Solid Foundations, Leadership, and Community: Development in Outdoor School Programs

• In Event: Environmental Education as Site of Critical Inquiry

Abstract

Youth, in particular, marginalized youth, are often dealing with stresses and trauma outside of the classroom that directly impacts their academic experience (Hammond, 2015). Although Outdoor Environmental Education (OEE) offers a different learning environment from traditional classrooms, structures of oppression and histories of marginalization continue to impact student learning. A Cycle of Erosion (McNamara, 2012), where marginalized youth are not provided opportunities to develop relationships with nature, do not see themselves represented in the community, and in turn, will have a harder time benefitting from the experience.OEE must center the perspectives of marginalized communities, and leadership in the field must actively support this reconstruction.
For marginalized communities who may be dealing with issues of survival every day, the specific choice to bring risk into their lives may not carry the same level of excitement or motivation. A biophobia, or fear of nature, can develop, resulting in learning experiences marked by mystery without wonder, exploration without knowledge or safety, and fear of the unknown. In response, Cajete prescribes developing a “confidence in nature” (Cajete, 2018, personal communication) as a crucial step in developing more equitable learning systems in OOE. Oregon’s outdoor school provides a unique opportunity to reframe how youth can develop and engage with science and the natural world. By focusing on students’ experiences, educational leaders in OEE can provide various academic, emotional, and support systems to help students navigate and enrich Outdoor School for all youth.
In addition, culturally relevant, anti-bias, and inclusive instructional strategies should be utilized. McCarty and Lee (2014) describe students as “invaluable repositories of distinctive knowledge…children have a right and need for full participation in their communities”(p. 105). Freire (1993) suggests creating space for students’ dialogue “to be revolutionary”(p.8). which requires teachers and students to learn from each other, and to create new channels in resistance to the mainstream systems that may have silenced them in the past. By supporting educators to trust students and empower them to guide lessons, Outdoor school leaders give students agency regarding their education (Palmer,2007; Kissinger,2017; Hammond,2015). Leaders can also support a curricular emphasis on student response and lived experiences, providing a base of knowledge that students understand already, instead positioning them as deficient. In turn, a Cycle of Abundance (Macnamara,2012) can begin, yielding comfort and confidence and encouraging youth to develop relationships with nature grounded in their lived experiences and cultural traditions.
Authentic relationships are a primary factor in student success and can be fostered through safe, equitable discourse that is responsive to individual and community values (Schindel & Tolbert, 2017;Smith,2000;McCarty & Lee, 2014). Outdoor School demonstrates how OEE can create a supportive web of connection, trust, and kindness through intentional inclusive community development that supports student participation. Overnight outdoor experiences are a bramble of social and emotional challenges that benefit learners only when intentional and varied social-emotional and culturally responsive praxes are foregrounded. Leadership in OEE is responsible for this work, and Oregon’s Outdoor School programs provide important insights.

Author

• Andrea Carrie Hussey, Multnomah Education Service DIstrict