Trofanenko, Brenda and Avner Segall. “Addressing the Pedagogical Purpose of Indigenous Displays: The Case of the National Museum of the American Indian.” Diaspora, Indigenous, and Minority Education: Studies of Migration, Integration, Equity, and Cultural Survival 6(3) (2012): 141-56.
In museums with Indigenous objects, the exhibits present a particular representation of the culture and history of Indigenous peoples. More recently, the move toward partnerships with Indigenous communities represents a radical departure from long-held attitudes about the relationship between Indigenous people and museums. This article both examines the permanent exhibits at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian and uses qualitative data from visitors’ experiences to explore the pedagogical nature of this museum’s exhibits and the degree to which they challenge and confirm the public’s conceptualizations of Indigenous identities. In considering the museum’s pedagogical address (Ellsworth, 2005), this article suggests the need for educators to consider what is not presented in exhibits and the degree to which what is presented obscures new understandings from the visiting public.