This study is an investigation of the adventure education (AE) experience with particular attention to what happens during the AE experience, the meanings participants ascribe to the experience, how personal backgrounds and institutional cultures coalesce in AE, and the significance of the AE experience for schooling. These topics are explored through observing and interviewing participants of adventure education programs under the qualitative framework of educational connoisseurship and criticism. The experiences at the three sites of study--an outdoor challenge course, a wilderness backpacking expedition and a summer adventure program--are described in detail and illustrated through the qualities of the experience (celebratory challenge, novelty, freedom and togetherness, aesthetic vitality, and great experience), cultural coalescence in AE (depicted through cultural rigidity and flexibility), and the participant perceptions of schooling. Findings are inferred through recommendations for AE, including consideration of the qualities of experience, striking a cultural balance in AE, and embodying a shift in thinking regarding the purpose of the AE experience. This study also provokes a reconsideration of contemporary educational paradigms, as the participant perceptions of schooling, when considered alongside the AE experience, provide a fresh perspective of the qualities of educational experience. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]