ERIC Digests
Educational Resources Information Center

Outdoor Education and Environmental Responsibility.
ERIC Identifier: ED414112
Publication Date: 1997-10-00
Author: Yerkes, Rita – Haras, Kathy

In part, this research document cites:

“In Just Beyond the Classroom, Knapp (1996) proposes that effective outdoor education programs focus on the community, involve service learning, be interdisciplinary, use problem-based learning methods, allow for cooperation, and include time for reflection.

“Attarian (1996) seems to support these recommendations when he states,
. . . developing values is a lifelong process. As educators we can provide our students with the experiences and tools to help them become more knowledgeable about the environment and their place in it. Participation in outdoor pursuits classes and programs can give all of us the opportunity for challenge, adventure and excitement. Perhaps most of all, the outdoor experience offers us a chance to explore and shape our values, attitudes, and behaviors towards the environment and ourselves. (p.44)”

In Conclusion:

“In developing environmental responsibility through outdoor education, perhaps a more collaborative approach with other professional fields is needed. Caken and Tellness (in Fox & Lautt, 1996) point out that outdoor education, outdoor recreation, environmental education, and experiential education share common ground—the values of respect, social responsibility, self-actualization, justice, and freedom for all living beings and the earth. Perhaps we have been taking too simplistic an approach to the development of environmental responsibility by looking only for short-term environmental behavioral changes in our students.”

“According to Fox and Lautt (1996),
. . . outdoor educators need to 1) embrace the complexity and chaos of ethical frameworks and moral practice in outdoor education, 2) nourish a dynamic self-awareness, 3) make visible diverse ethical frameworks, 4) develop collaborative multi-disciplinary, and cross-cultural teams, and 5) invite mutual critique from people not normally part of the dialogue. (p.28)”