An evaluation method for exhibitions of the Maritime museum Rotterdam

This project report describes the process of the development of an evaluation process for family exhibitions in the Maritime Museum Rotterdam. It is focusing on collecting qualitative feedback from families, consisting out of children between 8 and 12 years old and their parent or grandparents. The Maritime Museum Rotterdam has various interactive exhibitions which learn their visitors about the maritime world. The museum was looking for a way to get qualitative feedback from their visitors about these exhibitions. The museum wants to learn what contributes to or deducts a positive experience of their exhibitions, so they can create even more inspiring exhibitions in the future. The assignment for this project is to design a tool-box, containing all elements needed to conduct a successful qualitative evaluation of a family exhibition. The Sea monster exhibition in the Maritime Museum was chosen to be a test-case for this project. During the project, several methods for gaining feedback were explored. It was decided to build an evaluation process around the concept of a heat-map which shows what areas visitors do or don’t like. The method that was chosen to collect the data to create the heat-map is experience sampling. During the exhibition visit, visitors are asked to give a small sample of feedback. They can do this by pressing a smiley that indicates how much they like what they are doing or seeing at that moment on a special developed tracking device. This device also keeps track of the location of the visitors. A line, showing the route of the visitors and the given feedback samples will be created from this information. For this concept, a framework of the evaluation process was created. In this framework, two tracks were distinguished. One track, called version 1 in this project, collects the route and feedback samples of over a hundred visitors. An interactive stand will ask automated questions based on this data. The other track, called version 2 in this project, only involves five families. A heat-map is created for each family member and based on the heat-map an interview is held. A process poster was developed which shows all steps of both tracks. However, the focus during the project was on this last track, version 2. The tracking device (the tool), the interview, and the analysis and communication of version 2 were developed further. Several tests were done to find the characteristic the portable tracking device should meet to collect the right data to create a heat-map that can be used to structure the interview. In the final design, a working prototype of the tracking device was created. Besides that, an interview guide was developed containing all information needed to conduct an interview, based on the heat-map. Lastly, all steps of the analysis and communication were distinguished and finding-cards were designed To validate the concept, various tests were done to evaluate the evaluation process.Design for Interactio