by Mandy Barnett – Happy Museum Research Associate The Happy Museum project is especially targeted at museums that want to encourage participation and activism.  We particularly focus on work with communities and the wider environment, sometimes called ‘place-making’.  On 13th June we are holding our annual training day for museums who share our desire to ‘measure […]

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Measure What Matters, Fazeley Studios Birmingham 13th June 2017, 10-5pm Our annual Happy Museum ‘Measure What Matters’ event is a holistic look at evaluation in museums. From tools to transformation, the day combines practical instruction on Happy Museum tools, whilst applying strategic approach to organisational change. It is targeted at staff who are able to […]

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This case study looks at how different museums and galleries have made use of Happy Museum tools and approaches to evaluation. With evaluation built in from the start, the organisations have a framework that leads them from a vision of the change they want to make, through to planning, developing, delivering and measuring what matters. […]

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Hosted at the London Transport Museum in 2016,  Happy and Green drew connections between Sustainability and Wellbeing in supporting individual, institutional and societal resilience – and considered the particular role that culture can play.  A day rich in provocation and discussion bringing together thinkers from the fields of policy and practice; public sector and private sector; […]

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This case study looks at how a partnership between a research institute and a museum led to the development of a software app that allows visitors to ‘tag’ objects and artworks with their own commentary. The app was tested to see if it increased audience engagement.

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‘How long was your journey to get here today?’ was the first question a room full of museum and cultural professionals were posed on a wet March 1st in Birmingham’s Fazeley Studios. Responses ranged from ‘half an hour’ to ‘I was up so early I can no longer remember!’ As well as providing an opportunity […]

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Valuation DIY A fun, workshop approach reviewing outcomes by prioritising or valuing outcomes. Valuation DIY is an empowering way for participants to discuss not just the extent, but the value of the different outcomes they have experienced through your project. Download (pdf): Valuation_DIY For information about the rest of our resources see this chart showing all our tools and […]

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Observational evaluation An in-gallery approach to predefined indicators of outcomes. Observational evaluation involves researchers observing participants in projects to record their activities, behaviours, emotions, interactions, themes and so on, to get a sense of how people experience your project. It can also be an opportunity to engage the front of house teams. Download: (pdf) Observational_evaluation For information about the […]

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Narrative evaluation A desk work approach to identifying themes including how frequently they recur, by analysing written material. You may gather qualitative written feedback through forms, interviews, visitor comments, embedded evaluations and so on. There are ways to collate this data and include it as evidence in your evaluation and learning processes. Downloads: (pdf) Narrative_evaluation (xls)  NarrativeEvaluationTemplate For information […]

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Embedded evaluation A variety of in-gallery, open approaches which might be fun, embedded in the exhibition or activity to gain a variety of feedback. This is the idea of making evaluation part of the project itself rather than something that takes places outside of the project or at another time. Download:  (pdf) Embedded_evaluation For information about the rest […]

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