Gathering Online: A Collaborative Project with Graduate Museum Education Students During COVID-19

This chapter discusses a project designed by two faculty in their art museum education courses respectively at the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Arizona requiring students from the two institutions to collaborate with one another and develop asynchronous virtual tours exploring collections on both campuses. Prior to the pandemic, each course included a project in which students developed in-person facilitated gallery experiences at a university art museum or gallery. These projects were adapted to create a single project across universities utilising online programmes and tools to collaborate virtually. Through this project, students considered how art museums can serve as sites for intentional gatherings through asynchronous digital experiences that focus on community and connection. They engaged with their university art museums through experiential learning opportunities focused on connection, health, and care. Finally, they examined how cross-university partnerships can build opportunities for peer learning, collaboration, and experimentation through new perspectives and voices. Through this collaboration, students engaged in participatory practices and multimodal learning opportunities; they gained multiple perspectives into gallery teaching and professional experience that they can take with them in the field.