Employees of the State Polytechnic Museum at NTUU "KPI" regularly participate in international educational activities that contribute to the implementation of the best international practices in the modern work of museums. In September 2014 they became participants of the training "Shaping the Future: Voices of visitors in museums", which was held in Kiev Ivan Gonchar Museum, with the support of the US Embassy in Ukraine.
The training was carried up by American and Ukrainian museum workers Linda Norris, Tricia Edwards, Igor Poshivaylo, Eugene Chervony and Tatiana Kochubinskaya representing the Smithsonian Institution (Washington, DC), the National Center of Folk Culture "Ivan Gonchar Museum" (Kyiv), the Museum of Folk Architecture and Life "Shevchenko Guy" (Lviv).
Training participants have received comprehensive information on all stages of the integration of the votes of visitors in museum exhibitions - from concept to practical interactives. Now they are free to apply unique practical tools to use visitors' votes for qualitative changes in museums and turn them into a place of active communication.
Interesting stage of training was the creative work of participants to create prototypes of simple and affordable interactive posters on certain categories of visitors and the formation of the program, taking into account their views on the development of the exposure, the content of the exhibitions the museum's collections.
The training helped participants to gain theoretical perspectives, practical tools and information support of colleagues in the use of visitors' votes for qualitative changes in museums.
After the completion of the event, each of the participants received certificate and addressed the audience with proposals for innovation, which, according to lessons learned, considers it appropriate to hold in their museums.
L.S.Bashtova, junior researcher SPM at NTUU "KPI"