Miranda Millward
I am a museum and gallery educator and hold an MA in Museum Studies from London University. I currently work in the Education Team at the Oxford University Museums.
Location Oxford, U.K.
Activity
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
Hello - my name is Miranda and I work for the Oxford University Gardens Libraries and Museums. I work accross all seven sites delivering a wide ranging programme of learning for students at a local SEND Secondary School. The school will stay open owing to all children having EHCPs. I am looking for ways I can keep in touch with the students and teachers I work...
-
Hi Mary - I think I was particularly lucky that sweets for me is a rich area of memories because of my family history but it was unexpected how deeply I thought back to the factory - it's been a really long time since I did and memory is just so powerful....
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
My two favourite comments were that the 'museum of the future should always be by your side' and that 'the museum of the future will still have dinosaurs'
I don't know whether I agree with all of this but writer Orhan Pamuk says in the Innocence of Objects that 'the future of museums is inside our own homes' as we move from:
What we had - What we...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
Even with an MA it's quite tough to find a job at the moment certainly in Museum Education. I'm really lucky to have a job at an amazing MPM and my role often takes me out to meetings and advocacy events and I often meet young women who really want information on how to secure a job in the museum sector (they often have MAs and lots of volunteering...
-
I loved the idea of museums being immersive spaces, imaginative spaces and spaces which give the 'flavour of experience'! Museums are absolutely 'a project in motion' and need to be to maintain relevance and connect with audiences. The idea of the 'cross platform' really resonates with me - the museums I work at have so much going on to satisfy a number of...
-
I really enjoyed Janet Marstine's thoughts about the notion of the relational within museums and galleries. Objects are still important but there is a growing emphasis on and importance attached to relationships between people. I am really interested that the Museums Association is re-writing it's code of ethics to underline that museums should aim to be...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I agree with lots of comments below - volunteers are crucial and do some really useful and beneficial work within museums, front of house are often people's first experience of a museum and it would be good to know more about the backgrounds of museum professionals and how their careers have evolved. I'm often asked how I got into museum work and how I have my...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I suspect the majority of museums only have a tiny fraction of their collections on display at any one time and digitised archives enable researchers and others with an interest to browse the full collection. I d agree that seeing a virtual object is different from seeing the real thing but for some who can't for whatever reason see the real thing it great to...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
Thank you for showing me the 'Museum of Broken Relationships'. Course participants might also be interested in Orhan Pamuk's The Museum of Innocence and The Innocence of Objects.
'The meanings and values ascribed to an object tend to change as its contexts change. As this process continues over time, a rich, multi-layered set of sometimes complementary and...
-
Hi Timothy - I've used this resource too but used a disposable plastic cup. It does get groups thinking and talking!
-
Thank you Viv - I think I'll need to re read or listen to you a few more times before I get the full impact of 'museum frontiers'. What you did make me do unexpectedly on a Sunday afternoon was to think about the sweet factory my grandfather ran until he retired when I was around 7 years old. I didn't need to have the sweets in front of me I could see, smell...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I think museums have huge power and how they use that power is really important. I think the MOOC has shown this again and again. I think most importantly museums have the power to change societal narratives just as the media and other cultural outlets do. I think museums can support and engage visitors and promote change. How they do this is absolutely about...
-
Hi Timothy - you might be interested in reading 'Cities, Museums and Soft Power by Gail Dexter Lord. It's just been recently published and my copy arrived yesterday although no time for reading until I've finished the MOOC!
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I've already said how much I've got out of this week - it's given me lots to think about and possibly implement in my work. I really enjoyed the House of Memories app - it's hard to imagine the partners in that project coming up with it on their own so it really illustrated the value of expert partnerships and how much museums and health and wellbeing...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
This is a bit of a cheat - I put a lot of what I thought for this section into my last comment so here it is again! I have really enjoyed this part of the MOOC - I am lucky enough to have been involved in a number of projects that have had a health and wellbeing component and I know how powerful they can be for the participants and how much myself and my...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I have really enjoyed this part of the MOOC - I am lucky enough to have been involved in a number of projects that have had a health and wellbeing component and I know how powerful they can be for the participants and how much myself and my colleagues have gained from delivering them (our well being is often enhanced). It's been good to find out more about...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I'm all for any easy to use, eye catching evaluation tool that allows for robust data to be collected. The umbrellas may look simple but as the article above says they are best used with large data sets to gather the most accurate information. A lot of thought has gone into these from people who understand how health care is evaluated - if this in turns...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I can see this toolkit being really useful and it is so good to have something that is free to access that has been created specifically with wellbeing and health in mind. I can imagine this is a really helpful tool for project partners from museums and their health care colleagues to use as it yields both qualitative and quantitative data - the former is...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I guess what is good about the umbrellas is that they offer a quick and simple way of capturing data from a range of participants - they give a numerical score and can measure 'distance travelled' and they would be easy for a facilitator to use with a group. My reservation is how reliable is the data as one person's score of or idea of 5 might not match...
-
Hi Bill - I'm originally from Nantwich and I'll look out for the Nantwich at Play exhibition when I'm home over the summer! I remember lots of happy childhood trips to the museum when I was a child and my oldest son says it's his favourite museum despite me working for an MPM which has word class collections!
-
Miranda Millward replied to Jo H
I also agree the Personal Meaning Mapping works really well but is resource heavy - you should also follow up a number of weeks or months after the visit too to add to the map and this third phase of data is often very hard to collect - it's this part of the mapping that collects the longer term impact. A questionnaire can also be useful but the questions...
-
I think museums can offer a huge amount in the arena of health and wellbeing. I agree that it might not be a suitable area of work or a priority for every museum but I believe that most if they wanted to and had the resources could work with other groups who are expert on a health or wellbeing issue and develop some innovative work for groups that may...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
The film was really moving and it was great to see the people with Alzheimers, their carers and the care workers who look after them all enjoying using the app and saying how beneficial it had been. I think again this comes down to collaboration - the care workers were clearly saying that the app was a new way of engaging with their service users and I think...
-
Again reading the article this stands out for me: 'Museums are expert at looking after memories (from yesterday or from a thousand years ago). This unique approach is the first of its kind in the UK enabling museums, health and social care providers to work together to deliver an imaginative and accessible ‘whole community’ dementia awareness experience'....
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I think the key paragraph in the article for me is: 'HIV is a condition which most frequently affects those from groups that are most excluded from society and public attitudes to HIV can often be highly stigmatising. Over the course of the last 30 years HIV has brought together people from a rich diversity of backgrounds but whose stories are unheard.' This...
-
I think it's very well acknowledged by education researchers such as Professor John Hattie that within classrooms as well as other educational settings a huge amount of learning takes place peer to peer and in this case it also seems to have worked well. As to why this type of health intervention has happened in a museum one needs to consider it as part of the...
-
What a great use of the archive - relevant and rooted in the locality and also acting on a significant local health issue.
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
Thank you - it's been another interesting week with lots to reflect on. I think this week looked a lot at telling and re-telling stories ... I think any stories especially those that contain or reflect on issues that are possibly difficult or divisive can help people find their common humanity and reflect on common ground rather than on what is different or...
-
'connect, be active, take notice, keep learning and give' ... I think you can apply these to lots of areas of your life and that museums can help you potentially achieve all five of these...
-
'Partnerships need to be nurtured and negotiated. Time for thinking through ideas and finding common ground is essential, as it can lead to new ways of thinking that benefits both partners'... I really agree with this statement - a meaningful partnership can bring so many benefits to the organisations and individuals involved...
-
I don't think what's being advocated here is that say Tate Modern suddenly has a public health exhibition in the Turbine Hall - that wouldn't be right for them as an institution or for the visitors they serve but an exhibition with a public heath theme would however work in say The Science Museum. In Stephen Weil's Making Museums Matter (2002) he advocates...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I think museums can offer a 'safe' place to consider ideas on health. Of course we all have access to lots of media - news reports, TV documentaries etc which tell us about how smoking or obesity are bad for our health BUT museums allow an informal learning environment which compliments other factual media which people might be exposed to. Museums can offer a...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
A number of the comments below note that museums are inspiring places that create a feel good factor where one can learn or do research. These things in turn can benefit well being for those people. Not all audiences have the same ability to access a museum collection - I think the idea of wider wellbeing and museums comes from enabling, supporting and helping...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I am absolutely convinced museums can contribute to health and wellbeing. I ve seen directly through projects I ve worked on how much some people can benefit from carefully planned project work where museums often partner with organizations who are specialists in working with certain groups of people eg Alzheimer's suffers and their carers. I haven't looked...
-
Miranda Millward replied to Belinda Day
I agree with Belinda - I still think many museums can engage with many of these social justice issues if they want to and they have enough resources and staff that are trained to deal with difficult issues or groups that need additional support. I don't think this section of the course is at all implying that all museums should be dealing with all of the...
-
I too love the word INCLUSEUM! I hadn't seen the SJAM charter before but it makes a lot of sense...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I think it is so positive that the bowl was put on display. I think since it was displayed nearly 20 years ago society has made great progress in accepting same sex relationships including same sex marriage. I think the text that accompanies the bowl is very moving and a beautiful tribute - anyone who has been in love or lost their soul mate would understand...
-
What I take away from this is that I think Mat is asking for 'rounded' interpretation of disability. Interpretation and display that as well as including say the factual and or the medical includes the social and emotional so people can better understand and get a fuller picture of the issues raised. To me this seems to be such a sensible and obviously correct...
-
I think all groups need to feel some sort of ownership of how they are represented - that it tells their story. Mat makes a great point about the video of Terry Wiles being viewed as first as medicalised imagery and then secondly with a social commentary by Terry himself. It certainly changes what we see and reminds us to question what we are presented with...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
This is an amazing and very timely exhibition considering today's political climate. The Migration Museum Project currently does not have a permanent venue and I do like the idea of this exhibition or other projects they pursue having a migratory or pop up presence as I think the issues they deal with are really important and deserve to be seen by as wider an...
-
Of course I'd encourage a school to take part in these activities and visit the museum - it would be a powerful and memorable experience that I suspect would be remembered forever.
-
I really enjoyed the video and hearing about the museum form it's director - you get a true sense of what its vision and purpose is. One thing that interests me is that the museum sits on the Liverpool Hate Crime Forum and is the only cultural organisation to do this. It would be really good to know which member of staff represents the museum and also how has...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
In theory museums could of course be involved with all of the things listed - they all seemed very commendable but I suspect in real practical terms it won't be possible. I know museums can have some amazing life changing impacts on some people who engage with them especially via special projects but these projects often need additional funding and skilled...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I think the vast majority of museums work hard to try and tell the truth and have balanced and honest interpretation. I think many people would view museums as safe places to explore emotions and difficult themes. People's emotions are inseparable from their personal context and narrative so one exhibit may upset one person more than another. I was interested...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I agree with many of the comments below - I don't think this exhibit deliberately sets out to shock - it tells the truth and the truth is shocking. It is displayed within context and I think the subject matter of the whole museum is is hard to read about and look at and will in places be shocking, disturbing and distressing. There have been many recent reports...
-
I think museums do need to acknowledge the good and the bad when it relates to their collections or their remit. The Museum of Liverpool seems to have handled this well. I'd be interested to know if before the exhibition opened they had a strategy about what to do if there were complaints or criticisms.
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I guess staging an exhibition like this at this time allows museums to gather oral histories from this who were involved in the last decades of the programme to help contextualise the archival materials that already exist. I also agree with the comment below that this fits in with current governmental cultures of apology. I found the website hugely moving - I...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I think we have cultural narratives and histories and sometimes these become epic stories within our minds and we lose our reference to 'real' past events rather than stories. I say 'real' past events because we can never be 100% sure of what is truth and what has risen up around the truth as epic myth or story. I guess being confronted with 'the real jacket...
-
I think it's really interesting how this section of the MOOC is laid out. It has an emotional build from the innocent and almost mundane writing of the letter by a child to their father - gradually there is a drip feed of detail from finding out the father is in Belfast, taking up a job on a White Star Liner and then the gradual and sad realisation that the...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
Every visitor has a unique personal context, history and narrative which they carry with them all the time. Even in the most balanced display on any subject it's hard to know what object or display might have an emotional resonance. I guess when an exhibition tackles difficult subject matter museums have a duty and responsibility to try and do this with...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I agree with the majority of the other comments posted - the video dod not give enough information for me to make a meaningful comment.
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
This exhibition used a simple yet effective way for visitors to leave feedback. It's always good to give a space for this - did anything happen to all the post-it notes afterwards - were they recorded. They give another layer of interpretation - peer to peer - between visitors. I think being able to capture the immediate raw response in the gallery made the...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
The visitors to the exhibition clearly looked very moved and the feedback on the post-it notes indicated that this was the response of the majority of visitors. I think it was hard to get the full impact of the exhibition just watching the video because you could not see the background stories and information the interpretation would have given. Rankin's...
-
Thank you - very interesting to hear the history of The Walker Arts Gallery. I went to school near Liverpool and we often used to visit the Walker and Tate Liverpool as part of GCSE and A Level Arts classes. I was back in Liverpool last year to see the biennial and called into The Walker to see the Grayson Perry tapestries. Liverpool is really lucky to have...
-
I think anything - leaflet, back pack, map etc that can help structure a visit with children is really helpful. Sometimes collections can seem enormous and it can be hard to know where to start when you have child with you. Often giving children something to hold occupies the hands and prevents any touching of objects. A simple spot the difference activity can...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I think if museums can dedicate time and resources to working with families and the under 5s then it can be a great investment and enable an increase in visitor numbers. Children who come to the museum as part of a family grouping enable parents to spend time in the museum or gallery too. This time often generates additional secondary spend via the shop and...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I often visit museums with my children - as a museum educator I am aware of how to keep them entertained and also what activities might be on offer to occupy them. I am aware of their attention thresholds and don't attempt anything too ambitious. I try to be vigilant and ensure their behaviour does not annoy others just as in any other public space but at the...
-
In the UK I think museums work really hard to cater for families and provide relevant, age appropriate and fun programming. We recently had friends visit us from Switzerland with their 2 year old and they were amazed at the range of family events the museums local to us targeted at families and under 5s which is also free of charge. In Geneva where they live...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I think a number of posts below have captured lots of the issues I'd raise in this section. I love spending time in museums and would view a museum visit with my family or on my own as a great use of my leisure time in addition to any professional relevance it may have (I work in the museum sector). I have one friend in particular who although professional and...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I do think transport links are really useful to enabling people to visit Museums. I live in a city with an MPM made up of four museums and a NPO along with several other smaller museums. Good public transport and the ability to move between the venues on foot must really help people make visits regularly - this is probably the same in London. If you live...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
What makes a good museum for me...
Great exhibits and exhibition design
Good interpretation using a range of strategies
A great website
Easy navigation
Friendly to all visitors
Kind and helpful staff
A great retail opportunity and cafe....
A place I want to tell other people about and encourage them to visit too! -
I think it is now an expectation that any new museum or museum redevelopment will have well designed and eye catching architecture that makes the 'container' a talking point as well as the 'contents'. It's really great that so many museums make physical access and the physical experience high on the list of their priorities for visitors...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
Museums today have to work hard. They need to fight for people's precious leisure time and provide a meaningful engagement for visitors with different motivations. Physical comforts are hugely important in enabling people to spend quality time at a museum. A range of interpretative strategies and engaging activities allow all types of visitor from the...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
It's so good to hear that the Museum of Liverpool is so accessible in a physical sense and also an emotional sense. I am definitely going to visit this summer...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I'm really pleased that the city of Liverpool has a museum that fully captures it's historically rich and vibrant personality. Liverpool deserves a great museum to document it's proud history as a city and the waterfront is a fantastic location for it!
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
Maybe I'm wrong but I think possibly that project such as 'Our City Our Stories' often work best in museums with a clear social history remit or ones that are rooted firmly within their locality as a museum that document the locality. These museums give a fantastic platform for public audiences to be involved in a truly meaningful way. I think where it is...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
Of course it is magical and inspiring to see the 'real object' but digital technologies allow for greater multilayered interactions with visitors. Visitors have multiple motivations for visiting a museum whether in person or online and digital strategies allow museums to present their collections and link to visitors in different ways. Digital is one strategy...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
A truly modern museum in all senses using a range of strategies to appeal to all types of visitor and visitor motivations. I felt the video emphasised the interactive and hands on elements as if almost to dispel the notion of a museum being a stale place where visitors can't touch the exhibits or have to read lengthly interpretation panels. I felt the clips of...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I think what has made me reflect the most in the definitions is the contrast between exhibiting and preserving both the tangible and intangible within the ICOM definition. It allows for a wider interpretation of what constitutes a museum collection and a wider way audiences might interact with that collection.
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
Wikipedia defines a museum as 'an institution that cares for (conserves) a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary.' I picked Wikipedia because it's an online source and today people often search for...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
The 21 st Century Museum is or should be as David a multi layered experience. Post modernism has lead to multiple and diverse dialogues with no one authoritarian view point and museums should aim to reflect this whilst at the same time giving accurate and reliable information. Stories and interpretation are key to this so visitors own ideas and contexts can...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
I think a 21st Century Museum has or needs at its core the ability to foster and develop dialogues of all kinds between al its users whether they be staff or visitors. I think all museums see the importance of a digital presence and dialogue to connect with visitors world wide and offer new types of experience than inspire and connect people to their physical...
-
Miranda Millward made a comment
My three words are: Inspire, Connect and Context! I think all the clips had something in them that related to these three words...