Exploring New Science Education Paradigm through Museum-School Collaboration

April 23, 2025 marked the 30th World Book and Copyright Day. Huaer Zizhu Academy, Junior Middle School Affiliated to East China Normal University (ECNU), and Zizhu Primary School demonstrated, through innovative science education practices, how the new paradigm of science education under the collaboration between museums and schools is writing a new chapter in education with a spirit of diversity and integration.

The insect exhibition hall of Junior Middle School Affiliated to ECNU featured a special exhibition “Urban Insects.” Originating from the Shanghai Natural History Museum’s “Urban Insects” biodiversity-themed exhibition, this showcase was developed under the museum’s original science education program “My Nature Treasure Box.” It comprised sections including “Shanghai Insect Survey,” “Urban Insect Encyclopedia,” “Finding Insects Around Us,” and “Action: Listen to Nature.” In collaboration with the teachers and students of Junior Middle School Affiliated to ECNU to launch a campus insect exploration initiative, the exhibition displayed over a dozen student-created mind maps.

An interdisciplinary project-based learning seminar titled “Wings That Flutter Through Time” was conducted simultaneously. Focusing on the research theme of “The Origin of Insect Wings and Flight Evolution,” the seminar integrated knowledge from Chinese literature, biology, and fine arts. Through inquiry-driven learning, students became curators, experiencing the convergence of literature, science, and art during the exhibition design process. This approach cultivated multidimensional thinking and problem-solving skills, exemplifying the “learning by doing, thinking while learning” educational model.

At Zizhu Primary School, the “Urban Insects” exhibition ignited the students’ enthusiasm. They became curators and channeled their knowledge and passion for nature into more than 100 self-created lifelike specimens of butterflies, moths, and plants. They even infused drama and fun into science education by making suspense scripts based on their bird-watching experiences.