Adventure Education

No other college or university offers more depth or breadth of experience for an undergraduate education in Adventure Education than Prescott College. Student to faculty ratios are small (12:1) in the classroom and as low as 5:1 on field courses. Students receive tremendous amounts of personalized instruction. Whether they are taking courses in lead climbing, whitewater kayaking, backcountry skiing, group dynamics students are studying and practicing the knowledge and skills they need to become competent in the field. In the Adventure Education program, students learn technical, adventure-based activities, educational theory, interpersonal communication, group dynamics, leadership theory and skills, and environmental awareness. Recent graduates of the Prescott College Adventure Education program are employed as NOLS/Outward Bound climbing guides, sea kayak instructors, backcountry ski guides, ropes course instructors, and wilderness survival instructors.

Prescott College is ideally located for the study of outdoor education and leadership. Within one hour's drive, students can access over a dozen wilderness areas. Within a day's drive lie the Grand Canyon, the Colorado Rockies, Utah's Canyonlands, the Sonoran Desert, and the Baja Peninsula of Mexico. Many of the courses utilize public lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service, Park Service and the BLM. The major objective of this program is to help students acquire abilities as educators and to develop outdoor skills, at a standard of competence that will enable them to become leaders in the field. Prescott College graduates will play their part in the developing outdoor education programs across the nation.

Program Overview: Choosing a Competence or Emphasis Area
The Adventure Education Program is dedicated to providing diverse, interdisciplinary opportunities for students to experience and study this exciting area of education. Students learn technical adventure-based activities, educational theory, interpersonal communication, group dynamics, and environmental awareness. The Program offers one competence, Adventure Education, with two optional emphasis areas which serve as areas of concentration for most students: Adventure Education with an emphasis in Outdoor Experiential Education and Adventure Education with an emphasis in Wilderness Leadership

Competence and Emphasis Areas
The career options for students with a competence in Adventure Education vary according to the areas of study and technical skills in which they become competent. The required course work for Adventure Education is designed to give students a foundation to work in a variety of situations. Students should consider how they want to use their education after graduation as they design their degree plan. The types of questions students should be considering include:

• Do you want to be able to design curriculum?
• Are you interested in working with people to help them build self-esteem and work more effectively with others?
• Do you want to teach specific activities or guide adventure activities in remote locations?
• Do you want to know enough about environmental studies to integrate environmental ethics or public lands issues into your teaching, and/or to interpret the natural history of the areas you travel through as an instructor?
• Is there a particular age group with whom you would work best?

Adventure Education is an applied degree. Therefore, we highly recommend doing summer work or internships to field-test ideas and interests as well as to gain essential experience. The more work experience students gain while still at Prescott College, the more competent they will be as graduates.

Adventure Education Competence
Adventure activities have long been used as a means to develop virtues such as compassion, inventiveness, and tenacity. Students in this competence area gain a solid foundation of outdoor skills with an emphasis on the facilitation of adventure activities for groups, toward the goal of increasing self-concept and social skills among participants. Equally important to an Adventure Education competence is the ethical application of knowledge and skills in the broader context of humans and the environment. Through service, students are encouraged to develop a sense of obligation to participate and fulfill their responsibilities related to being a member of both the human and natural communities. The Adventure Education competence supports the liberal arts mission of the College by developing self-directed individuals who will serve as leaders in this field. We will graduate theoretically and technically competent outdoor teachers who can apply their skills as educators to diverse groups and environments in a world with a growing population and finite wilderness resources. Graduates of our program will have the skills to analyze problems, and identify and evaluate appropriate resources and trends, with regards to environmental and social issues, cultural differences, and the uniqueness of individual students.

Overview
The College offers a variety of courses that address the integrated topics required of students to be competent as adventure educators. These include outdoor skills, interpersonal and group process skills, educational theory, and environmental awareness. These areas of study combine to form an integrated competence that will prepare aspiring adventure educators to begin their work in the field.

Goals and Objectives for Learning:
Areas of Knowledge:

• Adventure-based learning theories
• History and evolution of Adventure Education
• History of adventure and exploration
• Educational and learning theories
• Interpersonal and group dynamics theory
• Institutional standards and practices
• Environmental issues in Adventure Education
• Natural history and ecology
• Land management history, policies, practices, and trends
• Emergency medical training

Skills and Methods:

• Risk management and judgment
• Decision-making and problem solving skills
• Expedition trip planning
• Proficiency in a variety of outdoor pursuits
• Backcountry navigation, travel, and camping skills
• Curriculum design, lesson planning, and presentation
• Interpersonal communication, group facilitation, and conflict resolution
• Research and writing skills

Ethical Issues:

• Professional standards for expedition behavior
• Gender responsible leadership
• Social and environmental responsibilities
• An understanding of environmental issues connected with increased recreation uses

Experiences:

• Expeditionary planning
• Service learning
• Experience leading and teaching a variety of populations
• Field-based courses in a multitude of environments
• Outside work experience

Adventure Education With an Emphasis in Outdoor Experiential Education
The Outdoor Experiential Education area of emphasis has been developed for students who are interested in designing curriculum as well as teaching. It provides a background in educational theories and philosophies as well as the technical, interpersonal, and group skills needed to be a competent field instructor.

The educational philosophy of Prescott College stresses experiential learning and self-direction within an interdisciplinary curriculum. The competence of Outdoor Experiential Education represents a balanced combination of technical outdoor skills and experiential education methodologies. It emphasizes a thorough understanding of experiential education theories and epistemologies, thereby helping students to develop their own educational philosophies and teaching styles. Students further refine their teaching skills through opportunities to deliver diverse content in both wilderness and classroom settings. The emphasis on Outdoor Experiential Education allows students to work with people from diverse backgrounds and learning styles. Students with a competence in Outdoor Experiential Education will have gained an understanding of educational theories, learning styles, and experiential learning philosophies. They will have demonstrated knowledge of the technical, interpersonal, and group skills necessary to lead and teach groups in the outdoors.

Adventure Education With an Emphasis in Wilderness Leadership
Over the last decade, there has been a tremendous growth in the popularity of "adventure sports" and "adventure travel." Such potentially hazardous outdoor pursuits include whitewater rafting and kayaking, sea kayaking, rock climbing, mountaineering, and skiing. Often conducted in remote and exotic regions of the world, these activities have become commonplace leisure time priorities among affluent citizens of industrialized nations. Wilderness Leadership is the role of conducting these activities for others in a safe, enriching and responsible manner. This includes accepting widely ranging responsibilities for the health and wellbeing of both clients and the environments (both human and natural) in which the activities take place.

At Prescott College, wilderness leadership training immerses students in experiences that help to accomplish the goals of the College's mission statement. Self-directed learning is inherent in the sequential processes of training, refining, and eventually teaching and leading adventure activities. Students are impelled to take responsibility for their own development, and to integrate practical and theoretical learning in real-life situations. While leading a group of novice climbers on a peak ascent, the leader must accurately identify potential and existing problems, critically evaluate resources and make profound decisions on an ongoing basis. The critical consequences of one's actions serve as a paramount motivator and to heighten one's sense of responsibility. Considering the impacts and consequences of adventure and tourism on the physical, biological and cultural legacies of regions visited is another responsibility. In order to make good decisions and act appropriately, leadership training goes far beyond simply learning the use of low-impact camping and travel practices. Students are encouraged to gain a broad understanding of environmental and cultural issues. Discussions of ethics, current issues, management practices, environmental law, and changing social values and demographics are all part of wilderness leadership training. Discourse, coupled with service opportunities and immersion experiences, give students awareness and appreciation of other cultures, their own heritage, and the ecosystem. This fosters a commitment to responsible participation in each.

Overview
Foundational courses required for the Wilderness Leadership emphasis are similar to those for Adventure Education. Students start by acquiring outdoor skills, which they refine through personal endeavors. Foundational courses also introduce students to interpersonal communications, group processes and environmental studies. Advanced courses in Wilderness Leadership are taken after students have gained proficiency in basic outdoor pursuits and risk management skills. These courses build on existing knowledge and define the roles and responsibilities of the wilderness guide. Wilderness Leadership courses culminate with a critical assessment of each student's performance. The student's Senior Project and a teaching assistantship provide a final demonstration of competence leading to graduation.