We argue that intrinsic values have been overshadowed by neoliberal measurable values in Swedish schools. Based on previous research, intrinsic values seem to evolve within pupils in nature. The purpose of this study is to explore social interactions between pupils and teachers in nature and hence explore if pupils tend to practice any intrinsic values important to the social studies subject in upper secondary school. We argue that social studies is about “building society” together and that pupils’ ability to maintain a community, be solidaric and inherently take responsibility are important in this process. Hence, through non-participatory observations, we observe what happens with social interactions among upper secondary pupils and teachers in a national park. A thematic analysis of the empirical data resulted in three themes: responsibility, community, and power. The themes were analyzed through a sociological perspective using concepts such as mechanical and organic solidarity, Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft, as well as a relational power perspective. We conclude that the common goals formed in nature strengthen community and responsibility while power becomes more symmetrical. Finally, we discuss the professional relevance of the study by suggesting how social studies teachers can take their classroom outside to promote pupils’ inherent willingness to take responsibility and be solidaric.

Soft System Approaches have been developed worldwide to help problem-solvers and decision-makers develop solutions to complex problems, such as aerospace systems. Soft System Approaches were designed to help lower the disorder of developing a complex system by increasing understanding of a situation. Four Soft System Approaches were investigated, two from the West and two from the East. Within the context of the paper, the West refers to thought patterns associated with thinkers and scientists in Europe and North America, and the East refers to those from and around China. The two from the West are Peter Checkland’s Soft Systems Methodology and Fran Ackerman and Colin Eden’s Strategic Options Development and Analysis, and from the East they are Qian Xuesen’s Meta-Synthetic Approach and Jifa Gu and Zhichang Zhu’s Wuli-Shili-Renli Approach. The four approaches were selected due to their prevalence and notoriety within the Soft System Approach research. The Western Soft System Approaches were created as a direct response to reductionism and are more holistic than Hard System Approaches; however, they are classified as systematic due to their structure. The approaches are tools that can be deployed for a specific task. Eastern Soft System Approaches rooted in Eastern philosophy went from holism to reductionism to a unity of the two. There is no one-size-fits-all approach; therefore, approaches that seek to balance reductionism and holism and give guidance and structure while inviting in other methods. The Eastern approaches are classified as framework Soft System Approaches, which provide structure and guidance but not a formula. Systematic approaches are better for determining a course of action, while framework approaches are better for guiding a whole program. The Eastern approaches covered can and do incorporate other methods, including each other. Depending on the problem and problem solver, the systematic or framework approach may be better suited. Overall, however, the framework approach will be able to solve the most varied problems due to the lack of prescriptiveness and the use of other approaches. Knowing the difference between the approaches and how they can be used helps manage the development of complex aerospace systems.

First-hand narrative accounts of participants’ experiences during outdoor programmes are notably absent from the outdoor education literature. This thesis reports on an exploratory study which applied a creative qualitative approach called photo-elicitation interviews to gather student accounts about the ways in which they experienced an outdoor education programme known as ‘school camp’. A group of Year 10 (14-15 years old) students attending secondary school in Christchurch, New Zealand, participated in this study, and were provided with 27-exposure, disposable cameras on which they were asked to take a series of photographs to demonstrate what a residential school camp was like for them. Follow-up, individual photo-elicitation interviews with the 32 self-selected respondents (21 female, 11 male), revealed that school camp is primarily an enjoyable, social experience where students are able to spend time with their friends and develop their peer networks in a unique environment. From the perspective of these students, school camp primarily contributed to developing a greater understanding of others, while developing greater understandings of the self and the environment were less salient. A greater understanding of others was achieved primarily through the ways in which school camp created an enjoyable, novel, experience which allowed students to see their peers from a different, more ‘real’ perspective. Aspects of this novel experience which contributed to students’ social interactions included the residential nature of these camps and the absence of ‘urban’ features associated with teenage culture such as mobile phones, clothing and make-up. Interestingly, students’ camp experiences included little specific reference to the natural environment; a finding which challenges recent discourses advocating for a shift towards a more critical outdoor education aiming to promote human-nature relationships. The use of photo-elicitation interviews in this context is critically examined. Providing students with cameras was an effective way to engage young people in academic research and to capture important aspects of the outdoor experience from their perspective. To better assess the utility of the technique, it warrants further application in other outdoor education contexts. The inclusion of participant-generated photographs, however, raises several research ethics issues. This study contributes to the growing body of qualitative literature seeking to provide a more in-depth understanding of outdoor education and complements the quantitative studies which predominate in the field.

Working with an organization outside the public school system that was creating schoolyard gardens, I began to think about culture and cultivation inside and outside of schooling practices. The liveliness of the schoolyard gardens presented possibilities for enlivening educational discourses. With two participants I planted a container box schoolyard garden outside Lamoureux Hall, which houses the Faculty of Education. Utilizing aspects of place-based pedagogy, ecoliteracy, ecopedagogy and a metissage of a/r/tography, eco-art and writing as a method of inquiry, we tended the garden and dwelled upon ideas of nature, culture, and their intersection in a particular place. Our garden experiences left cyber footprints in virtual space as blog spots on a thesis blog site. The garden and the inquiry it generated outside,is brought back inside the education building as a Master's thesis. The garden grew in different and unpredictable ways due to intense construction on site, entwining the planter boxes with unseen variables.

Working with an organization outside the public school system that was creating schoolyard gardens, I began to think about culture and cultivation inside and outside of schooling practices. The liveliness of the schoolyard gardens presented possibilities for enlivening educational discourses. With two participants I planted a container box schoolyard garden outside Lamoureux Hall, which houses the Faculty of Education. Utilizing aspects of place-based pedagogy, ecoliteracy, ecopedagogy and a metissage of a/r/tography, eco-art and writing as a method of inquiry, we tended the garden and dwelled upon ideas of nature, culture, and their intersection in a particular place. Our garden experiences left cyber footprints in virtual space as blog spots on a thesis blog site. The garden and the inquiry it generated outside,is brought back inside the education building as a Master's thesis. The garden grew in different and unpredictable ways due to intense construction on site, entwining the planter boxes with unseen variables.

Working with an organization outside the public school system that was creating schoolyard gardens, I began to think about culture and cultivation inside and outside of schooling practices. The liveliness of the schoolyard gardens presented possibilities for enlivening educational discourses. With two participants I planted a container box schoolyard garden outside Lamoureux Hall, which houses the Faculty of Education. Utilizing aspects of place-based pedagogy, ecoliteracy, ecopedagogy and a metissage of a/r/tography, eco-art and writing as a method of inquiry, we tended the garden and dwelled upon ideas of nature, culture, and their intersection in a particular place. Our garden experiences left cyber footprints in virtual space as blog spots on a thesis blog site. The garden and the inquiry it generated outside,is brought back inside the education building as a Master's thesis. The garden grew in different and unpredictable ways due to intense construction on site, entwining the planter boxes with unseen variables.

The work deals with theoretical research of basis of Environmental Psychology for Outdoor Education. It answers two questions ? why in the conceptions of Outdoor Education is nature the preferred environment and what are the benefits of nature for physical, mental and social health. The answers to theses questions are in the work described through theories of environmental preference and restorative effects of nature. There are three major sections of the work. The first part discusses the basis, principles and contents of Environmental Psychology and Outdoor Education, the core terminology of the work, and the nodal points of Environmental Psyhcology and the theory of Outdoor Education. Second part describes those theories and concepts of Environmental Psychology which are related to the primary and subsidiary research questions. The third part evaluates the impacts and relevance of environmental-psychological knowledge on concepts of Outdoor Education.

Working with an organization outside the public school system that was creating schoolyard gardens, I began to think about culture and cultivation inside and outside of schooling practices. The liveliness of the schoolyard gardens presented possibilities for enlivening educational discourses. With two participants I planted a container box schoolyard garden outside Lamoureux Hall, which houses the Faculty of Education. Utilizing aspects of place-based pedagogy, ecoliteracy, ecopedagogy and a metissage of a/r/tography, eco-art and writing as a method of inquiry, we tended the garden and dwelled upon ideas of nature, culture, and their intersection in a particular place. Our garden experiences left cyber footprints in virtual space as blog spots on a thesis blog site. The garden and the inquiry it generated outside,is brought back inside the education building as a Master's thesis. The garden grew in different and unpredictable ways due to intense construction on site, entwining the planter boxes with unseen variables.

The call of the wilderness resonates in all of our hearts, with the desire to get in touch with nature and experience wilderness at some level. This project gives the high school teacher the practical resources necessary to share the passion of being in the wilderness with high school students.

The objective of this project is to develop an activity guide for the California native plant trail located adjacent to the San Bernardino County Museum that allows families to discover native California plants while increasing environmental and cultural sensitivity.