Visitor Research & Evaluation

Josh Gutwill is the Director of Visitor Research and Evaluation. His work includes research on learning in informal environments as well as evaluation of exhibits and programs to improve visitors' experiences. He is interested in fostering and studying learners' self-directed inquiry in science museum settings through research that is jointly negotiated with museum practitioners. His recent projects include investigating exhibit designs that foster metacognition about social interactions, studying STEM learning during Making activities, and assessing the impact of science museum visitation on young adults' self-efficacy. Also serving as the Exploratorium's Human Subjects Protection Officer, Josh ensures that research and evaluation participants are treated ethically and respectfully in Exploratorium studies and has developed effective methods for gaining informed consent in informal environments. He received his PhD in science education from U.C. Berkeley in 1996.

Joshua Gutwill's CV

Joyce Ma is a Senior Researcher in Visitor Research and Evaluation. Her work involves characterizing the visitor experience in order to inform exhibit and program development and better understand the nature of informal learning at our museum. She is currently a co-PI on multiple projects looking at ways to use and adapt scientific tools and advance technologies for museum visitors and the visitor studies field. Before joining the Exploratorium, Joyce was in the Learning Sciences Program at Northwestern University. She worked in the Qualitative Reasoning Group, headed by Professor Ken Forbus, where she conducted research on mental models, analogical reasoning, and computer-based learning environments, specifically those that scaffold students in building and testing system models. Joyce is interested in understanding how people make sense of scientific and technical domains and in developing innovative learning environments as informed by cognitive research.

Joyce Ma's CV

Veronica Garcia-Luis is a Project Director in Visitor Research and Evaluation. Her scope of evaluation work includes exhibit development, public programming, orientation and wayfinding, and audience development. Before joining the Exploratorium in 1997, Veronica was a museum educator at the Fowler Museum of Cultural History in Los Angeles, where she explored object-based programming with a wide range of audiences. She then went on to receive her MA in museum studies from John F. Kennedy University in 1997, where she investigated how museums can create effective partnerships with urban Latino families. Veronica is very enthusiastic about creating accessible learning environments for diverse audiences.

Veronica Garcia-Luis's CV

Toni Dancstep (née Dancu) is a Senior Researcher in Visitor Research and Evaluation, and the Principal Investigator on an NSF Advancing Informal STEM Learning grant. The looks of wonder and shrieks of surprise that fill the Exploratorium inspire her to better understand the visitor experience, and to help ensure that challenging moments at exhibits are motivating rather than discouraging. She uses her developmental psychology background to identify research designs and methods that address questions about better engaging underserved audiences, such as females and the Latino community; and the effects of exhibit characteristics on visitors' exhibit use, time spent, conversations, and skills practice (e.g., spatial reasoning or metacognitive skills). In order to help create intuitive and engaging experiences that reflect exhibit developers' intentions, Toni conducts formative evaluations that fold visitors' voices into the process. She often provides statistical consulting within the department and the visitor studies community. Prior to joining the Exploratorium, Toni interned at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) and the Institute for Learning Innovation.

Toni Dancstep's CV

Nina Hido is a Project Director and Evaluator in Visitor Research and Evaluation. Her work involves research on learning in informal environments with a focus on the evaluation of exhibits and programs to improve the experience for visitors of all ages and backgrounds. These projects include the Science of Sharing, The Tinkering Studio Learning Dimensions Framework, the Geometry Playground exhibition, and the Active Prolonged Engagement (APE) set of exhibits. Nina is especially interested in how intuitive design can create accessible learning experiences. Nina holds a BA in psychology from U.C. San Diego. Nina's favorite childhood pastime was to quietly observe the behavior of those around her and she feels fortunate to spend her days working to understand and assess the nature of learning and play at the museum.

Rosario Sotelo is a Bilingual Research and Evaluation Assistant. She assists with marketing research, mainly recruiting visitors to provide survey responses about their experience in the museum. Prior to joining the museum she was a customer service associate at the de Young Museum and a visitor services associate at the Mexican Museum both in San Francisco. Rosario holds an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute. Her personal films have screened at the New York Film Festival, Laboratorio Arte Alameda in Mexico City, the REDCAT in Los Angeles, and Guatemala’s Biennial among other venues. Her film Recámara is part of the Exploratorium Film Collection.

Meghan Kroning is the Project Coordinator for Visitor Research and Evaluation. In 2014, she earned an MA in Museum Studies from San Francisco State University with a focus on visitor-centric organizational practices. Her thesis explored how museums' internal culture and values affect the quality of services for visitors. Shortly thereafter, Meghan began working with the Exploratorium on the Exhibit Design for Girls' Engagement (EDGE) project. She has since devoted her keen attention to detail and passion for crafting positive museum experiences to other research studies, exhibit evaluations, wayfinding projects, and behind-the-scenes administrative support.