Conducting museum education activities within the context of developing a nature culture in primary school students: MTA natural history museum example

Abstract

The present study, aiming to develop nature culture in primary school students and to help them to become acquainted with their close environment, is a quasi-experimental study. Museum education activities were conducted with the study group which consisted of 128 fourth-grade primary school students. At the end of the study, the students gained understanding about the significance of the Anatolian land which is rich historically and culturally and has fauna and flora specific to the land. With the activities, the students built up nature culture regarding the country they live in through acquiring information about the Maras elephant which lived in Kahramanmaras in the past. The study also tried to increase the cognitive development levels of the students in relation to developing environmental consciousness and critical thinking skills, and interpreting about natural environment they live in.