Outdoor Education: Beyond the Classroom Walls

ISBN-10: 0873672321
ISBN-13: 9780873672320
Series: Outdoor Education
Pages: 30
Language: English
Published: 1985
Publisher: Phi Delta Kappa Educational Foundation
Author: Thomas J. Rillo

Description

Outdoor education provides a setting in which students learn to discover things for themselves and should be an integral part of school curriculum. Beginning as soon as students and teachers step beyond the classroom, outdoor education employs methods of observation/discovery, research, and reflection. Small group instruction allowing full use of the five senses is necessary to a successful program as are references and resource materials at the program site. Teachers are not required to be subject specialists, but should have basic preparation in the techniques of outdoor education. An outdoor education committee is desirable to establish needs, articulate philosophies, plan the curriculum, collect resources and prepare materials, arrange inservice training, and evaluate the program. Types of outdoor education programs include resident, day-long, recreational, or cultural/aesthetic and each of these can be academic-centered or camp-centered. Methods of correlating outdoor education with school curriculum include vertical articulation, horizonal articulation, and modular approaches. Program evaluation is essential and should focus on specific objectives, particularly the personal meaning of the outdoor experience for each individual. A list of 8 objectives for experiences gained in an outdoor education program are provided and 12-20 outdoor activities are suggested for each of 7 curriculum areas. (LFL) activities are suggested for each of 7 curriculum areas. A list of resources on outdoor education concludes the document. (LFL)