The job that no one wants to do? Museum educators’ articulations about guided tours

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to investigate museum educators’ articulations of their performance during guided tours. The paper investigates preparations for a guided tour, considerations related to doing guided tours and the events after the guided tour. The text focus especially on preparation and the aftermath as this is not normally discussed in research on museum education. The paper is based on participant observation of guided tours, filming of guided tours and qualitative semi-structured interviews. The material is analysed using performance theories and theories on materiality. The paper seeks to unearth knowledge imbued in the museum educators’ performance and reveal what can be known from guiding bodies.