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Meanings of 'the outdoors': Shaping outdoor education in Aotearoa New Zealand A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at The University of Waikato by Jo Straker 2014 Abstract The issue of human-nature relationships has become increasingly important given the environmental issues affecting the world. Thus, education which can encourage students to positively engage and connect with the world around them is vital. Outdoor education offers one way to help build relationships, but only if outdoor educators have an understanding and appreciation of the ways 'the outdoors' influences their pedagogy. Over the years, growing emphasis on adventure activities, social and personal development, and experiential learning styles, has subsumed the role of 'the outdoors' within outdoor education. Using an interpretive narrative framework, this research focuses on 'the outdoors' as a defining feature of outdoor education. A series of three semi- structured interviews with 11 outdoor educators provided opportunities to explore meanings of the outdoors and how those meanings influenced their understandings and practices of outdoor education. An inductive analysis of the interviews identified five primary themes; locations, activities, living simply, emotional responses, and relationships, and these were used to unpack the participants' beliefs and experiences of 'the outdoors' and outdoor education. In order to retain the richness and complexity of the meanings the participants shared, the findings are presented in a variety of formats including vignettes and poetic text. The findings are multi-layered, something that reflected the dynamic nature of 'the outdoors' and the ensuing opportunities offered for creative and critical thinking. There was also evidence that the participants were vigilant about adopting a multi-dimensional approach to outdoor education. This required integrating pragmatic pro-environmental actions, experiential opportunities, challenge activities, spontaneous learning moments, and quiet time into many of their sessions. In so doing, they ensured experiences for their students were holistic, meaningful, and engaging, as well as promoting a respectful relationship with 'the outdoors'. Some of these ii practices were constrained at times by the expectations of current secondary school educational orthodoxies, especially those relating to assessing pre-determined outcomes. Nonetheless, there was an unreserved belief that outdoor education has an increasingly distinct and important role to play in the school curriculum. How this will be enacted depends on the challenges and opportunities that rise and fall with changing social, political, and economic agendas. iii Acknowledgements The completion of this thesis was made possible through the support of many people, but particularly my partner Brian Staite who provided constant encouragement and intuitively sensed when I needed coffee, chocolate, or a walk in the hills. My long-time friend Stu Allan also provided me with inspiration and a healthy dose of pragmatic advice on grammar and punctuation. To the many other friends who participated in conversations about the outdoors also a big thanks. It was an honour to work with my three supervisors Professor Bevan Grant, Dr Mike Brown, and Dr Karen Barbour, each of whom played a major part in supporting, guiding, and extending my thinking over the course of my PhD apprenticeship. Their timely feedback kept me on track and honed my writing skills. I wish to record my appreciation to CPIT for the funding and support they provided. My thanks also go to my colleagues and students from the Bachelor of Sustainability and Outdoor Education at CPIT. They have listened to my ponderings, shared their thoughts, and stimulated my thinking. Finally, this research could not have been completed without the 11 outdoor educators who were at the heart of the research it was their ideas, stories, experiences, practices, and voices, which both constructed and revealed meaning. I was privileged to have been part of such a generous community of voices, and I feel that a particular strength of this research was the willingness of the participants to share their thoughts, feelings, and stories. They helped me celebrate my relationship with the outdoors, something I will certainly not take for granted again or believe that everyone sees it the same way. iv Table of Contents Contents Abstract ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ii Acknowledgements --------------------------------------------------------------------- iv Table of Contents ------------------------------------------------------------------------ v Chapter 1 – Positioning the Research ------------------------------------------------------ 1 Taking my bearings ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 Mapping out the research ------------------------------------------------------------- 2 Drawing the contours ------------------------------------------------------------------- 5 Aotearoa, New Zealand Islands in the Pacific ----------------------------------- 8 Researching meanings of the outdoors ------------------------------------------- 11 Layout of the thesis -------------------------------------------------------------------- 15 Chapter 2 – Exploring meanings of the outdoors -------------------------------------- 17 A developing account of the outdoors in Aotearoa New Zealand ---------- 18 Researching meaningful settings --------------------------------------------------- 24 Outdoors as place ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 28 Outdoors as landscape ---------------------------------------------------------------- 35 Outdoors as wilderness --------------------------------------------------------------- 39 Outdoors as natural environments ------------------------------------------------ 43 Place, landscape, and wilderness research in Aotearoa New Zealand ----- 46 Summary --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 51 Chapter 3 – Unearthing the outdoors in outdoor education ----------------------- 53 Unravellingoutdoor education ------------------------------------------------------ 54 The changing face of education ----------------------------------------------------- 56 The changing face of outdoor education ------------------------------------------ 58 v Experiential education ---------------------------------------------------------------- 61 Education outside the classroom --------------------------------------------------- 63 Adventure Education ------------------------------------------------------------------ 65 Outdoor Pursuits ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 68 Outdoor environmental education ------------------------------------------------- 70 Place-responsive outdoor education ----------------------------------------------- 72 Outdoor meanings in the reflections of outdoor educators ----------------- 74 Lake Karapiro ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 74 'Moving on an effortless journey' --------------------------------------------------- 76 Aoraki Bound ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 77 Re-tying the outdoors and education --------------------------------------------- 79 Chapter 4 – Research process -------------------------------------------------------------- 81 Interpretive research ------------------------------------------------------------------ 81 A narrative approach ------------------------------------------------------------------ 83 Research process ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 87 Participants ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 87 Ethical considerations ----------------------------------------------------------------- 91 Interviewing ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 92 Analysis ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 93 'Narrative analysis' --------------------------------------------------------------------- 94 Interview notes and transcription -------------------------------------------------- 95 Developing ideas about outdoor meanings -------------------------------------- 96 Writing as analysis ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 97 Constructing the participants' vignettes ------------------------------------------ 98 'Analysis of narratives' ---------------------------------------------------------------- 103 Representation of the research ----------------------------------------------------