The problem under analysis is based on the provision that a science museum is the space of nonformal education embracing scientific communication and presentation of scientific phenomena to the public. The aim of the research is to present possible solutions for construction of the educational content of public museums in the context of Lithuanian museums in the process of transformation and the movement of science museums so that they would offer opportunities to perform science education and communication to the public more effectively. In the course of the aim realisation, the analysis of Lithuanian museum expositions and their websites was carried out. 

In 2017, in Lithuania there were 103 museums with the character determined by the departmental-administrative subordination, but not by the typology of the activity content. Therefore, it is difficult to identify the type of individual science museums especially if it is related to the disclosure of scientific phenomena or science communication and non-formal science education. Though there is no tradition of the concept of science museums and science centres in Lithuania, some museums position themselves partly as performing science education and disclosing certain phenomena of science and technologies (Energy and Technology museum, Medicine and Pharmacy museum, Anatomy museum, Zoology museum, Sea mueum, Money museum, Radio and Television museum, Atomic Bunker museum, Ethnocosmology museum). The analysis of 9 museums expositions and public websites’ content showed that their concepts differ significantly from the worldwide concept of a science centre or science museum. The museums offer a huge number of educational programmes for different groups, but there is lack of interaction between entertainment and education.

When discussing the identity of contemporary scientific museums, it is often defined in contradiction to a science centre (2). A science museum usually has objects of historical value and belongs to the area of heritage. A science centre most often does not have any collection and is made of an interactive exposition meant for “live” exploration of scientific phenomena.  

The new tendency emerges as science museums incorporate the science centre as a structural part. The science museum is acquiring features of the science centre. Therefore, it can be said that science museums construct their identity in reference to several concepts and models – the hybridization of the identity is taking place. The concept of the Science Centre embraces such features as a move from artefacts having historical value and object-based epistemology to education and focus on a visitor’s learning, closer ties with local and surrounding community, empowerment of the visitor, links to formal education and aiming at educational outcomes, focus on leisure attractions and edutainment (education + entertainment) (1, 3, 2, 4).

At the same time this approach of empowering the visitor differs from ‘didactical paradigm’ in traditional teaching since the educational goal is less clear in science centres and there is a less stress on didactic teaching; very often sciences centres’ exhibitions are criticized as being thematically eclectic assemblies of interactive exhibits without strong storylines (1, 5).

Exhibitions and activities around science centres are organised for and in cooperation with local educational institutions and scientists, pupils, student and others by solving distinct local problems (2).

Science centres as a space and environment for informal learning maintain connection and links to formal education by creating supplementing activities which complement formal curriculum. Many science centres besides their main exhibitions have educational programs, workshops and lectures, laboratories, science theatres and camps. 

To collect the research data, expositions of individual Lithuanian museums, presenting scientific and social phenomena – Money museum, Pharmacy and Medicine museum, Anatomy museum, Zoology museum, Sea museum, Energy and Technology museum, Radio and Television museum, Atomic Bunker museum, Ethnocosmology museum were analysed. In order to disclose the new and changing identity of science museums, we resorted to the above mentioned features of science centres and new science museums: presentation of the scientific phenomenon and object; educational content (what knowledge is presented and how it is constructed), how the museum exposition complies with the concept of a scientific object and adds to the curriculum; what learner and visitor groups museums target, how they differentiate the content according to target groups and what educational effect they want to achieve; “science as fun” elements, what means are used to involve museum visitors into object cognition processes and how they facilitate knowledge acquisition and increase the attractiveness of the science object; multi-sensory experiences and the hands-on interactivity (‘science as doing’); link to local communities.

The analysis of 9 Lithuanian museum exposition discloses the fact that Lithuanian museums are going through the development of their identity, are turning into modern science museums and are joining the so called “science centres movement” [1]. Research results show that 3 Lithuanian museums (Medicine and Pharmacy, Anatomy and Zoology) comply with the notion of the 'first generation museum' which is represented by traditional technical or heritage museums that are object-oriented. It is interesting to observe that the mentioned museums are not public in the direct sense as they belong to the Health University and are first of all meant for student education. All three museums, in addition to exhibit preservation, emphasise the educational function and keep to traditional science didactic principles (knowledge classification when a systematic knowledge collection is presented). The museum of Zoology, though public (with different target groups) has a strict didactic frame (classification of animal kinds), lacks entertainment and, therefore, realises the logic of traditional learning. Other museums under research (Radio and Television, Energy and Technology, Ethnocosmology, Sea and Money museums, Atomic Bunker) have clear features allowing them to be classified as the third generation of modern museums when together with the didactic access the area of certain science and knowledge is presented in a systematic way with the help of the principles of classification and historical development and the concept of “science –as-doing” or “science-as-fun”. It also connects the phenomena of the presented science in a broader historical and cultural context, relates the exposition with the interests and activities of local communities. Together with traditional museum functions (preservation and display of artefacts, a strong traditional didactic frame), these museums successfully integrated a new role – “science-as-doing” and “science-as-fun” when the exposition gives the visitors enjoyable experience.

[1]A. Tlili, A. Cribb & Sh. Gewirtz, „What Becomes of Science in a Science Centre? Reconfiguring Science for Public Consumption“, The Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies, vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 203-228, 2006. [2]E. Pedretti, „T. Kuhn Meets T. Rex: Critical Conversations and New Directions in Science Centres and Science Museums“, Studies in Science Education, vol.37, no. 1, pp. 1-41, 2002. [3]J.G. Beetlestone, C.H. Johnson, M. Quin and H. White, “The Science Center Movement: contexts, practice, next challenges“, Public Understanding of Science, vol. 7, pp. 5 – 26, 1998. [4]M. Achiam, & J. Sølberg, „Nine meta-functions for science museums and science centres“. Museum Management and Curatorship, vol 32, no. 2, pp. 123-143., 2017. [5]É. Dubuc, (2011) “Museum and university mutations: the relationship between museum practices and museum studies in the era of interdisciplinarity, professionalisation, globalisation and new technologies“, Museum Management and Curatorship, vol. 26, no. 5, pp. 497-508, 2011.