MoMA
Posts tagged ‘MoMA Learning’
October 29, 2014  |  Learning and Engagement
Creative Appropriation: The Smallest Move Is Often the Hardest

On Saturday, November 22, MoMA presents the one-day studio course Creative Appropriation with Artist Michael Mandiberg. Below, the artist discusses his work and some of the issues around appropriation.

July 8, 2013  |  Learning and Engagement
To MOOC or Not to MOOC? MoMA Says YES

Massively Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have been loudly heralded in the news as being either the savior or the destroyer of education’s future. MOOCs are being created by the hundreds every year and attended by thousands per course. Why? Apparently everyone is eager to engage in high quality educational programs taught by world experts for free. I have enrolled in some terrific MOOCs and some terrible ones, seen great student interaction in the discussion boards and some unfortunate exchanges of misinformation. MOOC student interaction often gets tricky and frequently overwhelming, but it’s always amazing to be in a class with thousands of students from all over the world, all communicating with each other on a single topic of interest. It is exhilarating to experience global, intellectual connectivity.

Coursera website

Screenshot of MoMA’s “Art and Inquiry” course page on the Coursera website

As you may remember from my previous blog post, MoMA already offers a robust program of online courses that are NOT MOOCs because: 1. The “instructor-led” course attendance is limited to under 45 students (35 students is the cap for studio courses)—definitely NOT “massive”—and 2. Students pay a fee for the MoMA online course service, so they are not “open” in the same way as a free MOOC. However, earlier this year one of the largest MOOC providers Coursera, asked us to contribute to a new venture: creating MOOCs for primary and secondary school teachers looking for professional development opportunities. After a quick check-in with Lisa Mazzola, MoMA’s assistant director in charge of School and Teacher Programs, we agreed to join Coursera in this important work.

Why? Teachers are such an important audience for MoMA, and not just art teachers. Teachers of all kinds use our new MoMA Learning website that is chock full of in-depth and ready-to-use information, including slide sets, videos, and images. But teachers also need modeling and mentoring on how to use museum materials and teaching methods effectively. We offer some on-the-ground teacher workshops on this subject, but we never have enough space or time to accommodate the large number of teachers who request help. We want to experiment with MOOCs as a platform to build teachers’ skills in inquiry-based learning techniques while also engaging them in peer-to-peer learning strategies. We think teachers will love collaborating on the coursework and exchanging ideas about their practice with peers from all over the world. And we know they will appreciate the price of admission: free!

Our first MOOC, “Art and Inquiry,” begins July 29 and as of this post, there are over 8,000 enrolled. You can learn more about the course on Coursera’s website, and keep an eye out for Lisa Mazzola’s forthcoming blog post about creating MoMA’s first MOOC.

April 15, 2013  |  Learning and Engagement, Tech
Tuning in and Hanging Out: Kicking Off the Art Hangs with MoMA Learning Series

On April 4, I teamed up with fellow educators Lisa Mazzola and Jessica Baldenhofer to kick off Art Hangs with MoMA Learning, an experimental series of Hangout on Air gatherings hosted by educators at MoMA.

March 4, 2013  |  Learning and Engagement
Innovation and Collaboration in Inventing Abstraction and Beyond

Inventing Abstraction, 1910–1925, on view at MoMA through April 15, chronicles the early years of abstraction in Europe and the United States. At the core of the exhibition is the idea that abstraction was not the result of individual genius, but rather arose from and spread through an international network of artists hanging out, collaborating, and sharing ideas during the years before and after World War I.

MoMA Learning Community Spotlight: Phaedra Mastrocola at Berkeley Carroll Lower School, Brooklyn
Visual Arts teacher Phaedra Mastrocola works with 2nd and 4th graders at Berkeley Carroll Lower School, Brooklyn

Visual Arts teacher Phaedra Mastrocola works with second- and fourth-graders at Berkeley Carroll Lower School, Brooklyn

One driving metaphor behind MoMA Learning—the museum’s digital hub for educational resources on modern and contemporary art—was that of a “tool box” or “kit”—an assemblage of parts that could be used, shared, and modified for a variety of learning environments and styles.

December 31, 2012  |  Learning and Engagement
MoMA Learning – Evolving to Meet the Needs of its Users

MoMA Learning was launched with great excitement in October, and user feedback has already helped the site evolve, prompting tweaks to design and informing additional content and features.