Session 3 – 11th April – 15.45 – 16.35

Title of Presentation:      Widening participation through University

                                           Museums: A view from the Egypt Centre

Presenter:                        Carolyn Graves-Brown

Organisation:                  Egypt Centre, University of WalesSwansea

Summary :

Each year the general public make over two million visits to university museums in Britain. Some of these institutions have a centuries-old tradition of serving social reform and a number now see themselves as principal portals for widening participation in further and higher education. The situation has been heightened, not only by government pressure and funding, but also through changes in teaching methods, the demise of old and growth of new academic disciplines, as well as more general social and ideological transformations. Yet, astonishingly, university museums are all too often regarded by their parent bodies, and by society at large, as merely a means of gaining elitist prestige, useful only to narrow disciplines, handmaidens to individual academic departments.

This paper will summarise the greater possibilities for university museums striving to fulfil a widening participation role, and will have specific, but not exclusive, reference to Swansea’s Egypt Centre. Examples of good practice will be used to show that university museums are perfectly placed to fulfil a widening participation role because of: their traditional academic/public interface; the novelty of the museum learning environment; and the nature of object centred learning, which facilitates interdisciplinary approaches and new ways of lifelong learning for people of all abilities and social backgrounds. Museums can be inspirational for all groups, and enjoyment is a powerful learning motivator. There are of course the problems - largely of tradition, politics and resources - but in here I intend to see the cup half full, to concentrate upon the possibilities. I aim to enhance awareness of the tremendous potential of museums, to encourage the full integration of university museums in widening participation and social inclusion programmes.