The Special Nature of the Outdoors to the Education of Children Aged 3 to 11.
Bernie Davis, Tony Rea & Sue Waite
There are many forms of outdoor learning.  In the UK outdoor adventures, residential centres, field studies, Forest School are all available to some extent for the 3 to 11 age group.  Each type has distinct aims and purposes, but there are however some commonalities which may point to what the special nature of the outdoors has to offer.  In this paper a typology of values in nature is used to investigate some possible dimensions within this.  The interplay between these characteristics and the pedagogies employed in the two forms of outdoor provision is explored. Firstly, there is a clarification of the definitions of the concepts of outdoors, outdoor learning, and pedagogy.  Literature is reviewed relating to the outdoor education and pedagogy.  A critical discussion is informed by our recent research in Forest School and a residential outdoor education centre, and will help to determine whether outdoor learning may make a unique contribution to the education of children and the methods employed by practitioners.  This will help to identify areas for potential research into outdoor learning in the early years which has this far been overlooked.

Effective Leadership:Transformational or Transactional?
Eric Brymer & Tonia Gray
Theory and research in outdoor leadership is often based on studies undertaken in the 1980s, however, while such findings are valuable, it is interesting that leadership theory in other fields such as sport, education, leisure, health, management studies and the military have taken on a different perspective.  One of the most often-studied models in the transactional-transformational model (Bass 1985).  This paper reviews the transactional-transformational leadership model in terms of its appropriateness for understanding and exploring outdoor leadership.  Insights drawn from the discussion point to the transformational leadership model as appropriate for theorizing outdoor leadership.  This conclusion was drawn as a direct response to the focus of certain key elements within outdoor leadership as a whole.

How do Outdoor Leaders Feel Connected to Nature Places?
Garrett Hutson & Diane Montgomery
Outdoor leaders have an opportunity to promote and facilitate a bond with the out-of-doors, yet little research has been conducted to describe the evolving relationships between outdoor leaders and the natural environments with which they come into contact.  The purpose of this study was to describe the perceptions of outdoors leaders towards the ways they feel connected to nature places.  The outdoor leaders were students and staff from a large university in Midwestern US.  The results are described as a two-factor solution reflecting two different views of outdoor leaders toward the ways they feel connected to places in nature, and were named as ‘deep-spirit’ and ‘ nature-emotion.

Facilitating Experiences: A snapshot of what is happening out there.
Tracey Dickson & Tonia Gray
A primary goal in experiential education is to facilitate the learning from the activities in a meaningful, empowering and compelling manner, The activities, which are used to guide a reflective session, debrief a particular incident or process a learning activity vary greatly across the profession.  In a study of 76 experiential educators in Australia, North America and South East Asia it was found that the activities used to process experiences tended to be more influenced by the learning styles of the facilitators than by the needs of preferences of the individual learners. Drawing upon learning-style theories, this study advocates the need for additional focus upon the broader learning needs of the participants when choosing the reflective activities.

The Rise of Individualism. The Implications for Promoting Relations Between Self and Others and the Environment in Outdoor Education.
Robert Hales
This article explains how the process of individualisation has led to the prioritisation of the self over aspects of community and place.  The theories of risk society and neoliberalism are used to explain this process.  These theories have three significant implications or outdoor educators working for social and environmental change.  The first is that people are urged to negotiate their futures through constructing identities of an autonomous seld as a reaction to these social processes.  Secondly, individuals consequently tend to de-value certain others in a market-oriented world.  Finally, place has become less important in the construction of individual identity and the shaping of social relations.  These aspects have significant implications for outdoor educators interested in promoting new understandings of self, others and the environment.  As a way of understanding how social processes influence young people’s notions of self, others and the environment I explore how young people have adopted mobile phone technology. Suggestions to counter some negative aspects of the individualisation porcess are offered to outdoor educators whose general goal is to promote a greater understanding of self, others and the environment.

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