Os sítios web dos museus portugueses: análise de conteúdos, atividades em linha para crianças e uso de ferramentas web 2.0.

Abstract

Na actual Sociedade da Informação, as TIC estão entranhadas no quotidiano dos cidadãos e nas mais diversas áreas do saber. A face mais visível destas novas tecnologias á a Internet que, quando usada de forma racional, traz benefícios inquestionáveis, dadas as suas potencialidades como fonte de informação e forte instrumento de comunicação, vendo nos últimos anos o seu potencial acrescentado com a Web 2.0. Cientes dos seus benefícios para potenciar a sua projeção externa, melhorar a comunicação e a interação com os públicos, conquistar e fidelizar novas audiências e estimular a aprendizagem informal dos mais novos, são já muitos os museus que marcam presença neste mundo digital em rede que é a internet através da criação de sítios Web. O presente estudo pretende contribuir para conhecer a realidade dos sítios Web dos museus portugueses, detendo-se na análise de conteúdos disponibilizados, atividades em linha para crianças e no uso de ferramentas Web 2.0, de modo a aferir se os museus utilizam as imensas potencialidades da Internet em seu benefício. Para tal, foi concebida uma grelha de análise como instrumento de recolha de dados e aplicada a 92 sítios Web de museus portugueses, sendo constituída por quatro dimensões: identificação do Museu; Conteúdos Gerais; Serviços; Ferramentas Web 2.0. A partir da observação dos sítios Web pudemos concluir que a maioria dos museus portugueses oferece nos seus portais virtuais principalmente informação de caráter geral, especialmente informação logística sobre o museu; apenas 11 sítios Web privilegiam um espaço para crianças com atividades lúdicas de aprendizagem em linha, e o uso de ferramentas Web 2.0 ainda é pouco expressivo, sendo o Facebook a ferramenta mais usada. Neste sentido, os resultados apurados evidenciam que os museus portugueses utilizam as potencialidades da Internet ainda de forma limitada, não beneficiando ou explorando os inúmeros recursos disponíveis em seu proveito. TIC are engrained in the citizens quotidian and in the most diverse areas of knowledge in nowadays information Society. Internet is the most visible of these new technologies which, when used rationally, brings unquestionable benefits, due to its potencial as an information source and strong communication tool, recently reinforced with Web 2.0. Aware of the benefits to enhance its external projection, improve communication and interaction with the public, conquer and loyalty new audiences and encourage informal learning of younsgsters, many museums are already present in this world digital network called Internet, creating their own websites. The present study intends to contribute to know the reality of the portuguese museums websites, focusing the analysis of on their available content, online activities for children and the use of Web 2.0 tools, in order to assess whether the museums utilize the immense potencial of Internet for their benefit. To achieve this we conceived ana analysis grid, intended to gather data, which was applied to 92 portuguese museums websites. It consists of four dimensions: Identification of the Museum; General Contents, Services, Web 2.0 Tools. The observation of the websites allow us to conclude that the majority of portuguese museums offer mostly general information on their virtual portals; they do not favour learning ludic activities online for children, and the use of Web 2.0 tools is still inexpressive. Facebook is the most used tool, though. In this sense, the results obtained show that the portuguese museums still use the Internet potencial in a limited way, not benefiting and exploring to their advantage the many available resources. TIC are ingrained in the citizens quotidian and in the most diverse areas of knowledge in nowadays Information Society. Internet is the most visible of these new technologies which, when used rationally, brings unquestionable benefits, due to its potential as an information source and strong communication tool, recently reinforced with Web 2.0. Aware of the benefits to enhance its external projection, improve communication and interaction with the public, conquer and loyalty new audiences and encourage informal learning of youngsters, many museums are already present in this world digital network called Internet, creating their own websites. The present study intends to contribute to know the reality of the portuguese museums websites, focusing the analysis of on their available content, online activities for children and the use of Web 2.0 tools, in order to assess whether the museums utilize the immense potential of Internet for their benefit. To achieve this we conceived an analysis grid, intended to gather data, which was applied to 92 portuguese museums websites. It consists of four dimensions: Identification of the Museum; General Contents, Services, Web 2.0 Tools. The observation of the websites allow us to conclude that the majority of portuguese museums offer mostly general information on their virtual portals; they do not favour learning ludic activities online for children, and the use of Web 2.0 tools is still inexpressive. Facebook is the most used tool, though. In this sense, the results obtained show that the portuguese museums still use the Internet potential in a limited way, not benefiting and exploring to their advantage the many available resources.