This article explores what active engagement really looks like in museums and shares 7 ways to create experiences where participants discover meaning through participation, rather than just listening. Simple adjustments to questions, movement, and visitor interactions can transform any guided experience into a more memorable and meaningful encounter.
Think about the guided experiences or programmes at your museum, historic house, or heritage site. You probably already know that active participation creates more meaningful visitor experiences than passive listening.
Yet consistently facilitating this engagement – actually doing it day after day, tour after tour – that’s where the real challenge lies.
Today, we’ll explore practical techniques for transforming experiences from passive to active, drawing both from my book The Art Engager: Reimagining Guided Experiences and from approaches I’ve gathered through years in the field.
Reimagining Guided Experiences
In order to consistently create active participation on our guided experiences, we need to be clear about what we’re actually working towards. So, what does an active, engaging visitor experience really look like in practice?
Creating active experiences means shifting away from traditional approaches.
In the past, museum programmes often relied on one-way delivery of information – facts, figures, stories, and anecdotes following pre-prescribed scripts and routes.
These one-size-fits-all experiences rarely considered individual needs, preferences, or interests. Participants were passive observers rather than active contributors, leading to potential disengagement and boredom despite often focusing on collection highlights.
Instead of this traditional model, we want to create experiences where:
- The educator facilitates discovery rather than conveying information
- Participants actively contribute to the experience rather than just ‘receiving’ it
- Success is measured by engagement, connections made, and meaning constructed
- Different perspectives enrich the experience rather than diluting the narrative
None of this means we’re setting aside expertise or content. In fact, it takes more knowledge to guide discovery than to simply present information. You’re still meeting your content goals – you’re just doing it through engagement rather than one-way information delivery.
As one educator told me after a workshop: “I used to think my job was to teach participants about the collection or site. Now I think my job is to help participants discover meaningful connections between these places, objects, and their own lives.”
The Passive-Active Spectrum
If we think about it as a spectrum, what does moving from passive to active actually look like in practice in museums?
At the more passive end of the spectrum, we often see approaches like:
- Longer presentations that lead with information about artworks, artifacts, historic rooms, or landscape features with limited space for dialogue
- Mostly predetermined pathways through galleries or historic buildings with few opportunities for choice (by the guide or by the participants)
- Questions that mainly check for listening or retention rather than encouraging observation or deeper thinking
- Content that doesn’t actively connect to or build upon participants’ existing knowledge and experiences
- Physical positioning that resembles a “follow the leader” approach, with the group moving and stopping as one unit, standing in similar formations at each location
As we move toward the active end, we incorporate elements like:
- Discussion-based approaches where multiple perspectives contribute to understanding
- Choice points where participants can influence which objects, rooms, or stories to explore more deeply
- Questions that invite personal connections and multiple interpretations
- Tailored content that builds on and connects to participants’ existing knowledge and experiences
- Physical arrangements that facilitate both intimate engagement with the site and interaction among the group
It’s important to note that ‘active’ doesn’t necessarily mean physical activity or talking all the time. Mental and emotional engagement are equally important forms of active participation.
A participant quietly looking at and thinking about an artwork may be more actively engaged than someone answering factual questions about it.
1. Starting With the Right Mindset
Before diving into specific techniques, we need to address the fundamental mindset change required to create active experiences. This starts with rethinking three key relationships:
First, the relationship between educator and participant. If we see ourselves as facilitators rather than information providers, we naturally create more space for active participation. Your knowledge then becomes an active tool to guide and foster discovery.
Second, the relationship between participant and object. Recognizing that participants bring their own perspectives and experiences to the conversation allows us to design encounters that create opportunities for them to connect with and find meaning in the objects they’re looking at.
Third, the relationship among participants. Museum visits are social experiences – people learn from each other. By creating opportunities for participants to share ideas and perspectives with each other, we enrich everyone’s experience.
Making these mindset shifts requires intention. In my book, I emphasize the importance of ACTIVELY and INTENTIONALLY creating the conditions where engagement can happen. This is central to two of the eight Practices in the Thinking Museum® Approach: Facilitation and Creating a Community of Collaboration.
This shift can be challenging in museum programmes where sharing knowledge is the primary focus. But knowledge and facilitation aren’t opposing skills – good knowledge of your collection or site can actually enhance your ability to facilitate meaningful discussions and respond confidently to whatever emerges during an experience.
2. Redesign your intro
The first few minutes of any guided experience set the tone for everything that follows. In my Thinking Museum® Approach, this falls within what I call the Entry Phase – one of the three phases of a guided experience (Entry, Exploration and Exit).
Traditional museum tour introductions often focus on establishing the educator or guide’s credentials, outlining collection highlights, or providing historical context. While these elements may have their place, they can unintentionally signal a passive experience ahead.
Here’s how to make your introductions more active:
- Keep personal introductions brief and relevant: Focus on your role as facilitator rather than listing credentials or academic achievements.
- Connection before content: Take time to learn about your participants before the programme starts. “What drew you to this exhibition today?” creates a relationship that values their perspective.
- Frame the experience as collaborative: Use “we” language that positions participants as co-explorers rather than just audience members. For example: “Today we’ll be exploring these artworks together…” This simple shift positions participants as active contributors.
- Establish participation norms early: Include a simple participation element based around observation in the first few minutes of the programme to set the expectation that this will be an interactive experience. For example, invite visitors to share their initial impression of the gallery space or spend time observing and describing what they see in the first artwork.
- Acknowledge the value of diverse perspectives: Explicitly invite different viewpoints: “One of the wonderful things about art is how it can mean different things to different people. I’m looking forward to hearing your perspectives today.”
- Think about adding choice points: If appropriate for your setting, let participants know about opportunities to influence the direction of the experience. “Today we’ll have a few moments where we can decide together which areas to explore more deeply.”
3. Transforming your questioning approach
Questions are the most powerful tool we have for creating active experiences at museums, historic houses, and heritage sites – but the type of questions we ask makes all the difference.
In passive experiences, questions often:
- Test factual knowledge (“Who can tell me when this building was constructed?”)
- Have single correct answers the guide already knows
- Focus mainly on identifying features, styles, or dates
- Act as rhetorical devices before the guide provides the answer
I like to think of these as ‘performative questions’ because they don’t signal that you’re interested in what participants have to say at all.
Here’s how to transform your questioning approach:
- Ask genuine observation questions: “What do you notice about this room?” or “What details stand out to you in this artwork?” These invite everyone into the conversation regardless of prior knowledge.
- Use comparative questions: “How does this space differ from the one we just visited?” or “What similarities do you notice between these two objects?” These prompt active looking and connection-making.
- Include personal response questions: “Which aspect of this historic site do you find most compelling?”
- Try hypothesis-generating questions: “Why might the inhabitants have designed the space this way?” or “What might this unusual feature tell us about how people lived?” These invite speculation rather than fact-recitation.
- Sequence your questions: In my book I share tools to help with formulating and sequencing questions. The Discussion Cycle shows how moving from observation to description to interpretation and conclusion creates a natural progression. You can also use any of my 10 Questioning Practices to sequence questions for different discussions, crucially allowing space for sharing information in an active way.
- Give wait time: Allow 5-7 seconds of silence after asking a question. This shows you genuinely expect thoughtful responses and gives participants time to think – especially important when they’re taking in new environments.
4. Use Movement and Spatial Design
The way we move through museums really shapes whether we’re just passively following or actively engaging. In more passive setups, we tend to see:
- Everyone gathered behind the guide, all looking in the same direction
- The group moves together as one, following a set route
- People stay at the same distance from each other throughout
- Limited physical interaction with the space itself
But we can change this:
Try mixing up the physical arrangement. If space allows, get the group to form a semi-circle as this helps everyone see both the object and each other. In small rooms – like those in a historic house – you can invite people to choose a spot where they can really notice something specific. Outside, getting people to look from different vantage points can open up new ways of seeing the landscape or architecture.
Offer choice in how people move. Say something like, “Take a few minutes to look around this area and find something that stands out to you.” It changes people from being followers to becoming explorers. Then, when you come back together, you can share and compare what caught their attention.
Use positioning as a thinking tool. Ask, “Where do you think a member of the household might’ve stood in this room?” or “Find a spot that gives you a completely different view of this feature.” It turns thinking into something physical and visible.
Vary how people look – careful close-up for details, using the middle-distance to take in the whole scene, or from far-away for context – all of this helps to create different layers of engagement.
Use the body as a way to respond. Try something like, “How do you think people moved through this space?” or “Notice how your body reacts to the size or layout of the architecture.” It’s about tuning in to how space feels as well as how it looks.
Even in tight spaces, something as simple as: “Take 30 seconds to notice one detail that interests you about how this space was designed or used. Then we’ll share.” Prompts like these can make a big difference.
5. Facilitating Interaction Amongst Participants
In a traditional guided experience, the guide stands at the front, asks a question, someone answers, and the guide responds. Then another question, another answer. It’s like everything has to go through the guide — a bit like a wheel, with the guide at the centre and the visitors around the edge. But there’s no connection between the people on the edge. No real conversation or collaboration.
So, how can we change this dynamic?
- Start with something simple like partner looking. Ask: “Turn to the person next to you and share one thing you’ve noticed about this object.” With this, everyone gets involved at once, and it helps people feel more comfortable participating.
- Build in layers. Start with pairs, then bring pairs together into small groups to spot patterns or common ideas, and only then share with the whole group. It builds confidence and energy step by step.
- Create structured sharing opportunities: Techniques like “each person shares one element they noticed that hasn’t been mentioned yet” ensures broader participation than open discussion.
- Assign perspective-taking roles: Ask small groups to consider the same object from different perspectives (design elements, historical context, emotional response, etc.) and then bring it all together to discuss.
6. Use your knowledge responsively and flexibly
In traditional or more passive guided experiences, the content is often fixed – delivered the same way regardless of who’s in front of you. But when we shift to a more active approach, the content becomes more responsive and adaptable.
This doesn’t mean that we stop sharing important historical or artistic context or details. It’s about offering multiple pathways into the core ideas.
Ask what they’re curious about. Ask “What are you wondering about this object/artwork?” throughout your programme. It gives you a sense of what the group is curious about, so you can share tailored information that connects with their interests.
Use information as a springboard. Share a small piece of information, then ask something like, ‘Knowing that, does it change how you see this?’ or ‘What do you notice differently now?’ It keeps the conversation active, and gives meaning room to grow.
Invite interpretation first. Before sharing an explanation, ask: “What do you think this might be?” or “Why do you think this detail was included?” Then add context that builds on their ideas or observations.
7. Create Active Closings
How we end a visit matters just as much as how we begin. Passive closings usually involve a quick summary or a “thanks for coming.” But active closings are an opportunity to help visitors reflect, connect, and carry something forward.
You might use:
- Reflection prompts that invite visitors to identify what was most meaningful, surprising, or thought-provoking for them. Use my Look Back, Step Forward or 321 Reflection Questioning Practices from The Art Engager.
- Connection invitations: You might say “Is there an idea from today you might take with you into everyday life?”
- Group reflection: “What themes have we noticed across the objects or spaces we explored?”
- Forward-looking questions: “What might you see differently now, after this experience?”
In my book, I call this the Exit Phase – helping participants take what they’ve experienced and connect it to a wider world.
Conclusion
Transforming visits from passive to active is essentially rethinking how meaning gets made in museums and other cultural spaces.
The approaches we’ve discussed today – from reimagining the educator’s role, to transforming questions, to redesigning physical movement, to facilitating visitor interaction, to adapting content, to closing for continued engagement – all serve this larger purpose.
It’s a change in technique, sure, but it’s also a mindset shift. And these shifts ask us to trust that our participants bring valuable perspectives, that meaning happens through engagement, and that our role is to facilitate discovery, not just deliver facts.
I’d love to hear how you’re making these shifts in your own work – whether that’s at a museum, historic site, or cultural space. What’s working? What’s challenging?
Claire Bown is the author of The Art Engager: Reimagining Guided Experiences in the Museum, available now wherever books are sold. Learn more about the Thinking Museum® Approach and how it can transform your visitor experiences.