“Gas Stations in the Middle of Nowhere?" Uncovering Knowledge Links in Outdoor School Experiential Learning

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 3:20 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 1
  In Roundtable Session: Innovative Approaches to Student-Centered Learning: STEM, Competency-Based Education, and Experiential Learning (Table 1)

Abstract

This study explores how outdoor experiential learning impacts the formation of student knowledge links in classroom settings. Grounded in constructivism and generative learning, we examined how prior experiences influence new learning during school-based wilderness activities and how these experiences are integrated upon returning to the classroom. Using qualitative methods, we observed and recorded interactions of students from three classrooms before, during, and after attending School of the Wild. Findings indicate that while knowledge links in their classrooms were temporally contained and lacked depth, those formed in outdoor settings may be more robust, persist over time, and facilitate deeper processing. This study highlights the potential of outdoor experiential learning to enhance educational outcomes by fostering richer, more interconnected knowledge construction processes.

Authors

• Kathy L. Schuh, University of Iowa

• Mandy Dunphy, Baylor University

• Faiaz Rahman, University of Florida

• Ricardo Domingues, University of Iowa