The environmental beliefs, values and programmes of New Zealand outdoor tertiary education teachers.

Abstract

Throughout the world, there is increasing concern about the effects of climate change and the impact of a growing human population on the earth’s natural resources. In order to understand how these concerns are impacting on people working in the natural environment, this research explores the environmental beliefs and values of outdoor educators. It also focuses on how educators implement these beliefs and values in their teaching practices, and how their understanding of an ‘environmental crisis’ impacts on their outdoor teaching and programmes. The research reviews environmental and outdoor literature. It explores what an environmental crisis might mean, some influential environmental philosophies, the international development of environmental education, New Zealand’s tertiary environmental education and the role of the environment in outdoor education. A qualitative research methodology was employed that involved interviewing six New Zealand outdoor educators. These interviews are transcribed into individual case studies. The final chapter is a discussion of the study’s findings. It explores the commonalities and differences between the participants’ views and the literature, as well as the various environmental theoretical and practical issues. The research endeavours to listen to and learn from the shared experiences of outdoor educators with particular consideration given to their environmental philosophies. It highlights the effects of an increased awareness of environmental issues on teaching and practices, suggesting that there may be an increase in consciousness for implementing environmental considerations within outdoor programmes. In addition, the research suggests that the traditional personal development and pursuit orientated focus of outdoor education may be at a crossroad, as people become more concerned about local, national and worldwide environmental changes.