Thesis (Ph. D.)--Indiana University, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 186-202). Also available online (PDF file) by a subscription to the set or by purchasing the individual file.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Indiana University, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 186-202).

Thesis (M.A.) - Simon Fraser University, 2005. / Theses (Faculty of Education) / Simon Fraser University. Also issued in digital format and available on the World Wide Web.

This project involved the development and evaluation of a self-instructional environmental study learning guide for use at the Ball State University Wildlife Preserve in Muncie, Indiana. The guide was primarily intended for use by Ball State University students enrolled in several of the courses offered in the biology and natural resources departments.The chief goals of this project were to develop an effective self-instructional learning guide which would assist the student in a study of the environment in a natural setting, and to help familiarize the evaluation of the materials before and after their use by students.Two hypotheses were formulated: (1) Students will learn environmental concepts more effectively by participating in an outdoor experience than by not participating in such an experience; (2) Students will perceive the outdoor experience as one which has value to them.To achieve the goals, a number of environmental concepts were identified and categorized on the basis of their applicability to the natural area under study. Behavioral objectives were written to match these concepts.The text of the learning guide was based on these concepts and objectives and was constructed using the principles of programmed learning. Using this text, the student was guided along the trails at the Wildlife Preserve and performed appropriate activities.The use of this environmental study area was a technique to achieve more effective learning. To test the soundness of this approach, pre and post tests were written, administered, and analyzed using the t-test to determine if in fact there was a gain in cognitive learning after the field experience. To determine whether the students had perceived this experience as having value to them, a post field trip questionnaire of the scaled response type was also prepared and administered.Four sections of students enrolled in an introductory natural resources course and one section of students enrolled in an elementary education methods class served as the experimental subjects. Two additional sections of natural resources students served as the control subjects. An additional four sections from both courses served as participants by taking the field trip with the learning guide and filling out the questionnaire, but were not tested for cognitive gain.Hypothesis one was accepted at the .05 level in three of the experimental groups when t-tested as individual units, was rejected in two of the five experimental groups when t-tested as individual units, was accepted for all five experimental groups when t-tested as a whole, and was rejected in both control groups both singly and combined.Hypothesis two was evaluated by means of a questionnaire and by handwritten comments, the results of which were generally positive in tone. There was overwhelming agreement that the trip was worthwhile (88.0%), that some new facts and concepts had been learned there (88.9%) and 81.7% of the elementary education majors indicated they would like to take students for a field Grip. These figures fall into the same range as those of several similar studies cited in the literature review.The results of this study indicate that an effective self-instructional learning guide to an outdoor education area can be developed and utilized by university students. The use of such a guide can result in a measurable cognitive gain in the understanding of environmental concepts and is generally perceived as a worthwhile activity by those students who have used it.

Recent popularity of interdisciplinary outdoor learning has resulted in a need for a method of selecting adequate learning sites. Observations by the author of outdoor sites presently in use indicated a need for analysis and selection of sites where students could derive the greatest benefit. A survey was sent to each school district in the province to determine interest in this approach. Results of the survey showed fifty-five percent of the responding school districts have undertaken planning for outdoor education with emphasis in the elementary grades. Fifteen percent of the responding districts are presently developing sites for extended outdoor education and curriculum enrichment. Another seventeen percent would consider this type of site in their future plans. A term, "corridors of learning", was coined to describe unique and distinct areas within a site. This concept was enlarged to include the potential use by students and teacher of each part of an outdoor site. Curriculum was defined as the total educational potential of a site. Objectives for outdoor education in this province were phrased by determining the frequency of occurence in the literature of similar objectives. These were then rephrased so that they would be practical within the British Columbia school system and serve as a basis for viewing the site as the curriculum. Outdoor education was divided into the field trip approach, day trip approach and residential approach. A literature search and field observations were carried out to isolate problems related to the ecology of the site and the behavioural responses of students using a site. Problems of site availability, useability, physical uniqueness, and student use were considered important selection factors. Numerical values were assigned to physical site factors for the purpose of comparative analysis of different sites. These numerical values were used to develop a graph for comparing the educational potential of several sites. / Education, Faculty of / Graduate

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Melbourne, Dept. of Education, 2000. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 111-118).

This thesis explores the procedure utilized in the creation of a reliable and valid test instrument for determining the educational value of the Indianapolis Resident Outdoor Education Program during spring, 1972, and the actual administration of this instrument at the Bradford Woods Camp during spring, 1972.This is an unprecedented investigation of the Indianapolis Resident Outdoor Education Program. The literature review attempts to give the reader an understanding of the historical development of Resident Outdoor Education in the public school system. The aims and objectives established for various programs, and attitudes which have resulted from these programs are also discussed.The creation of the 99 question pilot instrument, and testing of this instrument are presented in detail. Then, the creation of a revised instrument of 50 questions is discussed. Next, the method of testing the revised evaluative instrument is presented.From the data gathered during the testing of both the pilot and revised instruments, conclusions are drawn concerning the educational value of the Indianapolis Resident Outdoor Education at the Bradford Woods Camp during spring, 1972. The thesis is concluded by recommendations for further research. The pilot and revised instruments created for this investigation are included in the appendices.

No description available.

Outdoor education offers a promising method for developing life skills, however this field is undermined by ad hoc theory and limited research. This thesis offers a critical synthesis of theoretical and empirical outdoor education literature, develops instrumentation to measure life effectiveness, and reports on a large, longitudinal study of outdoor education program life effectiveness outcomes. Outdoor education was reviewed as consisting of seven theoretically interactive domains (participant, environment, program, activity, group, instructor, and culture) within a dynamic, experiential milieu. A theoretical systems framework is proposed, drawing on Dewey’s theory of experience, to illustrate how participants’ experiences of outdoor education might be understood as arising within a “complex system”. A critical review of traditional and meta-analytic reviews of empirical outdoor education research indicated small-moderate positive impacts on typically measured outcomes (e.g. self-concept, locus of control, and social skills; ES ~ 0.35). However, this research has been limited by a lack of appropriate dependent measures, low statistical power, over-reliance on inferential statistics, a lack of control and comparison groups, a lack of longitudinal data, and a lack of investigation of independent variables. To address such issues, Study 1 developed new measurement instrumentation and Study 2 conducted a large, longitudinal study. “Life effectiveness” was proposed to refer to generic life skills which facilitate surviving and thriving across a variety of situations. Life effectiveness skills were further proposed to be enhanceable through intervention. Study 1 investigated the psychometrics of the 11-factor, 64-item Life Effectiveness Questionnaire version G (LEQ-G) through congeneric and confirmatory factor analyses (N = 1,164). Three problematic factors and several weaker items were removed, leading to an 8-factor, 24-item model (LEQ-H) with an excellent fit (TLI = .984; N = 1,892). A global second-order model also provided an excellent fit (TLI = .980), with evidence for factorial invariance of the second-order factor across gender and age, and promising evidence for factorial invariance of the first-order model. Further development of the LEQ was recommended to consider construct validity, other life effectiveness factors, and ongoing item development (e.g. to reduce skewness). / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Thesis (M.A.)--York University, 2006. Graduate Programme in Kinesiology and Health Science. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 155-170). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&res_dat=xri:pqdiss&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:MR19710