Take a look at www.informalscience.org for a number of examples of syllabi from museum learning related courses taught at universities. Some have some very interesting examples of student assignments and museum-student collaborations. There are some great examples of an entire course focusing on addressing a design or research issue in collaboration with a museum. Leona Schauble has a good chapter that is a result of such a collaboration:
Schauble, L., Gleason, M., Lehrer, R., Bartlett, K., Petrosino, A., Allen, A., Clinton, C., Ho, E., Jones, M., Lee, Y., Phillips, J., Seigler, J., & Street, J. (2002). Supporting science learning in museums. In Leinhardt, G., Crowley, K., & Knutson, K. (Eds.) Learning conversations: Explanation and identity in museums (pp. 425-452). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Karen Knutson, at UPCLOSE (University of Pittsburgh Center for Learning in Out of School Universities) has an ongoing research project with the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh - there are more details at http://upclose.lrdc.pitt.edu/projects/cmop.html This collaboration just received an award from ASTC. Also, look at some of Kevin Crowley's work on the project How People Make Things as part of a collaboration between UPCLOSE and design students at Carnegie Mellon University, and the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh.
Kirsten
Kirsten Ellenbogen, Ph.D.
Director of Evaluation & Research in Learning
Science Museum of Minnesota
120 West Kellogg Blvd.
Saint Paul, MN 55102
Phone: +1-651-221-2560
Fax: +1-651-265-9811