Definition, Purpose & Goals of OE

During my first class for Outdoor Education (OE) course this semester, all my students were really pleased & enthusiastic to have me as their lecturer. I shared some of the my past experiences and encourage them to start develop their unexplored potential. I was also set a few main and minor goals for them to execute and achieve by the end of this semester.

OE Definitions

• the use of experiences in the outdoors for the education and development of the ‘whole person’ - The Outdoor Institute
• an experiential method of learning with the use of all senses. It takes place primarily, but not exclusively, through exposure to the natural environment. - Priest, 1990
• an international, experiential education phenomenon which engages people in adventurous activities for enhancement of the well-being of individuals, communities, and the environment - Neill, 2002

Purposes

According to Priest and Gass (1997):

• Recreational programs aim to change the way people feel. The purpose is leisure, fun and enjoyment, e.g., surfing for pleasure.
• Educational programs aim to change the way people feel and think. The purpose is to learn skills and/or information, e.g., learning how to surf classes or geography field trips.
• Developmental programs aim to to change way people feel, think and behave. The purpose is is to undergo personal growth, e.g., a surfing program in which the goal was to push personal limits, test endurance, develop personal goal setting, self-discipline, and build individual's self-esteem, etc.)
• Therapeutic / Redirectional programs aim to change the way people feel, think, behave, and resist. The purpose is correct an individual or group problem, e.g., a low security prison may conduct surfing classes and work on a beach habitat restoration program as part of a pre-release detention program for inmates)

Goals

• Physical goals include physical fitness, weight loss, balanced dietary intake, physical movement and physical and health well-being. Physical goals may be preventative, educational, developmental, and/or rehabilitative (therapeutic).
• Spiritual programs aim to help development of spiritual knowledge and experience (e.g., many Church and Religious groups conduct camps for young people with a combination of spiritual instruction and other goals, such as fun (recreation).
• Relationship / Family / Group / Community oriented programs aim to change the way a particular dyad, small group or community are functioning (as opposed to individual). The unit of interest/analysis in this case is not the individual. Team productivity and school climate are examples.
• Environmental goals include having a positive impact on a specific ecosystem (e.g., native vegetation regeneration), environmental education knowledge (e.g., local area knowledge through to awareness about global climate change), and environmental attitude.

May this post sharing can make my OE course this semester become more enjoyable and more successful.