Bridging contexts and interpretations: Mobile blogging on art museum field trips

Abstract

In this study of art museum field trips by high school students, we investigate the ways in which features of different social and mobile technologies, specifically blogs and mobile phones, are able to bridge and support meaning making in young people’s encounters with contemporary art. Empirical material is presented from Gidder, a web-based learning environment with a mobile blogging feature. Through close examination of students’ use of contextual resources and the writing and editing of blog entries, this study contributes a deeper understanding of the ways in which digital technologies may be designed for pedagogical use on museum field trips.