EDUCATIONAL POTENTIAL OF MUSEUM'S ONLINE LEARNING RESOURCES IN SERBIA

Abstract

The time of the pandemic caused by the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) accelerated the development of the digital dimension of museums, while those institutions were faced with the challenges of educational activities in new circumstances. The subject of this research relates to the pedagogical potential of the digital environment and the possibilities of online learning in museums in Serbia. The examination continues on earlier research, with the aim of analyzing the pedagogical potential of the museum's online learning resources for children from preschool to high school age. The objective is also to analyze the changes that occurred in relation to the situation that was relevant at the time of the coronavirus pandemic. In the first part of the paper, the problem of online learning in museums and galleries is reviewed through theoretical analysis; to be more precise, the characteristics of the online educational environment are analyzed and synthesized. In the second part of the paper, data collected from the websites of selected museums and galleries in Serbia are analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively, according to the pre- formulated criteria that represents an appropriate combination of several indicators of the quality of the online educational environment. The research was carried out on a sample of museums which take part in the relevant portals that ensure the visibility of information about cultural heritage and cultural institutions on the territory of the Republic of Serbia, with the expectation that the results of the research will reveal several technological, pedagogical and social challenges. Focusing on pedagogical challenges, the discussion of the collected data is aimed at evaluating online educational activities in museums in Serbia. It can be concluded that the use of digital tools provides museums with new opportunities in the realization of their pedagogical potential, having in mind that the museum's online learning resources were more relevant during the pandemic caused by the coronavirus.