School-museum partnerships for culturally responsive teaching

A dissertation study combined four case studies that examined school-museum partnerships for virtual museum projects in which students did virtual reality imaging of museum objects related to their cultures. Students also researched their selected objects with the help of museum professionals, anthropologists, and community members. Project plans also specified that students would write essays to accompany the virtual museum exhibits, but that was not always accomplished. Each case is discussed, giving a brief sampling of some of the themes that emerged from them. A composite picture of the cases provided a more comprehensive description of the innovation through nine theme categories derived from the four cases. Three of the theme categories are discussed. The four cases were also examined to see what they revealed about culturally responsive teaching. Four of the ten culturally responsive elements identified in the study are discussed.