Effects of online tours at the zoo and natural history museum on interest in extant and extinct animals

During the Corona pandemic, many extracurricular learning sites with a biological focus, such as zoos and natural history museums, were closed. In order to offer students the opportunity to visit these learning sites even under pandemic conditions, online live tours were conducted at the Senckenberg Natural History Museum and the Frankfurt Zoo. To investigate the effects of this educational format on students' individual interest in extinct prehistoric and extant animals, they were surveyed in writing in a pre/post/follow-up design. The results of the study show a mixed picture. While online tours at the zoo had very little effect on interest in extant animals, significant increases in interest in extinct animals were shown immediately after a tour at the Natural History Museum. But even these effects were not sustained, as follow-up tests demonstrated. Apparently, it is very difficult to maintain interest in animals over a longer period of time through online guided tours. Possible reasons for this are the lack of an authentic experience, the lack of a special atmosphere in the real extracurricular places of learning and the lack of a personal, tangible connection to the exhibits and live animals.