>I'm not certain how you evaluate what a visitor has learned from an
>exhibit----do you conduct a pre-test and post-test?

>And, do you ask a visitor "How much was your quality of life improved by
>today's visit?"

A minor rant on the topic of the "results" of museum programming:

For those of us who provide programs to youth "at risk," there are
increasingly difficult standards of "how have we helped?" being applied by
the funding agencies (HUD, various drug elimination agencies, etc.).  If the
program presenter cannot conclusively demonstrate that any positive results
(i.e., less gang activity, decreased drug use, less vandalism, etc.) can be
DIRECTLY attributed to the specific program in question, funding will not be
granted again and the presenter may even have to return funds.

To design a program to yield the appropriate results (and I believe it is
impossible to trace the desired results in the short term for such
programs--they demand long-term follow-up which takes additional funds)
means that the focus is on the pre/post testing rather than on the program
itself.   I think this is doing the kids a huge disservice and adding to the
already overwhelming paperwork load in this country.  Let's not spread this
misery to the general population through our museums!

Julia Moore
Indianapolis Art Center