About the Project

The purpose of the Zoo Education Road Trip is to get both in-depth looks at individual zoo education programs, as well as gain a broader understanding of programs across the country by comparison.

At each zoo I will try to... 

• Tour education facilities and other education related spaces. This is so I can learn more about the physical spaces zoos use to educate. Is there a singular building for all purposes, or do you integrate amphitheaters and external classrooms? Are there exhibits devoted to education?  Where are the offices of education personnel, and are they integrated with education buildings?
• Gather information on education programs. This includes everything from camps and classes to overnight programs and volunteers. I'd like to both see some of these programs in action as well as collect any print information about them, such as forms and flyers.
• Interview education staff. This would be on topics such as their educational background, their position at the zoo, and their personal philosophies of zoo education. As I hope to work in the zoo education field in the future, I would like to learn more about how people got into the field, and what they're looking for in future candidates.
• See any visitor-animal interactions. This would include everything from petting areas in a children's zoo or barn to pay programs such as giraffe or lorikeet feedings. I am particularly interested in how visitor-animal interactions are integrated within education programs, and how those interactions which are not specifically under education departments have educational aspects.
• Tour your zoo! Time permitting, I would love to be able to see zoos as a whole as well. Education can encompass so many aspects of a zoo, including the informational plaques about each animal, and being able to tour the entire zoo would be a great addition to my project. 

What I will be doing with this information:

During each visit, I will be filming my tour, which will later be published in the form of a video blog about each experience. I understand that many zoos have procedures about filming, and I wil be happy to follow any and all of these.

I will also be publishing written blogs about my experiences. These will be generally focused and will summarize my visit to each zoo. They will also incorporate the outside sources I am using in my project.

I will link each zoo to the written blog and video blog about their zoo. The written blog will be published first, and the video blog will be published later, as I will be doing a majority of the editing after I complete the road trip. 

How does this relate to my academics?

I am in a program called New College at the University of Alabama. In this program, one designs their own interdisciplinary major. My major is not officially titled (this will happen during my junior year, and is part of my final project as a New College student), but is currently called Zoology and Education. My goal with my major is to integrate classes in biology, education (as well as classes related to this, such as public speaking), and other relevant classes in order to create a cohesive major about zoo education.

The Zoo Education Road Trip will count towards my major as an Independent Study, and I will get class credit for completing it. The chronicles of my visits (through the written and video blogs) will contribute to the final project.

More questions?

If you would like any more information about this project or myself, please contact me at annaturkett@gmail.com