Creation and Validation of an Observational Tool to Assess Children's Domain-General Skills at Museum Exhibits

Research on the skills children display in museums often focuses on specific domains of knowledge and ability. However, museum exhibits also may provide opportunities for children to practice domain-general skills such as collaboration, critical thinking, and confidence. This article describes the development of a 14-item observational tool (the Museum Exhibit Skills Inventory; MESI) that may be used to measure the extent to which children display some of these domain-general skills in different hands-on museum environments. In Study 1, interrater reliability for measure items was examined. In Study 2, the results of a principal component analysis suggested a 3-factor model for the MESI. In Study 3, confirmatory factor analyses revealed good fit for both a 3-factor model and a 5-factor model, and this study demonstrated strong convergent validity between the MESI and the Scale for Teachers' Assessment of Routines Engagement (McWilliam, 2000 McWilliam, R. A. (2000). Scale for Teachers' Assessment of Routines Engagement (STARE). Chapel Hill, NC: Frank Porter Graham Child Development Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. [Google Scholar]).