The Duke of Edinburgh's Award adopted flexible and creative strategies for delivering the expeditions section since the UK countryside was severely restricted during the foot-and-mouth crisis. This includes the option of undertaking ventures during winter. Because of greater risks during winter, advice and requirements are given concerning…

The foot and mouth crisis forced many British outdoor education providers to develop new options. The construction of an abseiling tree is described, which requires a living, healthy, straight tree with a trunk thick enough to remain stable under load and with few branches in the lower 15-20 meters. An abseil tree code of practice is presented.…

Brian Davies, chairman of the British Association of Heads of Outdoor Education Centres, discusses the effects of licensing on outdoor education, the decline of spontaneity and adventure in outdoor education, private versus public outdoor education centers, what makes a good outdoor education teacher, diversity represented by different outdoor…

In the United Kingdom, insurance is becoming harder to get and society is becoming increasingly more likely to demand criminal sanctions when accidents occur. Adventure educators can protect themselves by having a demonstrable, transparent system of risk assessment, safety equipment, training, and control, but they must also educate the public to…

Outlines environmental, equipment, and social changes related to the Duke of Edinburgh's Award Expedition since 1956, and debates the need to restore the expedition's physical challenge or to emphasize the developmental inner journey of the mind and spirit. Considers whether the purpose of the expedition is a physical challenge or a developmental…

Significant increases in global self-esteem and the four subdomains of physical self-worth were measured in 66 males and 60 females with a mean age of 15.1 years who participated in a (British) Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme expedition, indicating that adventure education can be a vehicle for personal and social development. Contains 21…

A conference explored consolidation and professionalization of the Australian outdoor industry. Key issues, five areas of the outdoor industry, and signposts of what constitutes a profession were identified. Tensions between industry needs and the role of higher education, the underrepresentation of Blacks and women, and effects of accreditation…

In November 2000, a conference in London hosted by three outdoor education associations examined the growing culture of risk aversion in the United Kingdom, the role of risk in learning, the increasing difficulty of finding a balance between risk and adventure, and the challenges of tempting children away from computer games and dealing with…

Summer Activities Initiatives is a U.K. program that uses outdoor adventure activities to prevent dropouts and help at-risk young people re-engage with services that offer them further education, training, or employment. This preliminary look at a program evaluation discusses the target group, recruitment, staffing, residential programming,…

A trainee in psychotherapeutic counseling conducts an allegorical trip to the Greek underworld via a caving trip to demonstrate the healing and learning potential within the risk-based experience. The acknowledgement of one's fears and their origins can have a powerful effect and serve as a metaphor for transformation in other areas of life.…

The death of a 17-year-old British girl on a youth expedition to Vietnam prompts questions about the ethics and role of expedition education and about accreditation and regulation of the adventure field. Should the agenda be controlled by a central corporation, government, or the field itself? Those in the field should present a united front on…

A survey of outdoor and adventure activities (OAA) in 33 United Kingdom schools found the following: 1) successful programs resulted from individual teachers' commitment, 2) primary and secondary pupils gained enormous benefits from OAA, 3) OAA's benefits were often lost because of inadequate reporting, and 4) OAA's contributions to personal…

The Youth Sport Trust developed a package of activities to support the teaching of outdoor and adventurous activities, integrated into the British national curriculum through physical education programs for preschool through secondary school age. Activity categories are physical challenges, trails, and orienteering. Teaching resources and their…

Reviews research on outcomes of Outdoor Management Development (OMD). Presents the first part of a study in which 12 managers and consultants in OMD programs in large British and Australian companies were interviewed to determine how OMD works. Three broad themes were identified: learning environment, personal insights and outcomes, and emotional…

Mastery and performance goals of learning were related to "broad" and "narrow" views of adventure identified through interviews with 12 British outdoor educators. Motivational research provides empirical support for using progressive teaching approaches in outdoor education. Findings suggest that educators should encourage a…