Chapter 3 - Learning

Summary

To situate learners within the unique context of zoos and aquariums, and the zoo as a conservation learning tool, Chapter 3 considers these institutions from the perspective of those it serves. Zoogoers’ perceptions, motivations, priorities, and preexisting conservation-related knowledge, concerns, and experiences are integral parts of the learning experience. Researchers have, furthermore, confirmed that zoo visitors build on, develop, and reinforce layered ideas and narratives they find personally meaningful, as they establish or negotiate connections and coherence during their on-site experiences. As such, zoogoers’ descriptions of their experiences in the zoo rarely align and tend to seem completely disconnected from the logico-deductive science learning pedagogy zoos have historically prioritized. In this chapter, we consider the many ways learning has been witnessed in zoos and why the presence of living animals may produce learning pathways unrealizable in other settings. To make these connections, we reflect on patterns that begin to unpack what appears to be happening in the minds of the very diverse people who come to the zoo. This approach allows us to describe multiple opportunities for learning, stories that are present, and, in some cases, how stories arrive with each person. We conclude that zoogoers’ emergent, on-site experiences and motivations for visiting do often converge with zoos’ conservation education goals.