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Plato the Greek Philosopher
The idea of using adventure in education goes back to an ancient Greek philosopher Plato. It was he who put forward the idea of allowing young people to engage in activities that were risky, so they could learn the concepts of courage, perseverance and wisdom. The ideas that Plato put forward became foundational in the outdoor education format and are still being practiced today. -
Roots of experiential learning
“The role of experience in education has a history that connects back to philosophical debates between rationalists and empiricists. Rationalists argued that the information that is gained through one's senses is unreliable, and the only reliable knowledge is that which is gained through reason alone. Empiricists argued that knowledge is derived from empirical sense impressions, and abstract concepts that cannot directly be experienced cannot be known” (Author unknown, 2007). The debate was larg -
The Americas
“In 1892, John Muir, formed the Sierra Club. The club was primarily formed for "exploring" and "enjoying" the Pacific Coast's mountains”(Watters, R, 1986). He tested the waters in then new climate. He believed that “National strength no longer came from conquering the remnants of wilderness but from the enjoyment of the remaining wilderness”(Watters, R, 1986) -
John Dewey
Dewey saw it as the “ quintessential element of education ” (Wurdinger, 1997, pg 11). Through pulling the idea apart he came to a greater understanding of the concept, and the field of adventure education has since adopted many of his ideas. “Finally, it is important to emphasize that Dewey saw traditional education as hierarchical and inherently undemocratic. He argued that in order to promote the development of a thoughtful and active democratic citizenry, students in schools needed to be able -
Outward Bound
But it was Kurt Hahn who really stepped up and created a “new educational approach-adventure education” (Wurdinger, 1997, pg 12). Hahn is considered to be one of the foremost educators of the twentieth century, and contributed to experiential education as a practitioner worldwide. After failing to start up a school based on concepts outlined in Plato’s Republic, he was later to set up the first Outward Bound school in 1941. During the second world wars it was noticed that the older crewmembers -
Experiential Outdoors
In 1976 the Association for Experiential Education was created in the USA. Its primary function was to spread the word on outdoor and experiential education.
It was only a year later that the founder of the National Outdoor Leadership School Paul Petzoldt created the Wilderness Educators Association. He had become embroiled in controversy within the school and was removed from the board of directors. “ Petzoldt aimed to bring the training of outdoor leadership into colleges and developed an ext -
Development Training Advisory Group (D.T.A.G.).
One year later a group of the major providers of adventure training formed the Development Training Advisory Group (D.T.A.G.). Its function was to promote the concept of development training, create a forum for the exchange of ideas, experience and information, and to start joint ventures when it was appropriate. The D.T.A.G. remained “committed to the systematic and purposeful development of the whole person” (Hopkins and/or, Putnam, 1993, pg 54). -
Outward Bound Conference
The first international Outward Bound conference was held in New Zealand. -
Lyme Bay
Following the Lyme Bay tragedy in Cornwall England, where four teenagers were killed after an ‘all in’ incident occurred in the sea, the United Kingdom outdoor education community undertook a major overhaul. In what was to be the first such occurrence, the managing director of the company at fault was subsequently prosecuted. The incident led to the government cracking down throughout the UK, on the safety of outdoor education programs, a trend that was to continue across the Atlantic and then s -
Adventure Therapy
In 1997 the first International Adventure Therapy conference, which were to go on every three years, was held. “This formalized a major professional gathering and focus on the therapeutic potential of outdoor-based and adventure activities” (Neill, 2003, pg3).
