The present study explores the outcomes of teaching empathy and critical thinking to solve environmental problems. This investigation was done throughout the duration of an environmental education course within a primary school located in central Chile. A community-based research methodology was used to understand the formation of empathy and…

In the United Kingdom there is a long tradition of residential outdoor learning provision, but to date there is limited research evidence for the direct educational benefits of such experiences, and to both critics and supporters the distinction between such visits and "holidays in school time" is not always apparent. This paper…

In this paper I identify the components of "meaningful experiences" for participants on a wilderness river rafting journey. The research is phenomenologically informed, and includes interviews, journals, observations and follow-up emails from 32 participants on eight Franklin River (Tasmania) 10-day trips. It elicits individual…

This is a longitudinal case study where teachers from different disciplines were interviewed before and after an outdoor teaching project in a Swedish junior high school. The school grounds were used regularly as an area for teaching and learning in different subjects. The purpose of this study was to explore how teachers from different…

This research suggests that learning biology in an outdoor environment has a positive cognitive and affective impact on 13-15-year-old, Swedish high school pupils. Eighty-five pupils in four classes participated in a quasi-experimental design. Half the pupils, taking a biology course in ecology or diversity of life, had several lessons outdoors…

In children's lives there are a lot of instigators for actions in every milieu and situation. When children grow older, the cortical activity starts to regulate the action instigation from the limbic system. The school system makes demands of action regulation for children. In outdoor education the many instigators for actions are not under the…

To be outdoors and involved in adventures concerns the movement between safety and risk, the familiar and the unfamiliar. Deep involvement in activities and the seriousness found in play are essential in "Bildung." Findings in this paper stem from ethnographic fieldwork conducted in a kayak community, between late autumn 2006 until the fall of…

Surfing is getting increasingly popular in Norway as well as other countries that have a coastline with rideable waves. As surfing gains in popularity, however, the boundaries of the surfing subculture become increasingly guarded. Through ethnography and qualitative interviews, this study examines identity construction on an individual and group…

In this paper, we contrast the early childhood education and care aims and curriculum in Norway and Australia and the theoretical underpinnings of Norwegian and Australian pedagogy in an attempt to partially explain the different approaches to (risky) outdoor play in these two countries. We argue that Norwegian pedagogical approaches may allow…

In this paper we look at the ways in which the experience of the natural environment was made available to the pupils and the types of activities provided for specific engagement with the local natural environment. It draws upon research undertaken for the Well-being and Outdoor Pedagogies project and previous PhD research. These projects explored…

The purpose of this paper is to explore the meanings of outdoor physical activity in the natural environment for parentally-bereaved young people. It draws on data generated from a two-year ethnographic study that focused on the experiences of those involved with the Rocky Centre, a childhood bereavement service in the UK. Data was collected via…

This exploratory study investigated the impact of participation in a three-week adventure education (AE) expedition upon levels of resilience of university students. Resilience is considered to be a dynamic process of positive adaptation to significant threat or adversity and may be an important variable to study as college students often live…

Research indicates that outdoor teaching practices within a physical education (PE) context are controlled by several factors with the potential to weaken or strengthen PE teachers' communication of pedagogic messages. Drawing on 12 qualitative interviews with PE teachers in compulsory schools in Sweden, the findings in this study suggest that…

This study explored the response of 28, second year undergraduate students to an innovative approach to a five-day solo. Periods of solitude are more likely to lead to positive outcomes when they are freely chosen than when they are programmed as part of a course. The extent to which a programmed solo can be "freely chosen" by the individual is…

Learning in Motion (LIM) was a European project involving seven partners in five countries: Sweden, Finland, Latvia, Germany and Greece. The project focused on inclusion and access to outdoor education and was financed by the European Commission within the framework of the Socrates-Grundtvig Programme. The aim of the project was to explore if and…