The Use of Fictional Stories in Science Exhibits: The Emperor Who Only Believed His Own Eyes

The authors explore how fictional narratives (stories) can be used as a learning tool in the context of informal science environments and specifically science centers. They base their argument on an analysis of the theoretical, structural and epistemological properties of stories and how those can serve to establish a story as a cognitive tool. They offer an example of an application of these properties to a story-based learning design called “The Emperor who only Believed his own Eyes” in the context of a large, public science center, and specifically an exhibition about “senses”. This paper focuses on the idea of a “hack,” a museum sanctioned strategy for exploring the potential and implications of narrative-based design as a way to reinterpret science exhibits in a way that can engage young users in content exploration and offer recommendations for future research