32 PATHWAYS Trail Blazers By JamesBorland Education inOntario Provoking Dialogue: A ShortHistoryofOutdoor (Thompson, 2009). knowledge through farmwork on howtheydemonstrated theircurricular and manystudentswere assessedbased issues facingagriculturalcommunities, Traditional disciplineswere connectedto nature studyandschoolgardening. teachers focusedon secondary schoolstudents,whileelementary Science hadbecomeacourseformany farm work.Bytheearly1900s Agricultural with direct experiencesoutdoorsthrough education promotes Agricultural Science livelihood (Davey, 2003). Agricultural environment thatprovided asubsistent communities struggling withan became relevant toagricultural school attendanceaseducationsystems agricultural educationfacilitatedincreased failed duetoirregular studentattendance, attempts toestablishapublicschoolsystem expansion ofOntario.Whileprevious society thatcouldsupporttheindustrial from aBritishcolonyintoself-sustaining Ryerson, asawaytotransformtheprovince Superintendent ofEducation,Dr. Egerton revolution wasperceived byOntario’sfirst a self-sufficientagrariansociety. This transformed theforested wildernessinto as BritishLoyalistsduringthe1800s during Ontario’sagrarianrevolution The roots ofoutdooreducationbegan Agricultural Education interconnections. by fosteringawareness ofhuman-nature of outdooreducationinimproving society educators more clearlydescribe therole outdoor experiences.Historyhelps is auniquediscipline,theyallincorporate and climatechangeadaptation.Whileeach adventure education,ecological education environmental education, outdoor in Ontario:agriculturaleducation, branches haveshapedoutdooreducation outdoor educatorsaboutourhistory. Five I wishtofosterdialoguewithOntario from environmental programming to more governing Conservative Partybyshifting but toappeaseschoolboards andthe closed. Survivingfacilities hadnochoice be non-essentialfiscalburdens andwere 2009). Outdoorcentres were considered to and growing studentpopulations(Borland, boards faced a shortage of financial resources & Potter, 2001). At thistimemanyschool personal socialdevelopment(Henderson Outdoor adventure educationpromotes as Ontarioentered aneconomicrecession. took aprominent role inoutdooreducation By the1990soutdooradventure education Outdoor Adventure Education education” (Andrews, 2003). interchangeably withtheterm“outdoor “environmental education”begantobeused in nature-based experiences.Theterm and teacherstocontinueparticipating education programs tomotivatestudents outdoor pursuitsintotheirenvironmental 2001). Outdooreducatorsbegantointegrate transitioned towards lab-basedstudies(Pyle, shift totheclassroom asscienceeducation the 1970’senvironmental educationbeganto natural environment (Passmore, 1972).In social concernsabouthumanimpactsonthe environmental fieldcentres toaddress students topurchase landandoperate permitted schoolboards withover10,000 2003). In1965,theOntariogovernment to environmental problems (Andrews, students toidentifyanddevelopsolutions of manyspeciesonEarth,andteaches education recognizes thatpeopleare one education movement.Environmental increased, startingtheenvironmental 2003). Publicconcernfortheenvironment to Environmental Science (Andrews, Education changed Agricultural Science In the1960stheOntarioMinistryof some agrarianlandscapesbecameurbanized. Ontario’s automotivenetworkexpanded, As thegasolineenginetookholdand Environmental Education Andrews, B.(2003).AccountabilityinOutdoor R educators willtacklethischallenge. landscape. Ionlywonderhowoutdoor important fortransformingtheprovincial education isagainbeingidentifiedas an alternativeenergy economy, outdoor to movefrom anoil-basedeconomyto historical precipice where humanityneeds humans’ placeinecosystems. At acurrent experiences thatfosteranunderstandingof with localcommunitiestooffer outdoor Educators are nowexpectedtowork its implementationacross thecurriculum. 2009 policydocumentmandatesandguides identified outdooreducationasessential. A (governed bytheOntarioLiberalParty) In 2007,theOntarioMinistryofEducation The Future:ClimateChange Adaptation ecological services. awareness abouthumandependencyon experiences inthenaturalworldtopromote settings. Ecologicaleducationusesdirect education andstudiedacross allnatural education beintegratedwithecological and Belm(2003)recommended outdoor ecological conceptsinthecurriculum.Puk new curriculum,andalackofattentionto taught ecologyduetotimeconstraints,a 2003, fewgeographyandscienceteachers science andgeographycurricula. Yet by to integrateecologicalconceptsacross new the secondaryschoolcurriculum,promising Party) removed Environmental Sciencefrom (governed bytheOntarioConservative In 2000,theOntarioMinistryofEducation E always operated. many outdooreducationprograms had this timecametobelievewastheway practitioners enteringoutdooreducationat corporate groups foruser fees.Manynew programs toschoolgroups, thepublic,and Outdoor educatorsbegantooffer these lucrative outdoorpursuit–basedprograms. cological Education eferences Education Services. Education. Toronto, ON: Andrews

email: [email protected] University ofWindsor. Jamescanbecontactedby Graduate StudiesandFaculty ofEducationatthe internal scholarshipsfrom theFaculty of of Windsor. Thisresearch issupportedby James Borland,FacultyofEducation,University Thompson, B.(2009).OSEE’shistory–and Pyle, R.M.(2001).Theriseandfallofnatural Puk, T., &Belm,D.(2003).Thediluted Passmore, J.(1972).Outdooreducation Ontario MinistryofEducation.(2009).Acting Henderson, B.,&Potter, T. (2001).Outdoor Davey, I.E.(2003).Therhythm ofworkand Borland, J.(2009).A Demonstrationof 21(3), 18-22. Journal ofEnvironmental Education future. history. Orion,20(4),16-23. of Environmental Education, 8, 217-232. secondary schools. as thefirstimperativeinOntario in developingecologicalliteracy curriculum: Therole ofgovernment Canadian Education Association. in Canada–1972.Toronto, ON: queen’s PrinterforOntario. in Ontarioschools.Toronto, ON; framework forenvironmental education today, shapingtomorrow: A policy Education, 6,225-242. Canadian JournalofEnvironmental Seeking acountrywaybackin. adventure educationinCanada: Mills, ON:Oxford University Press. children andyouth(pp.108-121).Don & J.Parr(Eds.), the rhythm ofschool.InN. Janoviček http://bit.ly/hFsoS9 Ontario, Canada.Retrievedfrom thesis,Brock University,master’s Autoethnography. Unpublished Craft: AnOutdoorEducator’s Interactions: TheOntario Histories ofCanadian Canadian Journal , Trail Blazers 33 PATHWAYS