Issue addressed: Emerging adult university undergraduates are a vulnerable population due to various life stressors. Previous studies have reported a range of positive outcomes from outdoor expeditions for this population. This small pilot study aimed to investigate the impacts of an outdoor expedition on wellbeing and connectedness to nature and possible confounding by gender and living environment.Methods: A sample of 54 Health and Physical Education emerging adult undergraduates in the second year of their four-year degree completed a 3-day/2-night immersion expedition. Pre-post differences and a repeated-measures analysis with confounders examined the expedition's impact on scores from the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale and Connectedness to Nature Scale.Results: Involvement in a short expedition resulted in improvements to wellbeing and connectedness to nature. Females reported a stronger connectedness to nature than males, while living environments may affect well-being. Conclusions/So what?:Incorporating regular contact with nature into the structure of undergraduate programs may improve wellbeing and protect this population's mental and emotional health. In a world adjusting to the effects of a global pandemic, opportunities for teaching in non-traditional classrooms (such as outdoors) may also protect physical health.
Background This qualitative descriptive study gauged the perceptions of adolescent focus group participants and outdoor adventure education teachers on their preferred program components to improve adolescent wellbeing during a secondary school outdoor adventure education program. Methods Five student focus groups (N = 29) and four key informant interviews were conducted. Manual clustering of transcripts and template thematic analysis involving the development of a priori codes from interview questions resulted in an initial deductive code frame, followed by an inductive coding process. Findings Six themes were developed, namely perceptions of the outdoors, motivators for participation, barriers to participation, staff traits, and ideal program components. The main findings were that self‐efficacy, resilience, and individual empowerment opportunities were highly valued. Students also valued autonomy and independence, which presented a challenge for teachers managing the risks of their programs. Social connections and relationships were also held in high regard. Contribution Whilst adrenalin‐fuelled adventurous activities such as white water canoeing or rock climbing were popular with students and staff, the most valued aspects of outdoor adventure education were the opportunities to develop relationships, build social connections, self‐efficacy, resilience, and a sense of individual empowerment. Greater access to this style of education for adolescent students from lower socio‐economic areas would be beneficial due to the extant “opportunity gap” for this population.
Outdoor Education has evolved as a learning area in Western Australia over many years. In this paper we document historical elements of an investigation into the nature and scope of Outdoor Education in Western Australia. Previous investigations conducted by other researchers on the nature and scope of Outdoor Education focused on Victoria, South Australia, and New Zealand guided the design and conduct of this study. We examine the introduction of the Outdoor Education course offered as an option in the Western Australian Certificate of Education. We provide signposts of significant events with consideration of the secondary and tertiary education settings. Outdoor Education, in its many formats, has a strong historical presence in Western Australia and continues to hold great potential within the curriculum.
Issue AddressedOutdoor adventure education (OAE) (programs involving outdoor activities such as rock climbing or white‐water canoeing) that participants perceive as risky, conducted in a social support setting, can be utilised by practitioners to elicit changes in educational and psychosocial outcomes to support participant adolescent wellbeing.MethodsThis study garnered the opinions of an expert OAE panel on the content of future programs aiming to impact adolescent wellbeing. The panel consisted of local (Western Australia, n = 7), national (Australia, n = 4), and international (Canada, Germany, New Zealand, United Kingdom, United States, n = 7) experts. A two‐round, mixed‐methods Delphi approach was employed. Extensive formative work led to the development of a series of open‐ended questions requiring qualitative responses for round one. Panellists were also asked to respond to 17 statements using Likert scales in the second round.ResultsAfter analysis, a consensus was reached for all statements, with five statements having high consensus and being considered important by panellists.ConclusionsThe statement ‘Equity for all participants requires flexible delivery and facilitation’ had the highest level of agreement amongst panellists. Connections, authentic experiences, and equitable experiences developed as key themes.So What?Future OAE interventions focused on wellbeing impact could use the findings of this research as a basis for program design.
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