Climax Molybdenum Mine Project

Climax Molybdenum Mine : 

Climax Molybdenum Mine A Project presented to the Department of Instructional Design and Technology Emporia State University by Annie Tholen Butler in Partial Fulfillment of Requirements for the Degree Master of Science May, 2009

Emporia State University : 

Emporia State University I would like to acknowledge the support I have received from the Emporia State Instructional Design Department Dr. Marcus Childress, Chair Dr. Harvey Foyle, IT899 Academic Oversight Climax Mine Project Committee Members: Dr. Harvey Foyle, Dr. Janet Holland, Annie T. Butler

How do you tell a story that spans 1.8 billion years? : 

How do you tell a story that spans 1.8 billion years? Time Forces of Nature Forces of Man

Project Overview : 

Project Overview National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum The National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum located in Leadville, Colorado is dedicated to honoring the mining industry and the men and women who pioneered the discovery, development and processing of our nation’s natural resources. The Museum Director would like to add a new exhibit featuring the Climax Molybdenum Mine. This exhibit is the focus of my Instructional Design Project.

Project Background : 

Project Background The Mining Museum wishes to add a new exhibit featuring the Climax Mine. The design should complement existing exhibits: Mineral Collection Realistic Walk-Through Mine Replica Dioramas Quartz Wall Mining Artifacts

Clients : 

Clients

The Challenge : 

The Challenge

The Process : 

The Process Interviews with museum director, curator and staff Interviews of former Climax Employees Ted Mullings, Tom Cherrier, David Dunn, and Charlie Marshall Research of existing Museum artifacts, Climax resources “If only rocks could tell their own story.”

The Process Continues… : 

The Process Continues… Research of Climax history and traditions Research of document availability Analysis of visitors Analysis of exhibit location, resources Interviews of former Climax Employees, Steven Voynick, author of Climax, The History of Colorado’s Climax Molybdenum Mine

Roadblocks : 

Roadblocks Roadblock #1 " NO CONTENT "

Design Model : 

Design Model

Resources : 

Resources Subject Matter Experts from Climax Mine Subject Matter Experts from the Museum Instructional Design faculty and students at ESU

Roadblocks : 

Roadblocks Roadblock #2 " COPYRIGHT LAW "

Learning Objectives : 

Learning Objectives Visitor will gain an understanding of how rocks are formed and how molybdenum was created Visitor will celebrate the history of discovery of molybdenum Visitor will experience mining processes of the Climax Mine Visitor will learn current uses and trends for molybdenum Colorado Standards of Science Education Standard 4 will be incorporated into display materials Learning sequence will explore the “unexpected” element of surprise in exhibit layout for a more engaging less predictable display Media selection may follow a series of phases. Phase 1 will include paper or digitized media and audio format for narrative. Phase 2 will include video media. Phase 3 will include interactive computer-based simulations. This design will concentrate on Phase 1.

Design : 

Design Design will consider computer-based, web-based, visual and audio media, along with existing museum artifacts to “tell the story” of the Climax Mine Location of the exhibit will be the Frost Gallery located on the ground floor of the museum

Development : 

Development Review existing Mining artifacts Existing Museum displays Investigate proposed exhibit site in Frost Gallery space size (51ft.long x21ft. 8 in. wide) Site has 13 electrical outlets, 12 track spots, 6 double panel fluorescent

Implementation : 

Implementation I used rapid-prototyping for the implementation plan. Museum visitors would have the opportunity to view a number of Climax training materials and have the audible sound of training for miners and use of equipment presented as they progress through the exhibit. The proposed deliverable venue is to use 32” sound domes. They fit nicely into the existing area for the exhibit. The drawbacks currently, as with any audio delivery method, are that they can be difficult and expensive to revisit. I have recommended that they be developed in shorter sequence format so if changes must be made the entire audio need not be revisited. The choice of using existing audio training tapes from the Climax Mine is also pending administrative decision. We have yet to identify who would sign off on their use in this public forum. The current owner of the mine and the sponsor of the exhibit must review the information as well.

Implementation : 

Implementation Printed information should be filtered through a fifth grade reading level for the general public. A portion of the printed information can be of a technical nature and an administrative decision to find such a “translator” has not yet been made. As referenced in Trends and Issues of Instructional Design, there are a number of conditions which must be present for the implementation of a design to work well and successfully. In this design I must evaluate many of these conditions as not having been met. I believe they must be addressed in this implementation process and am working on them currently.

Conditions for Successful Implementation : 

Conditions for Successful Implementation The Museum Board of Directors has expressed a desire for this exhibit to offer a broader appeal to the public in a more interactive manner. Museum goers can “hear” without difficulty an audio message presented in the exhibit. An important condition is the resources availability. Freeport has indicated they would fund the exhibit. As far as the actual audio itself, it is still pending the “gift” or presentation by the Climax Mine of the tapes. A condition of participation is critical to successful implementation. The museum director, the Climax Mine, and legal counsel would all need to be onboard with making historical and technical information available. This condition is still pending. A condition of commitment and leadership is important and crucial to successful implementation of the design. The museum director would function as a “broker” of sorts in this case to keep this project moving forward. It is not so much an issue of support, but rather of time.

Evaluation : 

Evaluation Determining the overall patron satisfaction at the Mining Museum has generally been to observe a “smiley face” of patrons on the way out the door. This will be continued with staff noting visitor satisfaction. I have proposed a summative evaluation for the Climax Exhibit. It could serve many important functions. The data would indicate how many visitors used to work at the mine, how many have no knowledge about the mine and if they have visited the website prior to their physical visit. It would also provide museum with information about favorite, or more popular components of the exhibit. This data would be helpful in maintaining and upgrading current and future exhibits.

Special Thanks to: : 

Special Thanks to: Ted Mullings, former graphic artist at Climax Mine Charlie Marshall, former trainer at Climax Mine Tom Cherrier, former Public Relations Director at Climax Mine Steven Voynick, author of Climax, The History of Colorado’s Climax Molybdenum Mine Bob Hartzell, National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum Director Kathleen Neilson, Curator of Mining Museum Marsha Carter, Museum logo designer

References : 

References Morrison, G.R., Ross, S.M., & Kemp, J.E. (2004). Designing Effective Instruction (4th ed). Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. Reiser, R.A., Dempsey, J.V. (2007.) Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology. Pearson Prentice Hall.

National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum : 

National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum