Dahlem as a Place of Learning

With the opening of the new building to house the Dahlem museums in 1970, education and outreach work modelled on American practices gained a foothold in West Berlin’s museums. The Junior Museum and the Blindenmuseum were the first museums in West Germany to offer special, hands-on forms of interaction for primary school students and people with vision impairments. Additionally, a novel system of free information sheets was developed for Dahlem to guide visitors around the displays, which was later expanded to include other branches of the Staatliche Museen. By 1992, visitors to the museums and collections in the East and West of the city could already choose from 700 different information sheets.