1. Wilderness Leadership for Physical Education Majors: The Current National Status of Wilderness Education.
- Author
-
Luo, Ping, Jewell, John, and Davies, Nigel
- Abstract
Outdoor/adventure education is a relatively new content area required by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education for students majoring in physical education. Teacher preparation programs in physical education have yet to adopt a standardized curriculum. A survey was completed by 162 of the 536 physical education programs in U.S. colleges and universities. Only 46 respondents reported being in compliance with the new outdoor education requirements. The most commonly offered outdoor activities were orienteering, hiking, backpacking, ropes courses, and canoeing; each was offered by 50-62 respondents. Respondents also indicated the percentage of class time spent in lecture or field settings, teaching aids used in outdoor instruction, the number of units of outdoor education required for physical education majors, instructors' highest degree attained and area of degree concentration, instructors' teaching experience, titles of textbooks used, perceived need for the development of an outdoor education text, instructors' willingness to contribute to a future text or to adopt such a text, and the didactic and activity content areas that should be included in a new text. An open-ended question completed by 34 respondents elicited three themes: concern that region would affect the content of outdoor education courses, preference for no required outdoor education courses, and desire to review any new text that is developed. (Contains 4 references and 26 recommended readings.) (SV)
- Published
- 2002