Sounds like a good research project. Variables include staff size (including volunteers), fragility of items on exhibit, exhibit layout, square footage of classroom / gallery space, program supplies, and more. I'm assuming your focus is student, not adult groups. I used to work in a museum that accommodates 120 students without blinking. Our Interpretive Center exhibit gallery comfortably holds 30 at one time without resorting to starting some at the end of the gallery and others at the beginning. Our log cabin accommodates a dozen visitors.
We juggle groups by having options for two to three different simultaneous activities - one for each class (up to 31 students). That gives us a maximum capacity of 90 students (and the cabin is not part of that program). Sure, we can put 100 on the fossil beds, but who's going to pay attention? With acres of bedrock, students run around like it's a gymnasium! With help from our trained volunteers, we can keep groups small and occupied. It makes for a high-quality program and avoiding burnout, two important goals.
When we get requests for 95+ students, we ask them to split and do an activity elsewhere with half the group. (For instance, half come in the morning and the other mid-day.) Unfortunately, when we get requests for 120 students for a 2-hour visit, we must politely turn them down. Our facility cannot safely hold a huge group, not to mention our small staff size trying to keep them focused.
It is important to establish a group capacity that will avoid personnel burnout and problems from insufficient supervision. I think you are doing what works best for the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum!
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Alan Goldstein
Interpretive Naturalist, CIP
Falls of the Ohio State Park / Interpretive Center
Clarksville IN
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Original Message:
Sent: 06-21-2018 06:00 PM
From: Megan Poole
Subject: Studies on Field Trip Group Sizes
Hello All!
I am working on a report regarding our field trip visitation over the course of the past five years. We have gradually restricted the number of students allowed to visit for a single field trip in order to create smaller group sizes for our volunteer educators. Our program has improved dramatically and our volunteer retention has also improved! For this report I am referencing studies on elementary classroom sizes but have not found anything specific to museums and field trips. Any ideas you can send my way?
Thank you!
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Megan Poole
Program Coordinator
Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum
Colorado Springs CO
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