Encountering Nanotechnology in an Interactive Exhibition

Abstract

This article offers findings from a learning sciences-informed evaluation of a nanoscience and nanotechnology exhibition called Nano-Aventura (NanoAdventure), based on four interactive-collaborative games and two narrated videos. This traveling exhibition was developed in Brazil by the Museu Exploratório de Ciências for children and teenagers (ages 9 to 14), but it was also open to the general public. We report findings from a mixed-methods study incorporating questionnaires completed by visiting school children (n=814) and the general public (n=338) and interviews with school visitors (n=23). We found that nanoscience and nanotechnology were completely unknown subjects for this audience. However, after visiting NanoAventura, most visitors, regardless of age, learned to identify small scale length or the concept of tiny particles. We demonstrate how the NanoAventura experience was a successful learning environment for approaching new ideas and discovering the nanoworld in order to inform understanding of learning processes relative to a novel and complex thematic field.