, until a few years previously, were heavily polluted. In terms of equipment, the first year of operating a full interactive downlink site is naturally the most costly. A survey of the facilities at NMGM venues had led to the conclusion that the lecture theatre at Merseyside Maritime Museum was the only room available which could accommodate the audiences and where there would be adequate facilities for gathering and dispersing the numbers of visitors expected. In 19% it was necessary to equip the lecture theatre from scratch with the communications and display materials needed. The JASON Project requires video projection onto three screens.The centre screen is normally reserved for the live transmission signal, while the two side screenscan be switched between further live material, recorded material or computer graphics which are used to illustrate and enhance the topics being presented from the expedition. The theatre is set out to mirror the layout of the expedition control room with full video and audio mixing facilities, video recording and editing equipment including laser disc player for instant accessto recorded segments. The interactive platform centres on fast computers linked back to the expedition site. These process and communicate the signalswhich control the remotely operated cameras and vehicles and allow questions from the audience to be recorded and fed into the programme. At the heart of the system is the satellite receiving equipment with decoding and standards conversion. The standards conversion is an extra requirement for a United Kingdom site in order to convert the signals from the American format to the United Kingdom PAL system (Figure 3). A major factor in deciding to accept the cost of equipping the theatre to this standard was whether it could be used in any other context beyond JASON. A study of the general equipment requirements of the NMGM, particularly the
3. The ‘set’ at the Merseyside
Maritime
Museum
ready to receive the JASON
Project.
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Liverpool Museum and the Merseyside Maritime Museum, showed that both required video editing and projecting facilities and that, in addition, this could be an opportunity to provide the Maritime Museum with full tele-conferencing facilities. So, although the JASON Project would provide the immediate reason for acquiring the equipment, its purchase could be justified in the context of a broader, long term investment. Nonetheless, the cost was high and direct cash sponsorship was not forthcoming. In the event, Sony UK were able to arrange a package by which half the equipment was made available at a very favourable purchase price and the other half was lent free for the period of the live transmissions. Other sponsorship in kind was received from Marcom (Northern) Ltd., EDS SCICON, Winsted Ltd., MarineTech North West and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). I n subsequent years the equipment has been added to and upgraded to the extent that NMGM now boastsone of the most comprehensive control and editing facilities of the JASON Network of PINS. Bearing in mind the favourable prices at which the equipment was obtained, it is unlikely that on the basis of other requirements alone sufficient priority would have been able to be given to the purchase of these items. As it is, the equipment was pressed into service immediately the JASON Project was completed, and it is now in daily use. Communications Apart from the equipment, another major and extra component of the costs in the United Kingdom is that of communications. It was realised at an early stage that the footprint of the satellite which downlinks the signals to the North American PINS does not extend to Western Europe. For the first year, after considerable high-level negotiation by the corporate sponsors EDS, a reduced price of $875 per hour was agreed for 100 hours of time on a second satellite. With this kind of expenditure, pound-dollar exchange rates become critical. One of the deciding factors in continuing with the project beyond the first year was the decision by the US Department of Defense Dependants Schools (DoDDS) to establish a PINS for its American forces’ schools, initially at RAF Croughton, in Oxfordshire, and subsequently at RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk. A wider network of PINS in the United Kingdom and continental Europe would clearly benefit from being able to share the satellite costs. NMGM has worked closely with DoDDS (recently becoming Department of Defense Education Activity, DODEA) and United Kingdom citizens have been welcomed to their site which is as fully interactive as Liverpool. In 1996, an experiment was undertaken using an ISDN line between Lakenheath and Liverpool which enabled video conferencing to take place between the two sites. This was used to show live pictures from the auditorium of each centre to the other and was particularly valuable in presenting live pictures of the youngsters driving the ROV. It provided valuable experience in using this technology which is set to become more readily available and relatively cheap to use. This will become of vital importance in future interactive ventures being planned for NMGM, particularly at the Liverpool Museum. From the outset it was realised that income from ticket saleswould only provide a small contribution towards the project. On the basis of an adult ticket costing 23, with appropriate reductions for groups and concessions, it was estimated that ticket income would be about !Z~O,OOO-%~~,OOO. In all, including equipment, communications, staffing, marketing and operating costs, an annual budget of about
DAVID ABBOT ET AL.
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f200,OOO was required to present JASON. It was, therefore, with considerable courage and foresight that, in April 1992, the Trustees of NMGM agreed to present the first JASON Project to be seen in the United Kingdom, transmitted from Baja California, Mexico. This first JASON Project at Liverpool was successful in a number of respects: it attracted large audiences from both schools and general visitors. Overall, seat occupancy turned out to be 87%, which is quite a feat considering the timing of the last session at 2100 when most people would be reluctant to begin a theatre visit to the centre of Liverpool. The overall comments were favourable and despite some practical criticisms, many of which centred on the production quality and were shared by visitors to United States PINS, audiences were well satisfied and keen to come back. Indeed, 95% of visitors said they would like to see the 1994 expedition from Belize if it could be received in Liverpool (Figure 4).
Barclays Life Perhaps of most significance in 1993 was the introduction of the JASON Project to the Marketing Director of Barclays Life. On the last day of the broadcasts he saw the last show with his family. He was impressed and felt the project was suitable for major sponsorship. It would fit in with the company’s developing philosophy of a ‘moral high ground’ for life assurance and its focus on the family. Following a six-month period of study and negotiation, Barclays Life agreed to provide sponsorship of E600,OOOover three years, subject to annual review, to enable the JASON Project to come to the United Kingdom again in 1994, 1995 and 1996. For this period, the Project would be presented in the United Kingdom as the Barclays Life JASON Project. A requirement of the sponsorship was that the project would be expanded to cover the entire United Kingdom. In 1994, two Secondary Interactive Network Sites (SINS; more recently retitled JASON Network Sites), were established at Southampton and Nottingham. The Southampton site was supported by the
90 80 70 60 %
n-
1
Y es
50 40 30 20
Interested in coming to JASON V in 1994?
JASON V would fit in with teaching programmes
(From questionnaire given to teachers following JASON IV, 1993.)
4. Interest in future JASON Projects.
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University of Southampton and Hampshire County Council, while in Nottingham the site was hosted by the British Geological Survey and funded by NERC. Secondary sites can receive and present the satellite signals in just the sameway as a Primary site but they have no direct interactivity with the expedition. SINS receive technical and educational assistance from the host PINS. In 1996 the expedition programme of research centred upon the coral reefs of Southern Florida and this theme was particularly appropriate to Southampton where the Project was managed in conjunction with the newly opened Southampton Oceanographic Institute. For one year, in 1995, the Horniman Museum in London also operated a SINS as an opening event for the newly built Centre for Understanding the Environment. Ancillary exhibitions were also established each year at all the secondary sites. Unfortunately, financial pressures in 1996 curtailed the secondary sites to just one, at Southampton. Argonauts A key element in the educational successof the JASON Project is the presence of real students and teachers at the expedition site. They study and work alongside the expedition scientists and give live reports during the satellite transmissions. These ‘Argonauts’ were chosen by competitions which were organised during the summer prior to the expeditions. The competitions were originated by the JASON Foundation, and for the United Kingdom literature and entry forms were modified to suit its education system and to match the Barclays Life corporate style. The teachers were selected at an early stage so that they could participate in the final selection process for the Student Argonauts. To qualify for their scientific field trip, the students had to prepare essays describing their scientific interests and what they believed they could contribute to the research teams. They also had to detail their out of school activities which, together with their school reports and teachers’ recommendations, enabled a short list of candidates to be submitted by each PINS. The JASON F oundation made the final selection which involved a telephone conference with the previously selected team of Teacher Argonauts. By November the chosen Student Argonauts were announced and assigned a tutor who co-ordinated the work on their allocated topic for study at the exploration site. As if the opportunity to take part in such an exciting expedition was not enough, a further incentive to enter the competition was provided aspart of the Barclays Life sponsorship. During the shortlisting process, regional finalists were selected and their schools presented with a prize of 21000 to be spent on scientific equipment. In addition, each competing school was visited by a Barclays Life representative and the student competitor was presented with a poster during a school assembly-an activity which attracted appropriate local publicity and media coverage. Marketing Teachers are continually presented with information concerning schemes and initiatives purporting to be of educational benefit and yet with few exceptions they are working with diminishing funds and increasing demands on their time. In this environment, even the most worthwhile project demands considerable marketing effort. The first activity encountered each year was the distribution of
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the Argonaut Competition literature to all United Kingdom secondary schools. As national managers, NMGM was responsible for collecting applications and shortlisting candidates from the entries submitted. During the period of the Barclays Life sponsorship, the responsibility for producing and distributing the competition literature had rested with Broadcast PR, a component of Silverwood Communications who acted as agents for Barclays Life, The competition not only generated the Argonauts who travelled to the expedition site but it also served to raise public awareness of the project. The general public were made aware of the Project when the entrants were presented with commemorative posters and local media were encouraged to take an interest in the presentations. Subsequently, during the late autumn and early spring, leaflets were prepared and distributed by direct mail drop to schools and other contacts and were displayed in public buildings and visitor attractions. Bookings for the sessionsbegan to come in immediately, rising to their peak levels as the live transmissions period began. The media were kept informed of the project and several important contributions were made by the press, radio and television. From the beginning, the BBC television programme, Newsround, was keen to participate and covered JASON with its press packer (junior reporter) winner. Most recently, Newsround made a live broadcast from Florida in April 1996 to coincide with the JASON VII expedition and incorporated an interview with the United Kingdom Student Argonaut viewing the JASON exhibition at the Merseyside Maritime Museum a few days before she left. BBC Radio have also taken a close interest, with presenter John Dunn travelling to the expedition site in April 1996 to do live interviews with Dr Ballard and the United Kingdom Argonauts. Indeed, media coverage has a number of clear advantages when presenting a project such asJASON. Positive reporting by respected programmes and publications lends endorsement to the values of the Project, as well as the sponsor. Also, the media exposure also raises general awareness, which in turn brings in bookings for the live transmissions to the various United Kingdom sites and, of importance in terms of sponsorship, brings apparent revenue in free brand exposure time. Figures 5 and 6 show an estimated return of over ELM on an investment of f6OOK over three years.
PreSS
Radio
TV
4000
I60
3500
140
c
120
loo E x0 .-2 60 ' 40
J
5. Media coverage during Barclays Life sponsorship,
1994-96.
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The JASON
Project in the United
6
Kingdom I
TV Radio
5 cl
4 2
1993-96
Press
3 2 I 0 1994
1995
1996
Total I
6. Estimated
media value 1994-96. (Figures from an independent sioned by Broadcast Public Relations.)
media agency commis-
Curriculum The JASON Foundation produces detailed curriculum materials which are closely correlated to the US National Science Education Standards and the US National Geography Standards. These materials are thoroughly researched and are designed to complement and enhance what teachers are doing in the classroom with details of the expedition and plans for classroom investigations which would prepare children for the expedition broadcasts in the spring of each year. However, some problems do arise from the introduction of the JASON Curriculum material to the United Kingdom. Firstly there is the cost. Although a certain number of JASON Curriculum Packs are provided free of charge to each PINS, the cost of cross-Atlantic transport is expensive. In 1996 this amounted to some 2250 and was recovered by passing it on as the handling charge to the teachers. Secondly, that material was particularly orientated to the United States education system, and from the start, it was considered to be important to supplement the JASON curriculum with detailed tables which would aid teachers in linking the written material to the English and Welsh National Curriculum. Comments after the first transmissions did not produce a positive response to these tables which were found to be difficult to use and it was suggested that they should be revised in subsequent years. This was done and the United Kingdom curriculum supplement was developed to function as both an educational package for schools and an information pack for the large numbers of general visitors, many of them families, who attended the live transmissions each year. A key section was the linkage developed between the topics covered during the JASON voyage and the National Curriculum. It was marketed at a moderate price to recover only the production costs. For JASON VI and VII, a series of professional development and in-class broadcasts were produced in the United States, with part of each programme dedicated to helping teachers implement the JASON curriculum in the classroom and the rest directed to students and their field work, but unfortunately these programmes could not be received in the United Kingdom. In 1996, the expedition was conducted in two parts. Part 1 was recorded in January with a small team of scientists and students on site in Florida. The recordings would have served as a useful introduction to the live expedition in April but,
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despite considerable efforts, the tapes arrived too late to be distributed in advance of the live transmissions. Although they were not designed to be so, the live transmissions from the expedition were accessible as stand-alone events, and a large number of general visitors, together with some schools, came to them with little or no preparation. They were attracted by the potential for an educational experience coupled with some excitement and, to some extent, the novelty value of the live and interactive programme (Figure 7). However, the expeditions set out to investigate some quite complex scientific topics in unusual environments so, for educational purposes, it really was essential to be well prepared. Each year, in addition to the printed materials which were made available, teachers were invited to attend awareness sessions, where the planned curriculum material was discussed and set into the context of the United Kingdom classroom. Add-on
Sessions
For family visitors, awareness sessions were held in Liverpool Museum to help with the preparation. Here the expedition topics could be related to the Museum’s own collections and children in particular were encouraged to examine, and in some cases to handle, items such as rock and fossil samples and to learn about the creatures which would be encountered during the programme. For example, the JASON VII expedition in 1996 considered the role of the shark as apex predator in the waters off Southern Florida. The Museum’s collection of shark jaws and teeth was put to good use enabling children to appreciate clearly evidence for the shark’s position at the apex of the food chain. Taking part and being involved were very much a part of the JASON Project and these add-on sessions helped to foster that ethos. For the adult student there were Day Schools, operated in conjunction with the University of Liverpool, when the topics were discussed at a more academic level. Although envisaged by its founder as a project specifically for school
so
r
7. Reasons for attending
JASON broadcasts. (Computed general audiences 1993-96.)
from questionnaires
given to
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ThejASON
Project in the United Kingdom
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students, the NMGM recognised the potential for adult and continuing education. Certainly, there was an added incentive to do this because of the timing of the live transmissions. There were five hour-long live transmissions available each day over a two week period and they were timed to suit the school day of the Eastern seaboard of the United States. For the United Kingdom, this meant that the first live transmission began at 1500, with the final one at 2 IO0 each day. Although schools were given every encouragement to attend into the early evening, in the event this left half of the sessionswith space available for marketing to general visitors and adult groups. The age target of the live transmissions was essentially lower secondary school but the topics covered could be approached at a variety of levels. For example, in JASON VI from Hawaii, the main theme was the very existence of the Hawaiian island chain owing to the volcanic activity beneath the Pacific Plate. The topic of volcanoes is first encountered by children in Key Stage 3 (1 l-14 yrs) and develops in Key Stage 4 (14-16 yrs), both in Science and Geography, with a study of plate tectonics, Geography and Earth Science students at A-level and Higher Education continue this study in much greater depth. For all of these students, JASON VI provided the opportunity to ‘visit’ Hawaii with a scientist on the spot to interpret what was being seen. For the Primary school child, this may have been a first exciting encounter with a live volcano, while for the Liverpool University students it was an opportunity to set their academic studies into context. For all audiences the live transmissions demonstrated the importance of taking a multidisciplinary approach to original investigations. Morning
Shows
Children at Key Stage 2, (7-I 1 yrs) may have needed some extra help to interpret what was seen and discussed in the live transmissions and so these were recorded, edited and presented again by a Museum Education Officer during special morning sessions. Th ese sessions proved to be particularly popular because of the potential to tailor the material to suit the understanding of the children and to offer more opportunity for them to discuss, experiment and handle associated specimens. Experts from the Liverpool Museum’s Natural History Centre (Greenwood, Phillips and Wallace, 1989; Greenwood, 1991) were on hand to help with particular questions which, even from primary school children, could be very searching. Internet There is an increasing requirement for schools to develop information technology into classroom situations. JASON now makes use of the Internet to enable schools to participate on a year round basis and the Foundation’s work has won a number of awards in this field. In order to become fully involved with each expedition schools are encouraged to participate in their own local expedition and to undertake local field studies, The results of these studies can then be shared with other schools investigating similar environments across the network both in the United Kingdom and in North America. The information gathered is useful in its own right but perhaps of greatest importance is a growing appreciation of the concept of sharing information and of co-operating with other people
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working on the same project. In the scholastic community, the Internet is an essential tool of communication and research and so the JASON Project may be seen to provide a convenient vehicle for teachers to investigate that tool and how it may best be used in the classroom. The Internet is only slowly being made available in schools and even then it may not be readily available to the classroom teacher. Projects like JASON may help teachers to persuade others that they require access.This part of the Project was only fully developed in JASON VII in 1996 and, unfortunately, few if any schools in the United Kingdom were able then to take full advantage of this pioneering development. Management Implementing the JASON Project at NMGM has had major implications for staff and for staff management. Initially, a small management team was established under the chairmanship of the Keeper of Liverpool Museum. Separate working groups for fund raising, technical issues, education and programme organisation were then established. From the outset it was appreciated that to service the project and to look after the day-to-day affairs in the office a JASON Project Co-ordinator was required. It was also necessary to maintain close links with the JASON Foundation itself. This necessitated frequent communication with the Foundation office and attendance at its meetings in the United States where representatives of all those taking part (PINS) d iscussedthe developing project. The office of the JASON Foundation is small consisting of only a few staff under the direction of the Executive Director, and to make the Project work requires delegation and team effort. The ethos of collaboration, advice and expertise emanating from the JASON office has provided invaluable practical training in the management of large projects as the NMGM management team became part of a much larger, international project group. The JASON Project was by no meansthe only major enterprise being developed by NMGM and it required the close collaboration of staff from three different Divisions and several different departments of the Museum. However, it was not just a Museum project, because in addition to close liaison with the JASON Foundation, it required developing close working relationships with various companies in the private sector both in the United Kingdom and in the United States, aswell as other PINS in North America. For many of the staff involved in the Museum, working at this level was novel and provided new experiences which a more modest project simply could not offer. Participating in a major international project and working within the management practices of the JASON Foundation has proved to be especially stimulating and rewarding. Interactivity Remote sensing is a major feature of the research which scientists undertake in the exploration of remote and difficult sites. Dr Ballard’s work has made substantial use of remotely operated vehicles for the exploration of deep underwater sites. Many of these vehicles were developed at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute where Dr Ballard was Director of the Center for Marine Exploration. The demonstration of the operation of such remotely operated devices is a major feature of the JASON Project live transmissions and since the United Kingdom has become
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involved the distance over which such operations have taken place has been taken to the extreme. In 1995, students were able to drive a ROV 6000 feet down in the Sea of Cortez (Figure 8) and in 1996 students at Liverpool and Lakenheath were able to control a spacerover vehicle, Marsokhod, (Figure 9), being tested on the lava fields of Hawaii. This was truly ‘remote’ control and the driver had to contend with the fraction of a second delay involved in getting the control signals half way round the globe, and then a further delay to seethe effect (Figure 8). With the experiences gained from JASON and from Roving Dockwatch the concept of ‘telepresence’ has been extended to other projects in the NMGM and in particular by bringing into the Museum galleries live images and commentary on what takes place behind the scenes in the collection store areas, and in the taxidermy and conservation laboratories. Drawing on the experiences of such experimental projects, NMGM has incorporated ‘telepresence’ tours into its regular public programmes at the recently opened (October 1996) Conservation Centre. Conclusions The JASON Project was primarily developed to encourage students to take a positive attitude towards science and technology and not just to contribute to the
8. A young member of the audience driving from Liverpool in Belize in March 1994.
a ROV and camera underwater
DAVIDABBOTETAL.
9. The Marsokhod.
A prototype ROV for Mars driven remotely from Liverpool lava fields of Hawaii in 1995.
on the
body of general and scientific knowledge they were acquiring, and much of the material presented may not relate directly to the factual requirements of their science courses. For example, the courtship displays of Hawaiian Drosophila or the feeding behaviour of coral polyps, may not be required by examination syllabuses in the United Kingdom, or indeed in the United States, but the genuine dedication and enthusiasm of the expedition scientists could not fail to impress their audience and lead to positive responsesto the processesof scientific research. No detailed research has yet been carried out in the United Kingdom to assess the effects of JASON on these attitudes in students but a more limited evaluation was carried out to seek the opinions of teachers who had brought groups to the live transmissions. Questionnaires were distributed to teachers following each and some of the results of this evaluation are presented here. The evaluation was essentially formative and was intended to assistin the fine tuning of the techniques by which the Project was presented in the United Kingdom. However, while teachers were quick to criticise some elements of the production quality, the comments received were highly constructive and the overall reactions very positive. Figures 10-12 are derived from the teachers’ surveys carried out after the live transmissions, and they offer a positive indication that teachers perceived the transmissions to have given the children a feeling of being part of a live expedition and that this liveness not only enhanced the children’s enjoyment but also helped towards achieving the feeling of being present as scientific discoveries took place. Figure 13 shows the positive impressions of general visitors about the live aspects of the transmissions. Of the greatest significance is the upward trend. showing how improvements have been made, both in the quality of the live transmissions as received from the expedition, and in the way they were presented in Liverpool.
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The JASON 50
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1993-96
r
0
Very
A lot
much
Quite
a lot
Not
much
Not
at all
10. How much did the live nature of the broadcasts enhance the children’s enjoyment? (From questionnaires given to teachers following transmissions, 1993-95.)
30 % 20 10 0
11, How
Very
well
Well/quite
well
Not
very
well
No feelings
well was the feeling of scientific discovery achieved? (From questionnaires to teachers following transmissions, 1993-95.) -
100
1
given
yes NO
80 60
% 40 20 0
1993
1994
1995
L
12. Did the class feel part of a live expedition? (No data available for 1996.) (From questionnaires given to teachers following transmissions, 1993-95.)
Over the four years of the JASON Project in the United Kingdom a total of people saw the live transmissions (Figure 14), and of these, some 21,000 visited the Merseyside Maritime Museum in Liverpool. Roughly half of the latter number were members of school parties. In addition, a significant number of people will have been affected to some extent by the BBC Newsround reports or by following the project on the Internet. Figure 14 also shows a fall in attendance figures, particularly at Liverpool, for JASON VII in 1996. One obvious reason for this was the decision by the JASON 55,000
Foundation the United particularly JASON VI
not to transmit on the second Saturday-one of the busiest days for Kingdom venues. Even so, there was a shortfall and this represented a fall in school attendances. Teachers who had brought groups to
but not JASON
VII were asked if they had specific reasons for not
EDS London
Hornlman Museum
Southampton
DoDDS Croughton
I
t; n
9% oositive
comments
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The JASON
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1993-96
with science teachers and this perhaps indicates a persisting reluctance for secondary teachers in particular to embrace the concepts of cross-curricular co-operation. Regardless of their reasons for not bringing groups to JASON VII, those teachers said that they had been satisfied with the Project in previous years and if their own problems could be resolved they would probably wish to return on a future occasion. In view of the difficulties facing teachers in justifying any time spent away from the classroom, both in terms of financial and curriculum restraints, the number who have indicated their desire to come back again, and indeed the number of those who have already returned on more than one occasion, can surely be taken as an indication of the perceived worth of the Project. Recent focus groups held with teachers and pupils who have attended JASON live transmissions have yielded positive comments about the educational value of the JASON Project. Pupils commented on the way in which the live broadcasts “helped to make the world seem a smaller place” and how they “increased environmental awareness”. Even six months after the transmissions, children were able to recall and explain experiments which they had seen carried out in Florida. They admitted that similar experiments could have been done in the classroom but would not have had the same impact. On the subject of Student Argonauts, both teachers and pupils saw the presence of students on the expedition asbeing positive. As one teacher commented: “Argonauts are a positive link and prevent it from being just a documentary. VA student added: “They are going to ask the same questions we’re thinking so they can relate to us.” Seven students and five teachers have represented the United Kingdom asArgonauts since 1993. In addition to their personal experiences, which have in each caseconfirmed their dedication to future involvement in science and technology, they have gone back into school where they willingly spread their enthusiasm and excitement to their peers. Involvement with the JASON Project has given the Education Department of the NMGM the opportunity to make new contacts with teachers who may not have visited its Museums before and may now see the potential for further site visits focused on other curriculum topics, Furthermore, from the standpoint of increased publicity for NMGM, there is considerable benefit in staging high quality presentations like JASON. At the Merseyside Maritime Museum, JASON audiences represented an increase of about one third in the number of visitors over the fortnight period. It is not easy to measure the spin-off effect of these extra visits but it does represent a significant increase in awareness. Many of the visitors who booked for the JASON Project had never been to the Museum before and, expressing delight at what they saw, promised to return and explore it at a later time. Numerous people from outside the area were keen to visit both the city and the Museum on future occasions. A familiar quote was: “I never realised it was like this.” The JASON Project has been invaluable as a vehicle for testing the technology and practice of ‘telepresence’ and it will have long-term significance in planning interactive interpretation programmes for the future of the Museums. In particular it has demonstrated an effective technique for fulfilling NMGM’s mission of furthering the public understanding of art, history and science in areas where museum specimens are difficult to use or direct accessis inappropriate. In addition, staff have developed a technical and organisational expertise which can now
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be applied in new contexts. The Technology Foresight Panel on Leisure and Learning (1996) h as d rawn attention to the importance of the new technologies in this field in terms of their social impact and their potential to add value to United Kingdom leisure operations. Similarly Treasures in Trust (Department of National Heritage, 1996) and A Common Wealth (Anderson, 1997) both stress the importance of utilising modern technologies in the museums context. The JASON Project has successfully demonstrated just how these technologies can be used in production mode for ‘telepresence’ projects and has therefore provided a model for further development as advocated in these reports. One such development was the inauguration of MuseNet on 22 January 1997. This is an initiative of British Telecom’s Visual Business Area launched at the Science Museum, London, as part of the programme of The Year of Engineering Success.It links seven United Kingdom national museums together for high quality multi-point video conferencing based on the use of BT’s latest VS2 rollabout video conferencing units, peripherals and digital ISDN network. In addition to linking museums together for a variety of instructive purposes, links will be made to other venues in the United Kingdom and elsewhere. Thus, managing JASON has enabled new links to be forged between NMGM and other bodies in the intellectual world, and in areasof finance and commerce, links which are set to continue and develop further for the public benefit. Acknowledgements We are greatly indebted to all those colleagues within the NMGM and in other institutions and companies without whose help it would not have been possible to bring the JASON Project to the United Kingdom. Special thanks are due to the JASON Foundation and EDS for their patient understanding of NMGM’s particular problems. Finding the finance to develop major projects is always a problem and the authors are therefore particularly grateful to all those companies who have contributed to the project. Special thanks are due to Tim Collins (Silverwood Communications) and Malcolm Oliver (formerly of Barclays Life) for their enormous contribution to the project in the United Kingdom through facilitating the major financial contribution from Barclays Life. Bibliography D., A Common Wealth-Museums and Learning in the United Kingdom. A report to the Department of National Heritage. Department of National Heritage, London, 19%‘.
Anderson,
Bazler, A. and Spokane, A., Effects of a ‘T e 1ep resence’ Experience on Attittrdes Toward Science Careers, Unpublished research project at Lehigh University, Pennsylvania, 1991. Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Reaksing Our Potential: A Strateg fog Science, Engineering and Technology, (Government White Paper), HMSO, Lon d on, 1993. Department of National Heritage, Treasures in Trust: A Review of Museum Policy. Department of National Heritage, London, 1996. Greenwood, E. F., Phillips, I? W. and Wallace, I. D., The Natural History Centre at the Liverpool Museum. Museum Management and Curatorship, 1989,8,215-225. Greenwood, E. F., Liverpool Museum’s Natural History Centre. Biologist, 1991, 38, 31-33. Kool, R. and Traynor, K., The JASON Project: an evaluation. Curator, 1990,33(4), 261271.
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Kingdom
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Raymond, A., Robert Ballard: Underwater Explorer Makes it Real for Kids. K-8, January 1993,49-50. Statistics of Education, Schools in England. HMSO, London, 1994. Technology Foresi ht Panel on Leisure and Learnin Technology Foresight through Partners 8.zp 14 Leisure and Learning. Office o B Science and Technology, London, 1996.
Teaching Progress HMSO,
Credits (all by courtesy of National Museums & Galleries on Merseyside) 1 & 2. Ron Davies, Liverpool. 3. Nasa.
Photo
Munogemrnr
and Curamship, 16, No. 2, pp. 1 I l-130, 1997 Q 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd All rights reserved Printed
P11:S02604779(97)00017-4
0260-4779/97
in Great
$17.00
Britain
+ 0.00
The JASON Project in the United Kingdom 1993-96 DAVIDABBOTT,ERIC PETERREED
GREENWOOD,BARBARA
HOPE,PHILIPPHILLIPSAND
Introduction An American educational project designed to bring the excitement of live scientific exploration to students, the JASON Project uses the most up-to-date communications technology, presenting it in an imaginative and exciting way. The Project revolves around a research expedition, which takes place in spring each year, to a scientifically interesting site, and for two weeks live transmissions are relayed by satellite to and from audiences of students at a network of downlink sites. These Primary Interactive Network Sites (PINS) are equipped as control centres where the live signals are displayed on large video screens. Students can then interact with the expedition site, operating remotely controlled cameras and equipment, and ask questions of the research scientists. In 1993, the National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside (NMGM) introduced the Project to the United Kingdom for the first time, and the first live transmissions, from an expedition to Baja California in Mexico, attracted considerable attention. This led to sponsorship by Barclays Life for a further three years to cover expeditions to Belize (1994), Hawaii (1995) and Florida (1996), and in 1994, the Gulbenkian Award for the Most Imaginative Education Work in Museums was awarded to NMGM for the Project. The issues raised and the lessons learned from the introduction and development of the JASON Project have already proved valuable in developing and managing educational programmes within the NMGM and they provide a model for future interactive interpretation programmes at the NMGM and elsewhere. Beginnings When Dr Robert Ballard conceived the JASON Project in 1989 he was conscious of a deep malaise in science education in the United States of America. It was not fashionable to study science at school and it was clear that within relatively few years a crisis would hit American industry as insufficient scientists became available to sustain their activities and thus the prosperity of the nation. Ballard recalled how, as a boy, he had been inspired to become an oceanographer, and his work in deep ocean research had also led him to the conclusion that using manned submersibles to study the ocean depths was an inefficient way to use human resources because so much time was taken in commuting to and from the ocean floor. He was convinced that there had to be a more efficient way to carry out the majority of this exploration and following his location of the wreck of the R.M.S.
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The JASON
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1993-96
Titanic in 1985, Ballard received some 16,000 enquiries from young people asking how they too could become oceanographers and scientists. Half of these enquiries were from the United Kingdom. These various ideas and thoughts found expression in the JASON Project where Dr Ballard could use his professional work to inspire others and improve the image of science in education and as a career. “I launched the JASON Foundation because I wanted the kids to get hooked too.” (Dr Ballard interviewed by A. Raymond, 1993). Telepresence The JASON Project depends upon the concept of ‘telepresence’. This involves the transmission of live pictures from exploration sites to audiences located thousands of miles away. The downlink sites or Primary Interactive Network Sites (PINS), are a network of museums, research institutions, universities and other centres. To explore the deep seaand other inaccessible or hazardous environments, Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV) have been developed which can be driven from the PINS during the expedition live transmissions. The communication system required to facilitate this mix of live television and interactivity involves a combination of line-of-site microwave links, land lines and digital satellite technology. The expedition in its turn communicates with its control centre using a variety of technologies, such as microwave and fibre optic cables. The various audio, video and data signals are integrated and transmitted by satellite to the PINS where the live transmission is projected onto a large screen and enhanced by extra video and graphic material displayed on side screens. At first, a group of organisations cooperated informally to run the project and the first expedition, to the Mediterranean, was transmitted in 1989 to a group of twelve museums, science centres and marine laboratories in the United States of America and Canada. This expedition centred around an investigation of life near hydrothermal vents and an exploration of the debris field left from an ancient Roman shipwreck, and it was on the return trip that Ballard, using these techniques, located the wreck of the German battleship, Bismarck, off the French coast. The response to thesefirst live transmissions was positive, particularly from the teachers who expressed enthusiasm about the associated curriculum materials. These had been produced in collaboration with the National Science Teachers’ Association (NTSA) and were widely used to prepare classesfor their visits to the PINS. An evaluation undertaken at the Royal British Columbia Museum (Kool and Traynor, IWO) concluded that the project had been worthwhile and met expectations. AS a result of such comments the JASON Foundation for Education was established and a further expedition was planned for the following year. Consequently, in 1990, Ballard led an expedition to Lake Ontario to map and investigate the condition of two wooden warships, Hamilton and Scourge, and to undertake a feasibility study to determine if they should be raised to the surface. This expedition was broadcast to a widening network of PINS across North America. NMGM
Becomes Involved
With these successful expeditions to the Mediterranean and the Great Lakes, the JASON Project had demonstrated some successin fulfilling its mission of stimulating United States students about science and technology. In a study at one of the
DAVID ABBOT ET AL.
113
PINS, Lehigh U niversity, data was collected from questionnaires issued before and after the transmissions and reflected significant gains in attitudes towards science among both male and female students (Bazler and Spokane, 1991). On a visit to the United Kingdom in 1991, Dr Ballard stated in a broadcast interview that he had received a large number of enquiries from there and that he would very much like to seeJASON being transmitted to the United Kingdom, and, in particular, Liverpool. This led to discussions between the NMGM and Dr Ballard and his colleagues in the United States, followed by discussionsand visits there to view the transmissions from the Galapagos Islands in December 1991. It was then decided to make every effort to receive the I993 live transmissions from the Seaof Cortez, Baja California, Mexico. However, although the Project was seen to be exciting and innovative, a careful study was needed to ensure that it could be developed within the aims of a United Kingdom museum and that it would indeed offer something beneficial in the context of the United Kingdom educational system. So, why should a museum get involved in an educational project of this sort? The NMGM has a well-developed education service to fulfil its corporate mission of promoting the public enjoyment and understanding of art, history and science. This service is based on the collections of the museum, its unique feature, but not all aspects of art, history and science can be illustrated by reference to them. Thus, the JASON Project was seen as an inspirational way of presenting the relevance of science and technology in an exciting package. Furthermore, it would fit in well as an element of the wider interpretation programme it was hoped to develop at the Liverpool Museum which already, through its displays, covered most of the cultures and natural environments of the world. The marine environment was a major lacuna in the displays at that time, although Merseyside and Liverpool are famous for their maritime links and oceanographic studies. In particular the University of Liverpool and the Proudman Institute of Oceanographic Sciences are world famous for their teaching and research laboratories. In the event, the relevance of such projects for museums was confirmed after the first series of JASON 1ive transmissions in 1993. Of a sample of 312 respondents to a questionnaire, 95% thought that JASON was relevant or very relevant to a museum (Figure 1).
100 l80
t
1. Perceived relevance of Projects like JASON to museums.(Data from questionnaire given to generalvisitors, 1993).
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The JASON
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In parallel with the United States experience, a downtrend in the popularity of science subjects in United Kingdom schools and in the uptake of scientific careers was also giving rise to some concern (Figure 2) and it was believed that the JASON Project would be able to play a useful part in addressing this problem. These issueswere to achieve greater prominence during 1992 and culminated in the British Government’s White Paper, Realising our Potential (Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, 1993), which stressed the importance of the public understanding of science, while the National Curriculum, introduced in the early 199Os, brought changes in the requirement of practical science assessment.The assessment of children’s performance in practical science had often been undertaken using isolated and prescriptive experiments which concentrated on particular skills or activities, but assessmentsfor Standard Assessment Tests (SATs) and GCSE were now to be undertaken in the context of full investigations which the students would be required to plan, carry out and evaluate. This is very much the ethos created by the JASON Project, which presents scientists actually planning and carrying out investigations in genuine research situations.
Equipment Notwithstanding the potential educational benefits of the Project, it was clear from the outset that its introduction to Liverpool would require some major investment in equipment and expertise and that cost would be a major factor in any decision to proceed. The JASON Project sets out to demonstrate how information from sites which are remote or too fragile to be visited by more than a few people can be brought to a wider audience. As an early trial the NMGM was able to demonstrate the technique in the summer of 1992 by using a ‘Remotely Operated Vehicle’ (ROV) sub merged in the Albert Dock, Liverpool. Live pictures were brought into the lecture theatre of the adjacent Merseyside Maritime Museum where a commentary on what was being seen was given by specialists from the Museum and from Liverpool University. The project was then highly experimental and made possible through MarineTech North West which, together with the University of Liverpool, wanted a ‘real’ situation to test a new stabilising technique for a ROV. Inspired by the successof the first experiment, the local TV stations
56r
49
2. Pupils
1989
starting
A-level A-level
I
I
I
I
1990
1991
1992
1993
coursescontaining a science component (as a percentage courses). From: Statistics of Education, 1994.
of all
DAVIDABBOTETAL.
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were invited to see what was happening, and following that evening’s news broadcasts the Museum put on three sessionsa day for a week to full houses. The successof the Roving Dockwatch venture hasled to it being repeated in subsequent years. Part of the excitement for the public was due to their amazement that so much life now lived in the docks which, until a few years previously, were heavily polluted. In terms of equipment, the first year of operating a full interactive downlink site is naturally the most costly. A survey of the facilities at NMGM venues had led to the conclusion that the lecture theatre at Merseyside Maritime Museum was the only room available which could accommodate the audiences and where there would be adequate facilities for gathering and dispersing the numbers of visitors expected. In 19% it was necessary to equip the lecture theatre from scratch with the communications and display materials needed. The JASON Project requires video projection onto three screens.The centre screen is normally reserved for the live transmission signal, while the two side screenscan be switched between further live material, recorded material or computer graphics which are used to illustrate and enhance the topics being presented from the expedition. The theatre is set out to mirror the layout of the expedition control room with full video and audio mixing facilities, video recording and editing equipment including laser disc player for instant accessto recorded segments. The interactive platform centres on fast computers linked back to the expedition site. These process and communicate the signalswhich control the remotely operated cameras and vehicles and allow questions from the audience to be recorded and fed into the programme. At the heart of the system is the satellite receiving equipment with decoding and standards conversion. The standards conversion is an extra requirement for a United Kingdom site in order to convert the signals from the American format to the United Kingdom PAL system (Figure 3). A major factor in deciding to accept the cost of equipping the theatre to this standard was whether it could be used in any other context beyond JASON. A study of the general equipment requirements of the NMGM, particularly the
3. The ‘set’ at the Merseyside
Maritime
Museum
ready to receive the JASON
Project.
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1993-96
Liverpool Museum and the Merseyside Maritime Museum, showed that both required video editing and projecting facilities and that, in addition, this could be an opportunity to provide the Maritime Museum with full tele-conferencing facilities. So, although the JASON Project would provide the immediate reason for acquiring the equipment, its purchase could be justified in the context of a broader, long term investment. Nonetheless, the cost was high and direct cash sponsorship was not forthcoming. In the event, Sony UK were able to arrange a package by which half the equipment was made available at a very favourable purchase price and the other half was lent free for the period of the live transmissions. Other sponsorship in kind was received from Marcom (Northern) Ltd., EDS SCICON, Winsted Ltd., MarineTech North West and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). I n subsequent years the equipment has been added to and upgraded to the extent that NMGM now boastsone of the most comprehensive control and editing facilities of the JASON Network of PINS. Bearing in mind the favourable prices at which the equipment was obtained, it is unlikely that on the basis of other requirements alone sufficient priority would have been able to be given to the purchase of these items. As it is, the equipment was pressed into service immediately the JASON Project was completed, and it is now in daily use. Communications Apart from the equipment, another major and extra component of the costs in the United Kingdom is that of communications. It was realised at an early stage that the footprint of the satellite which downlinks the signals to the North American PINS does not extend to Western Europe. For the first year, after considerable high-level negotiation by the corporate sponsors EDS, a reduced price of $875 per hour was agreed for 100 hours of time on a second satellite. With this kind of expenditure, pound-dollar exchange rates become critical. One of the deciding factors in continuing with the project beyond the first year was the decision by the US Department of Defense Dependants Schools (DoDDS) to establish a PINS for its American forces’ schools, initially at RAF Croughton, in Oxfordshire, and subsequently at RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk. A wider network of PINS in the United Kingdom and continental Europe would clearly benefit from being able to share the satellite costs. NMGM has worked closely with DoDDS (recently becoming Department of Defense Education Activity, DODEA) and United Kingdom citizens have been welcomed to their site which is as fully interactive as Liverpool. In 1996, an experiment was undertaken using an ISDN line between Lakenheath and Liverpool which enabled video conferencing to take place between the two sites. This was used to show live pictures from the auditorium of each centre to the other and was particularly valuable in presenting live pictures of the youngsters driving the ROV. It provided valuable experience in using this technology which is set to become more readily available and relatively cheap to use. This will become of vital importance in future interactive ventures being planned for NMGM, particularly at the Liverpool Museum. From the outset it was realised that income from ticket saleswould only provide a small contribution towards the project. On the basis of an adult ticket costing 23, with appropriate reductions for groups and concessions, it was estimated that ticket income would be about !Z~O,OOO-%~~,OOO. In all, including equipment, communications, staffing, marketing and operating costs, an annual budget of about
DAVID ABBOT ET AL.
117
f200,OOO was required to present JASON. It was, therefore, with considerable courage and foresight that, in April 1992, the Trustees of NMGM agreed to present the first JASON Project to be seen in the United Kingdom, transmitted from Baja California, Mexico. This first JASON Project at Liverpool was successful in a number of respects: it attracted large audiences from both schools and general visitors. Overall, seat occupancy turned out to be 87%, which is quite a feat considering the timing of the last session at 2100 when most people would be reluctant to begin a theatre visit to the centre of Liverpool. The overall comments were favourable and despite some practical criticisms, many of which centred on the production quality and were shared by visitors to United States PINS, audiences were well satisfied and keen to come back. Indeed, 95% of visitors said they would like to see the 1994 expedition from Belize if it could be received in Liverpool (Figure 4).
Barclays Life Perhaps of most significance in 1993 was the introduction of the JASON Project to the Marketing Director of Barclays Life. On the last day of the broadcasts he saw the last show with his family. He was impressed and felt the project was suitable for major sponsorship. It would fit in with the company’s developing philosophy of a ‘moral high ground’ for life assurance and its focus on the family. Following a six-month period of study and negotiation, Barclays Life agreed to provide sponsorship of E600,OOOover three years, subject to annual review, to enable the JASON Project to come to the United Kingdom again in 1994, 1995 and 1996. For this period, the Project would be presented in the United Kingdom as the Barclays Life JASON Project. A requirement of the sponsorship was that the project would be expanded to cover the entire United Kingdom. In 1994, two Secondary Interactive Network Sites (SINS; more recently retitled JASON Network Sites), were established at Southampton and Nottingham. The Southampton site was supported by the
90 80 70 60 %
n-
1
Y es
50 40 30 20
Interested in coming to JASON V in 1994?
JASON V would fit in with teaching programmes
(From questionnaire given to teachers following JASON IV, 1993.)
4. Interest in future JASON Projects.
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1993-96
University of Southampton and Hampshire County Council, while in Nottingham the site was hosted by the British Geological Survey and funded by NERC. Secondary sites can receive and present the satellite signals in just the sameway as a Primary site but they have no direct interactivity with the expedition. SINS receive technical and educational assistance from the host PINS. In 1996 the expedition programme of research centred upon the coral reefs of Southern Florida and this theme was particularly appropriate to Southampton where the Project was managed in conjunction with the newly opened Southampton Oceanographic Institute. For one year, in 1995, the Horniman Museum in London also operated a SINS as an opening event for the newly built Centre for Understanding the Environment. Ancillary exhibitions were also established each year at all the secondary sites. Unfortunately, financial pressures in 1996 curtailed the secondary sites to just one, at Southampton. Argonauts A key element in the educational successof the JASON Project is the presence of real students and teachers at the expedition site. They study and work alongside the expedition scientists and give live reports during the satellite transmissions. These ‘Argonauts’ were chosen by competitions which were organised during the summer prior to the expeditions. The competitions were originated by the JASON Foundation, and for the United Kingdom literature and entry forms were modified to suit its education system and to match the Barclays Life corporate style. The teachers were selected at an early stage so that they could participate in the final selection process for the Student Argonauts. To qualify for their scientific field trip, the students had to prepare essays describing their scientific interests and what they believed they could contribute to the research teams. They also had to detail their out of school activities which, together with their school reports and teachers’ recommendations, enabled a short list of candidates to be submitted by each PINS. The JASON F oundation made the final selection which involved a telephone conference with the previously selected team of Teacher Argonauts. By November the chosen Student Argonauts were announced and assigned a tutor who co-ordinated the work on their allocated topic for study at the exploration site. As if the opportunity to take part in such an exciting expedition was not enough, a further incentive to enter the competition was provided aspart of the Barclays Life sponsorship. During the shortlisting process, regional finalists were selected and their schools presented with a prize of 21000 to be spent on scientific equipment. In addition, each competing school was visited by a Barclays Life representative and the student competitor was presented with a poster during a school assembly-an activity which attracted appropriate local publicity and media coverage. Marketing Teachers are continually presented with information concerning schemes and initiatives purporting to be of educational benefit and yet with few exceptions they are working with diminishing funds and increasing demands on their time. In this environment, even the most worthwhile project demands considerable marketing effort. The first activity encountered each year was the distribution of
DAVIDABBOTETAL.
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the Argonaut Competition literature to all United Kingdom secondary schools. As national managers, NMGM was responsible for collecting applications and shortlisting candidates from the entries submitted. During the period of the Barclays Life sponsorship, the responsibility for producing and distributing the competition literature had rested with Broadcast PR, a component of Silverwood Communications who acted as agents for Barclays Life, The competition not only generated the Argonauts who travelled to the expedition site but it also served to raise public awareness of the project. The general public were made aware of the Project when the entrants were presented with commemorative posters and local media were encouraged to take an interest in the presentations. Subsequently, during the late autumn and early spring, leaflets were prepared and distributed by direct mail drop to schools and other contacts and were displayed in public buildings and visitor attractions. Bookings for the sessionsbegan to come in immediately, rising to their peak levels as the live transmissions period began. The media were kept informed of the project and several important contributions were made by the press, radio and television. From the beginning, the BBC television programme, Newsround, was keen to participate and covered JASON with its press packer (junior reporter) winner. Most recently, Newsround made a live broadcast from Florida in April 1996 to coincide with the JASON VII expedition and incorporated an interview with the United Kingdom Student Argonaut viewing the JASON exhibition at the Merseyside Maritime Museum a few days before she left. BBC Radio have also taken a close interest, with presenter John Dunn travelling to the expedition site in April 1996 to do live interviews with Dr Ballard and the United Kingdom Argonauts. Indeed, media coverage has a number of clear advantages when presenting a project such asJASON. Positive reporting by respected programmes and publications lends endorsement to the values of the Project, as well as the sponsor. Also, the media exposure also raises general awareness, which in turn brings in bookings for the live transmissions to the various United Kingdom sites and, of importance in terms of sponsorship, brings apparent revenue in free brand exposure time. Figures 5 and 6 show an estimated return of over ELM on an investment of f6OOK over three years.
PreSS
Radio
TV
4000
I60
3500
140
c
120
loo E x0 .-2 60 ' 40
J
5. Media coverage during Barclays Life sponsorship,
1994-96.
120
The JASON
Project in the United
6
Kingdom I
TV Radio
5 cl
4 2
1993-96
Press
3 2 I 0 1994
1995
1996
Total I
6. Estimated
media value 1994-96. (Figures from an independent sioned by Broadcast Public Relations.)
media agency commis-
Curriculum The JASON Foundation produces detailed curriculum materials which are closely correlated to the US National Science Education Standards and the US National Geography Standards. These materials are thoroughly researched and are designed to complement and enhance what teachers are doing in the classroom with details of the expedition and plans for classroom investigations which would prepare children for the expedition broadcasts in the spring of each year. However, some problems do arise from the introduction of the JASON Curriculum material to the United Kingdom. Firstly there is the cost. Although a certain number of JASON Curriculum Packs are provided free of charge to each PINS, the cost of cross-Atlantic transport is expensive. In 1996 this amounted to some 2250 and was recovered by passing it on as the handling charge to the teachers. Secondly, that material was particularly orientated to the United States education system, and from the start, it was considered to be important to supplement the JASON curriculum with detailed tables which would aid teachers in linking the written material to the English and Welsh National Curriculum. Comments after the first transmissions did not produce a positive response to these tables which were found to be difficult to use and it was suggested that they should be revised in subsequent years. This was done and the United Kingdom curriculum supplement was developed to function as both an educational package for schools and an information pack for the large numbers of general visitors, many of them families, who attended the live transmissions each year. A key section was the linkage developed between the topics covered during the JASON voyage and the National Curriculum. It was marketed at a moderate price to recover only the production costs. For JASON VI and VII, a series of professional development and in-class broadcasts were produced in the United States, with part of each programme dedicated to helping teachers implement the JASON curriculum in the classroom and the rest directed to students and their field work, but unfortunately these programmes could not be received in the United Kingdom. In 1996, the expedition was conducted in two parts. Part 1 was recorded in January with a small team of scientists and students on site in Florida. The recordings would have served as a useful introduction to the live expedition in April but,
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despite considerable efforts, the tapes arrived too late to be distributed in advance of the live transmissions. Although they were not designed to be so, the live transmissions from the expedition were accessible as stand-alone events, and a large number of general visitors, together with some schools, came to them with little or no preparation. They were attracted by the potential for an educational experience coupled with some excitement and, to some extent, the novelty value of the live and interactive programme (Figure 7). However, the expeditions set out to investigate some quite complex scientific topics in unusual environments so, for educational purposes, it really was essential to be well prepared. Each year, in addition to the printed materials which were made available, teachers were invited to attend awareness sessions, where the planned curriculum material was discussed and set into the context of the United Kingdom classroom. Add-on
Sessions
For family visitors, awareness sessions were held in Liverpool Museum to help with the preparation. Here the expedition topics could be related to the Museum’s own collections and children in particular were encouraged to examine, and in some cases to handle, items such as rock and fossil samples and to learn about the creatures which would be encountered during the programme. For example, the JASON VII expedition in 1996 considered the role of the shark as apex predator in the waters off Southern Florida. The Museum’s collection of shark jaws and teeth was put to good use enabling children to appreciate clearly evidence for the shark’s position at the apex of the food chain. Taking part and being involved were very much a part of the JASON Project and these add-on sessions helped to foster that ethos. For the adult student there were Day Schools, operated in conjunction with the University of Liverpool, when the topics were discussed at a more academic level. Although envisaged by its founder as a project specifically for school
so
r
7. Reasons for attending
JASON broadcasts. (Computed general audiences 1993-96.)
from questionnaires
given to
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ThejASON
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students, the NMGM recognised the potential for adult and continuing education. Certainly, there was an added incentive to do this because of the timing of the live transmissions. There were five hour-long live transmissions available each day over a two week period and they were timed to suit the school day of the Eastern seaboard of the United States. For the United Kingdom, this meant that the first live transmission began at 1500, with the final one at 2 IO0 each day. Although schools were given every encouragement to attend into the early evening, in the event this left half of the sessionswith space available for marketing to general visitors and adult groups. The age target of the live transmissions was essentially lower secondary school but the topics covered could be approached at a variety of levels. For example, in JASON VI from Hawaii, the main theme was the very existence of the Hawaiian island chain owing to the volcanic activity beneath the Pacific Plate. The topic of volcanoes is first encountered by children in Key Stage 3 (1 l-14 yrs) and develops in Key Stage 4 (14-16 yrs), both in Science and Geography, with a study of plate tectonics, Geography and Earth Science students at A-level and Higher Education continue this study in much greater depth. For all of these students, JASON VI provided the opportunity to ‘visit’ Hawaii with a scientist on the spot to interpret what was being seen. For the Primary school child, this may have been a first exciting encounter with a live volcano, while for the Liverpool University students it was an opportunity to set their academic studies into context. For all audiences the live transmissions demonstrated the importance of taking a multidisciplinary approach to original investigations. Morning
Shows
Children at Key Stage 2, (7-I 1 yrs) may have needed some extra help to interpret what was seen and discussed in the live transmissions and so these were recorded, edited and presented again by a Museum Education Officer during special morning sessions. Th ese sessions proved to be particularly popular because of the potential to tailor the material to suit the understanding of the children and to offer more opportunity for them to discuss, experiment and handle associated specimens. Experts from the Liverpool Museum’s Natural History Centre (Greenwood, Phillips and Wallace, 1989; Greenwood, 1991) were on hand to help with particular questions which, even from primary school children, could be very searching. Internet There is an increasing requirement for schools to develop information technology into classroom situations. JASON now makes use of the Internet to enable schools to participate on a year round basis and the Foundation’s work has won a number of awards in this field. In order to become fully involved with each expedition schools are encouraged to participate in their own local expedition and to undertake local field studies, The results of these studies can then be shared with other schools investigating similar environments across the network both in the United Kingdom and in North America. The information gathered is useful in its own right but perhaps of greatest importance is a growing appreciation of the concept of sharing information and of co-operating with other people
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working on the same project. In the scholastic community, the Internet is an essential tool of communication and research and so the JASON Project may be seen to provide a convenient vehicle for teachers to investigate that tool and how it may best be used in the classroom. The Internet is only slowly being made available in schools and even then it may not be readily available to the classroom teacher. Projects like JASON may help teachers to persuade others that they require access.This part of the Project was only fully developed in JASON VII in 1996 and, unfortunately, few if any schools in the United Kingdom were able then to take full advantage of this pioneering development. Management Implementing the JASON Project at NMGM has had major implications for staff and for staff management. Initially, a small management team was established under the chairmanship of the Keeper of Liverpool Museum. Separate working groups for fund raising, technical issues, education and programme organisation were then established. From the outset it was appreciated that to service the project and to look after the day-to-day affairs in the office a JASON Project Co-ordinator was required. It was also necessary to maintain close links with the JASON Foundation itself. This necessitated frequent communication with the Foundation office and attendance at its meetings in the United States where representatives of all those taking part (PINS) d iscussedthe developing project. The office of the JASON Foundation is small consisting of only a few staff under the direction of the Executive Director, and to make the Project work requires delegation and team effort. The ethos of collaboration, advice and expertise emanating from the JASON office has provided invaluable practical training in the management of large projects as the NMGM management team became part of a much larger, international project group. The JASON Project was by no meansthe only major enterprise being developed by NMGM and it required the close collaboration of staff from three different Divisions and several different departments of the Museum. However, it was not just a Museum project, because in addition to close liaison with the JASON Foundation, it required developing close working relationships with various companies in the private sector both in the United Kingdom and in the United States, aswell as other PINS in North America. For many of the staff involved in the Museum, working at this level was novel and provided new experiences which a more modest project simply could not offer. Participating in a major international project and working within the management practices of the JASON Foundation has proved to be especially stimulating and rewarding. Interactivity Remote sensing is a major feature of the research which scientists undertake in the exploration of remote and difficult sites. Dr Ballard’s work has made substantial use of remotely operated vehicles for the exploration of deep underwater sites. Many of these vehicles were developed at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute where Dr Ballard was Director of the Center for Marine Exploration. The demonstration of the operation of such remotely operated devices is a major feature of the JASON Project live transmissions and since the United Kingdom has become
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involved the distance over which such operations have taken place has been taken to the extreme. In 1995, students were able to drive a ROV 6000 feet down in the Sea of Cortez (Figure 8) and in 1996 students at Liverpool and Lakenheath were able to control a spacerover vehicle, Marsokhod, (Figure 9), being tested on the lava fields of Hawaii. This was truly ‘remote’ control and the driver had to contend with the fraction of a second delay involved in getting the control signals half way round the globe, and then a further delay to seethe effect (Figure 8). With the experiences gained from JASON and from Roving Dockwatch the concept of ‘telepresence’ has been extended to other projects in the NMGM and in particular by bringing into the Museum galleries live images and commentary on what takes place behind the scenes in the collection store areas, and in the taxidermy and conservation laboratories. Drawing on the experiences of such experimental projects, NMGM has incorporated ‘telepresence’ tours into its regular public programmes at the recently opened (October 1996) Conservation Centre. Conclusions The JASON Project was primarily developed to encourage students to take a positive attitude towards science and technology and not just to contribute to the
8. A young member of the audience driving from Liverpool in Belize in March 1994.
a ROV and camera underwater
DAVIDABBOTETAL.
9. The Marsokhod.
A prototype ROV for Mars driven remotely from Liverpool lava fields of Hawaii in 1995.
on the
body of general and scientific knowledge they were acquiring, and much of the material presented may not relate directly to the factual requirements of their science courses. For example, the courtship displays of Hawaiian Drosophila or the feeding behaviour of coral polyps, may not be required by examination syllabuses in the United Kingdom, or indeed in the United States, but the genuine dedication and enthusiasm of the expedition scientists could not fail to impress their audience and lead to positive responsesto the processesof scientific research. No detailed research has yet been carried out in the United Kingdom to assess the effects of JASON on these attitudes in students but a more limited evaluation was carried out to seek the opinions of teachers who had brought groups to the live transmissions. Questionnaires were distributed to teachers following each and some of the results of this evaluation are presented here. The evaluation was essentially formative and was intended to assistin the fine tuning of the techniques by which the Project was presented in the United Kingdom. However, while teachers were quick to criticise some elements of the production quality, the comments received were highly constructive and the overall reactions very positive. Figures 10-12 are derived from the teachers’ surveys carried out after the live transmissions, and they offer a positive indication that teachers perceived the transmissions to have given the children a feeling of being part of a live expedition and that this liveness not only enhanced the children’s enjoyment but also helped towards achieving the feeling of being present as scientific discoveries took place. Figure 13 shows the positive impressions of general visitors about the live aspects of the transmissions. Of the greatest significance is the upward trend. showing how improvements have been made, both in the quality of the live transmissions as received from the expedition, and in the way they were presented in Liverpool.
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The JASON 50
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r
0
Very
A lot
much
Quite
a lot
Not
much
Not
at all
10. How much did the live nature of the broadcasts enhance the children’s enjoyment? (From questionnaires given to teachers following transmissions, 1993-95.)
30 % 20 10 0
11, How
Very
well
Well/quite
well
Not
very
well
No feelings
well was the feeling of scientific discovery achieved? (From questionnaires to teachers following transmissions, 1993-95.) -
100
1
given
yes NO
80 60
% 40 20 0
1993
1994
1995
L
12. Did the class feel part of a live expedition? (No data available for 1996.) (From questionnaires given to teachers following transmissions, 1993-95.)
Over the four years of the JASON Project in the United Kingdom a total of people saw the live transmissions (Figure 14), and of these, some 21,000 visited the Merseyside Maritime Museum in Liverpool. Roughly half of the latter number were members of school parties. In addition, a significant number of people will have been affected to some extent by the BBC Newsround reports or by following the project on the Internet. Figure 14 also shows a fall in attendance figures, particularly at Liverpool, for JASON VII in 1996. One obvious reason for this was the decision by the JASON 55,000
Foundation the United particularly JASON VI
not to transmit on the second Saturday-one of the busiest days for Kingdom venues. Even so, there was a shortfall and this represented a fall in school attendances. Teachers who had brought groups to
but not JASON
VII were asked if they had specific reasons for not
EDS London
Hornlman Museum
Southampton
DoDDS Croughton
I
t; n
9% oositive
comments
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The JASON
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with science teachers and this perhaps indicates a persisting reluctance for secondary teachers in particular to embrace the concepts of cross-curricular co-operation. Regardless of their reasons for not bringing groups to JASON VII, those teachers said that they had been satisfied with the Project in previous years and if their own problems could be resolved they would probably wish to return on a future occasion. In view of the difficulties facing teachers in justifying any time spent away from the classroom, both in terms of financial and curriculum restraints, the number who have indicated their desire to come back again, and indeed the number of those who have already returned on more than one occasion, can surely be taken as an indication of the perceived worth of the Project. Recent focus groups held with teachers and pupils who have attended JASON live transmissions have yielded positive comments about the educational value of the JASON Project. Pupils commented on the way in which the live broadcasts “helped to make the world seem a smaller place” and how they “increased environmental awareness”. Even six months after the transmissions, children were able to recall and explain experiments which they had seen carried out in Florida. They admitted that similar experiments could have been done in the classroom but would not have had the same impact. On the subject of Student Argonauts, both teachers and pupils saw the presence of students on the expedition asbeing positive. As one teacher commented: “Argonauts are a positive link and prevent it from being just a documentary. VA student added: “They are going to ask the same questions we’re thinking so they can relate to us.” Seven students and five teachers have represented the United Kingdom asArgonauts since 1993. In addition to their personal experiences, which have in each caseconfirmed their dedication to future involvement in science and technology, they have gone back into school where they willingly spread their enthusiasm and excitement to their peers. Involvement with the JASON Project has given the Education Department of the NMGM the opportunity to make new contacts with teachers who may not have visited its Museums before and may now see the potential for further site visits focused on other curriculum topics, Furthermore, from the standpoint of increased publicity for NMGM, there is considerable benefit in staging high quality presentations like JASON. At the Merseyside Maritime Museum, JASON audiences represented an increase of about one third in the number of visitors over the fortnight period. It is not easy to measure the spin-off effect of these extra visits but it does represent a significant increase in awareness. Many of the visitors who booked for the JASON Project had never been to the Museum before and, expressing delight at what they saw, promised to return and explore it at a later time. Numerous people from outside the area were keen to visit both the city and the Museum on future occasions. A familiar quote was: “I never realised it was like this.” The JASON Project has been invaluable as a vehicle for testing the technology and practice of ‘telepresence’ and it will have long-term significance in planning interactive interpretation programmes for the future of the Museums. In particular it has demonstrated an effective technique for fulfilling NMGM’s mission of furthering the public understanding of art, history and science in areas where museum specimens are difficult to use or direct accessis inappropriate. In addition, staff have developed a technical and organisational expertise which can now
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be applied in new contexts. The Technology Foresight Panel on Leisure and Learning (1996) h as d rawn attention to the importance of the new technologies in this field in terms of their social impact and their potential to add value to United Kingdom leisure operations. Similarly Treasures in Trust (Department of National Heritage, 1996) and A Common Wealth (Anderson, 1997) both stress the importance of utilising modern technologies in the museums context. The JASON Project has successfully demonstrated just how these technologies can be used in production mode for ‘telepresence’ projects and has therefore provided a model for further development as advocated in these reports. One such development was the inauguration of MuseNet on 22 January 1997. This is an initiative of British Telecom’s Visual Business Area launched at the Science Museum, London, as part of the programme of The Year of Engineering Success.It links seven United Kingdom national museums together for high quality multi-point video conferencing based on the use of BT’s latest VS2 rollabout video conferencing units, peripherals and digital ISDN network. In addition to linking museums together for a variety of instructive purposes, links will be made to other venues in the United Kingdom and elsewhere. Thus, managing JASON has enabled new links to be forged between NMGM and other bodies in the intellectual world, and in areasof finance and commerce, links which are set to continue and develop further for the public benefit. Acknowledgements We are greatly indebted to all those colleagues within the NMGM and in other institutions and companies without whose help it would not have been possible to bring the JASON Project to the United Kingdom. Special thanks are due to the JASON Foundation and EDS for their patient understanding of NMGM’s particular problems. Finding the finance to develop major projects is always a problem and the authors are therefore particularly grateful to all those companies who have contributed to the project. Special thanks are due to Tim Collins (Silverwood Communications) and Malcolm Oliver (formerly of Barclays Life) for their enormous contribution to the project in the United Kingdom through facilitating the major financial contribution from Barclays Life. Bibliography D., A Common Wealth-Museums and Learning in the United Kingdom. A report to the Department of National Heritage. Department of National Heritage, London, 19%‘.
Anderson,
Bazler, A. and Spokane, A., Effects of a ‘T e 1ep resence’ Experience on Attittrdes Toward Science Careers, Unpublished research project at Lehigh University, Pennsylvania, 1991. Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Reaksing Our Potential: A Strateg fog Science, Engineering and Technology, (Government White Paper), HMSO, Lon d on, 1993. Department of National Heritage, Treasures in Trust: A Review of Museum Policy. Department of National Heritage, London, 1996. Greenwood, E. F., Phillips, I? W. and Wallace, I. D., The Natural History Centre at the Liverpool Museum. Museum Management and Curatorship, 1989,8,215-225. Greenwood, E. F., Liverpool Museum’s Natural History Centre. Biologist, 1991, 38, 31-33. Kool, R. and Traynor, K., The JASON Project: an evaluation. Curator, 1990,33(4), 261271.
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Raymond, A., Robert Ballard: Underwater Explorer Makes it Real for Kids. K-8, January 1993,49-50. Statistics of Education, Schools in England. HMSO, London, 1994. Technology Foresi ht Panel on Leisure and Learnin Technology Foresight through Partners 8.zp 14 Leisure and Learning. Office o B Science and Technology, London, 1996.
Teaching Progress HMSO,
Credits (all by courtesy of National Museums & Galleries on Merseyside) 1 & 2. Ron Davies, Liverpool. 3. Nasa.
Photo