International Journal of Education & the Arts

Citation: Mamvuto, A. & Samwanda, B. (2023). Museum, a space for [a]culturing authentic aesthetic sensibilities. International Journal of Education & the Arts, 24(si1.5). http://doi.org/10.26209/ijea24si1.5

This exploratory paper examines the critical role of a museum in Zimbabwe, for the provision of educational programs for learning about aesthetics, which, we argue, is critical for understanding art objects and their contexts. It provides insights into how the museum space extends the school art curriculum. As an institution laden with cultural objects that can lead to increased understanding of cultures and societies, we propose strategies for engaging learners in critical, reflective and experiential learning guided by the scholarship of museum educators in collaboration with teachers. Issues covered in the paper include: observing how museum visitors, including students, reconstruct meaning; programming collaborative activities in a museum; fostering aesthetic and social encounters with visual objects; and promoting stakeholder partnerships between museums and schools. The overall objective of the paper is to describe how, in Zimbabwe, we foster experiential learning for the museum visitor.