Good Vibes, Interesting History: Teen Programs in Museums

Abstract

While there is significant body of literature on teen programs in museums, there have been no studies that thoroughly examine teen programs in history museums. This qualitative study describes the characteristics and dimensions of teen programs in history museums. The research focuses on three award-winning programs: the Student Historians program at New-York Historical Society, the Teen Innovators program at Brooklyn Historical Society, and the Teens Make History program at the Missouri History Museum. These programs have many of the same characteristics and dimensions as teen programs at other types of museums. However, these programs intentionally incorporate the study of history and the specific nature of a history museum into their development and facilitation. Additionally, these programs appear to impact both the general youth development of the teenage participants, as well as their historical literacy. These findings can be used to facilitate conversations between history museums who already have or wish to develop programming for teenagers, as well as provide a baseline for future studies.