EDUCATION AND TRAINING IN THE OUTDOORS
I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand (Confucius – Chinese philosopher 551 BC – 479 BC). This quote, although it is old, still resonates in the way we learn today. To further understand, we have to understand what affective learning is. Affective domain of learning is area of learning concerned with feelings or emotions associated with learning. It is the acquisition of behaviours involved in expressing feelings in attitudes, motivation, values, appreciation and enthusiasm. (Krathwohl, Bloom, Masia, 1973). Affective learning involves:
• Receiving: The learner willing to receive information e.g. willingness to learn a new skill like rock climbing
• Responding: The learner’s active attention to the instructions e.g. when shown how to properly use a karabiner and belay devices.
• Valuing: The learner respecting the instructor or teacher’s directions and committing to learning the new skill
• Organization: The learner’s ability to prioritise feelings and emotions concerning the new skills
• Characterisation: The learner’s internalisation of the skills learnt and behaviours relating to philosophy and characterising of values.
Affective domain of learning usually involves the learner accepting instructions then attempting the task that has been set before them. If in a group with other learners, there is usually support as well as questions due to the fact that there is only much the teacher can teach about a task
|For practical training, learners may have the benefit of observing others in the group carry out a task and learn from mistakes or things|
People’s experiences shape their lives and influence the choices they make, their expectations, and formulate their behavior and mindset. I have always loved to learn! As a child, I was constantly at the library and playing school. I recall being in 5th grade when my teacher handed me the science manual and a box of equipment, and asked me to ‘figure it out’ and recreate it for the class. I couldn’t have been more thrilled!
Learning, as defined by Slavin (2012), is “a change in an individual caused by experience” (p. 116). Learning can occur intentionally or unintentionally. All learning, however, is stimulated by something that is the learner (student) has encountered. As an instructor, your goal every day is to use the right stimuli to capture the student’s attention so they can absorb the knowledge you are trying to share.
Make judgments on successful completion or otherwise then giving constructive feedback in order to help further the learner or help for successful completion at a later date. A record should be made in order to track each learners progress.
Outdoor Education in KS3 and KS4 involves different adventurous activities that can be accomplished either as an individual or in a group. These activities include things such as: residential visits, orienteering, climbing, caving, team building, problem solving and many more. It generally provides depth to the curriculum which makes an important contribution to pupil’s physical, personal and social education (OFSTED, 2004; Priest and Gass, 1997). In order for these activities to be successful and meet the National Curriculum (NC), teachers must make sure all KS3 pupils are taking part in these outdoor adventurous activities (OAA), whilst being intellectually and physically challenged (National Curriculum, 2014). The two schemes of work presented are aimed to meet these NC subject content targets. They are two very different schemes of work but they both provide opportunities for pupils which challenge them both physically and mentally. The year 8 scheme of work focuses on a variety of different OAA activities that can be progressed and developed throughout each lesson and over the period of time they are in school. The content challenges the pupils thinking throughout the whole six weeks, developing the way they think to solve particular problems. Whereas, the year 9 scheme of work primarily focuses on the planning and preparation for a Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) expedition which will be carried out at the end of the term.
Have you ever wondered how the brain develops while we learn? Dr. Rita Smilkstein’s research on The Natural Human Learning Process was interesting. I now know the parts of the brain and how they work. I know now how we learn and how emotions have an impact on how we learn. As college students, we need to understand how our brains work and how emotions can help us learn successfully, since all college students should want to become successful people in their lives during college and throughout their lives.
Learning to Love Learning Have you ever thought about how nice it would be if you never had to learn anything ever again? On the other hand, have you ever wished you loved learning? Learning is an important aspect in each of our lives. Figuring out how to have a love and want to learn can be difficult, but very rewarding. In the essays The love of Learning, by David McCullough, and Learning by Heart, by Susan W. Tanner, they each offer ways to figure out how to do so.
Throughout my studies at Utah Valley University I have had the privilege of learning a vast amount about the history of the American outdoor education movement. Since I know so much about the American movement, I was interested in exploring the outdoor education movements in Europe. I specifically wanted to compare and contrast the differences and similarities between Europe’s movements and the exploits of Gifford Pinchot and John Muir. I focused on understanding these differences in regards to the individuals, unions, and philosophies that drove both movements.
Within the book Mastering the World of Psychology chapter five covers a basis surrounding the process of learning and how it relatively has permanent changes on behavior, knowledge, capability, or attitude (“Book”). These affects are acquired through everyday experiences such as actions that take place, enhancing our understanding of everything encompassed around us. As we continue to observe and apply associative learning we continue enhance our understanding of the world we live.
Chapter twelve in Brain Based Learning covered the importance and influence of emotion on learning. Initially, it was thought that the mind, body, and feeling were separate, but recent studies show that there isn’t a division. However, there is a difference in emotions and feelings. While emotions are biological and universal, feelings are influenced and created based on the surrounding culture. Studies have show that individuals with an impaired prefrontal lobe and/or amygdala show limited ability to have emotion, thus impairing learning capabilities. On the flip side, experiencing an over abundance of emotion can have a negative impact on productivity. The chapter continues to describe scenarios that further describe the importance of the
Making Student aware of these strategies as well as incorporating the use in activates done throughout the term, is perhaps the first step toward learner autonomy this night be achieved thought learner training or learner development (Senclair, 1996), where students learn about the factors which affect their learning discover the strategy needed to become snore affective learners, and in so doing take on more responsibility for the process (Ellis Sinclair, 1989).
As instructors, it is part of our duty to teach individuals about specific learning tasks. It is also part of our duty to relay information as best as we can to individuals so that they can understand the tasks. Therefore, providing feedback is significantly important to learners. It is critical that when individuals are learning that they receive the correct feedback so that they may be able to perform the task with the correct technique to reduce injury. There are two different types of feedback that clients may receive. One of the feedbacks is the task-intrinsic feedback and the other is augmented feedback. Task-intrinsic feedback is feedback that individuals receive through their own sensory-perceptual systems (Magill & Anderson, 2014).
Learning is a multifaceted perception unique to each individual. In looking to address the intricacies of learning, there have been a multitude of learning theories established over the centuries. To this day new theories are developed and traditional theories continue to be developed and expanded upon. (Swinburne Online, 2016)
Development of skill takes time, patience, and determination. One must be willing to improve upon their skill while also being secure in themselves and their abilities. I would like to instill in my students that hard work pays off and being driven is
As a teacher, one’s role and responsibility should be towards the learners’ ability to learn and for learning to be as tailored made for the individual learner.