Natural History Dioramas – Traditional Exhibits for Current Educational Themes

Annette Scheersoi is a Professor in Biology Education at the University of Bonn,Germany. Her doctorate was on museum’s exhibition concepts and the use of differentmedia for communicating biological knowledge. Since 2005 she is a biology teachertrainerand researcher, first at Frankfurt University, then at the University of Cologneand now at Bonn’s university. Her research on biology learning focuses on interestdevelopment in out-of-school learning environments. Annette also develops learningmaterials for schools as well as for museums, zoos and botanic gardens.Sue Dale Tunnicliffe is a Reader in Science Education at UCL Institute ofEducation, University College London. She holds a bachelors degree fromWestfield College, University of London in Zoology and trained as a secondarybiology teacher at the university’s Institute of Education. After teaching ingrammar schools for a few years she had children and, wanting to find out moreabout how young children learnt science, particularly biology, she enteredprimary school teaching and is now interested in pre school learning, as well asanimals as exhibits. She set up and ran a new Primary Science and DesignTechnology advisory team for London Borough of Richmond and then becameHead of Education at the Zoological Society of London. She has worked at theBBC and in a cultural museum. Her doctorate was from King’s College,London ’Talking about animals: conversations of children in zoos, a museum anda farm”. She has published widely.

“Readers are most likely to be those professionally interested in dioramas and this particular aspect of science education/communication.” (Sue Howarth, The Biologist, September 17, 2019)

• Foreword & Introduction, Scheersoi, Annette & Tunnicliffe, Sue Dale.- Section 1. Reaching Different Types of Audiences through Dioramas.- 1)   Leisure Visitors’ Responses to Natural History Dioramas, Gkouskou, Eirini & Tunnicliffe, Sue Dale.- 2)  Learning to Teach Newcomer Students Using Dioramas of North America, Macdonald, Maritza, Altman, Roberta & Holmes, Jay.- 3)      Neitscher, Window to Nature - MuseobilBOX-Dioramas, Eva & Weon Kettenhofen, Hae-Yon.- 4) Rethinking Natural History Dioramas: Bundling the Needs of Neuro-diverse and Neurotypical Visitors, Gabriel, Paul.- 5)  The Digital Diorama Project: A New Way of Exploring Dioramas from Outside of the Museum Setting, Annastella Gambini.- Section 2. Problematic Aspects of Dioramas.- 6)  Life, Living and Lifelessness in Taxidermy , Meehitiya, Luanne, Sanders, Dawn & Hohenstein, Jill.- 7)  Cultural Conflict: The Stories Dioramas Tell and Don’t Tell, Ash, Doris.- 8) Intended and Realised Biological Themes of Dioramas - an International Comparison, Achiam, Marianne & Marandino, Martha.- Section 3. Connecting People with the Natural World through Dioramas.- 9) Promoting People’s Connection with Nature through Natural History Displays, McGhie, Henry.- 10) Receiving the Message, Scheersoi, Annette & Weiser, Lara.- 11) Your Last Chance to See?, Dunmall, Keith.- 12) Teaching and Learning Biodiversity with Dioramas, Marandino, Martha, Achiam, Marianne, Bueno, Juliana & Laurini, Carolina.- Conclusion - The relevance of natural history dioramas for sociocultural issues, Reiss, Michael.