PRIMERA VISITADURÍA GENERAL

In light of the literature reviewed above, and in order to examine the particular geographies of outdoor education, this research is conducted through the case study of the Outward Bound Trust (OBT). As Chapter 1 outlined, the OBT are the UK branch of an international organisation which aims to help develop young people through “adventurous and challenging outdoor learning programmes” (OBT 2018a: n.p.). This final section outlines the Trust’s history and their present-day practices.

2.6.1. The history of the Outward Bound Trust: Hahnian character education

The first OBT school was established in 1941 by Lawrence Holt and Kurt Hahn, with the explicit aim of character training amid fears of moral decline (Freeman 2011). Hahn was also a key figure in establishing the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme, and he mobilised his vision for developing young people through the belief that “we are all better than we know” (OBT 2017a). For Hahn, education was a passion. His educational ideas were embedded in a critical view of Western European society, which he perceived as one of moral decline and defeat (van Oord 2010). He often referred to six ‘declines of modern youth’. First, a decline of fitness due to modern methods of locomotion which led to physical illiteracy; second, a decline of initiative and enterprise due to the widespread disease of ‘spectatoritis’; third, a decline of memory and imagination due to the restlessness and lack of reflection of modern life; fourth, a decline of skill and care due to the weakened tradition of craftsmanship; fifth, a decline of self-discipline due to the ever-present availability of stimulants and tranquilizers; and sixth, which Hahn perceived to be the most damming of all, a decline of compassion due to the haste with which modern life was conducted (Loynes 2007; van Oord 2010).

As an antidote to these six declines, Hahn developed an educational training plan of ‘experience therapy’ (van Oord 2010). This plan comprised of what have come to be known as Hahn’s “four pillars”: physical fitness, self-discipline (realised through expeditions), craftmanship, and service (Ibid.; McKenzie 2003). This training plan was explicitly aimed at the building of

character (Freeman 2011). Hahn’s view of the importance of education was in ensuring the

survival of the qualities of “an enterprising curiosity, an indefatigable spirit, tenacity in pursuit, readiness for sensible self-denial, and above all, compassion” (Outward Bound Canada 2001: 5). Richards (1990) marks out these ideas as more than just a method; he credits Hahn with contributing a philosophy to the educational sphere. For Richards, the idea of active citizenship

was at the heart of this philosophy (Loynes 2007), encapsulating Hahn’s vision of education through its purpose to “develop a righteous man who is vigilant and an active citizen, who has a sense of duty to his fellow man and to God” (Richards 1990: 68, emphasis added). Through this pursuit of character education, we can see connections to ideas around young people as ‘in need of training’, and as Richards points out, the six declines would not be out of place in the moral panics of the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s and beyond.

The original OBT school was the Aberdovey Sea School in Wales. Its purpose was to equip young seamen with the ability to survive in wartime Britain, or, as Loynes (2007: 123) suggests, “developing moral fibre to the drown proofing of merchant sailors”. The original OBT course was developed by seconded naval officers (Ibid.). The course was four weeks long, during which trainees were given intensive athletics training, learnt seamanship, and prepared for a land-based expedition (Freeman 2011). Influenced by criticisms regarding its militaristic nature, as well as educational research around ‘moral development’ and peacetime models of masculinity, Freeman (2011) documents a changing rhetoric in the OBT through the 1960s and 1970s. The language of ‘character-training’ was superseded by ‘personality’ and ‘self- discovery’, representing a turn toward individual development. This change in language represents a subtle shift, emphasising individual responsibility (Loynes 2007). The idea of ‘moulding the young’ began to give way to the notion of empowering youth to make their own moral choices (Ibid.). This thesis therefore aims to interrogate the contemporary discourses and practice of the OBT, in light of this shift in its key messages. Indeed, although histories (Freeman 2011) and pedagogy (Armour & Sandford 2013) have been studied, this is the first geographical study of the contemporary OBT.

2.6.2. The Outward Bound Trust today

Today, the OBT is the UK’s leading provider of bursary-assisted outdoor learning for young people aged 11-19 in education, training and employment (OBT 2018a). The Trust’s core values still align with Kurt Hahn’s vision, represented in their mission statement “to unlock the potential in young people through learning and adventure in the wild” (OBT 2017a: 7). Through their courses they seek “change how young people think and feel about themselves and their lives, by building their personal, social and emotional skills” (OBT 2018a: n.p.). Courses are delivered from their six residential centres (Figure 2.1) each of which provides a unique setting for OBT courses in areas of ‘outstanding natural beauty’.

These outdoor settings are one of the most fundamental aspects of OBT programmes. As outlined briefly in Chapter 1, The OBT 2016-2020 strategic framework outlines three distinctive features: skilled people, an inspiring and challenging environment (place), and an effective process (the three ‘P’s). There is an unquestioned agreement across the Trust that “learning in the outdoors provides direct and practical experiences that cannot be achieved within a traditional classroom setting” (OBT 2018a: n.p.). The natural environment is seen as an opportunity to take young people away from distractions and modern amenities, and immersion in the natural environment is used as a facilitator for young people’s development (OBT 2016). The way in which the OBT make use of the British landscape is encompassed in their description on the Outward Bound International website:

Figure 2. 1 Map of the British Isles giving locations and descriptions of the Outward Bound Trust residential centres (Source: OBT 2018a)

“The true Outward Bound experience is about ‘getting out there’, using the mountains, lakes, rivers and sea on our doorsteps as a classroom, to enable young people to see what they are truly capable of achieving in life. The Trust’s centres are based in some of the most inspiring locations the UK has to offer […] Adventures and activities offered depend on the location of the centre, but range from kayaking, abseiling, expeditions and orienteering to sailing, canoeing and gorge walking.” (OBI 2016: n.p.) Outward Bound International (OBI) was established to support the now international network of Outward Bound schools, which operation in thirty-three countries and two hundred and fifty locations. The OBI’s mission is to “help people discover and develop their potential to care for themselves, others and the world around them through challenging experiences in unfamiliar settings” (OBI 2016: n.p.) - which is consistent with Hahn’s focus on self-development (McKenzie 2003). However, it is worth noting the decentralized nature of OBI; encouraging schools to cultivate their own sense of purpose relative to the mission and needs of the society in which they operate. It is easy to appreciate how each school reflects the contemporary culture of its own country, when you consider the UK-based OBT which is (historically) wedded to the British landscape and the powerful opportunities these settings are seen to provide.

2.6.3. Courses for young people

The courses that the OBT currently offer differ from the original four-week courses. The Trust still run longer, nineteen-day summer courses for individuals, but the majority of its work, and the focus of this research, is the five-day residential courses for school groups. Young people are split into groups of twelve, accompanied by an instructor, and often a member of school staff. They take part in a variety of team and individual tasks throughout the week, including canoeing, rock climbing, gorge-walking and an over-night expedition. There is deliberate focus on learning, and therefore young people take part in pre- and post-activity ‘classroom’ sessions to reinforce what they have learnt during an activity. This is encompassed in the “Outward Bound Experiential Learning Model” (Appendix 1) which details the process of framing and reviewing the activity to encourage the transfer of learning (OBT 2017b). Through its courses, the OBT aims to develop transferable life skills, including: setting and achieving goals; listening and communicating; facing a challenge with determination; cooperation and collaboration; maintaining a positive outlook; and effective leadership skills (OBT 2018a).

There is clearly still a strong alignment with Hahn’s understanding of the main targets of education – nurturing the qualities of curiosity, spirit, pursuit, readiness and compassion (Mckenzie 2003). The OBT still advocate Hahn’s idea of ‘experiential’ learning, whereby young people were exposed to situations that would challenge them mentally and physically (Nicol 2014), and this is the way in which the OBT seek to develop these skills. These discourses are examined in more detail in the analytical chapters, but are provided here for context, and positioned now in relation to the outdoor education ‘market’.

2.6.4. The ‘market place’ of outdoor education

As Hattie et al. (1997) comment, there has been a marked increase in the use and popularity of outdoor education over the past fifty years, perhaps most obviously demonstrated by the rapid growth of the Outward Bound organisation. The OBT is operating in a competitive market place and as a result has had to construct an exclusive and unique identity around its brand. The Trust has expanded its provision to offer a range of themed courses including engaging in learning,

transition to sixth form, teamwork skills and adventure and challenge. However, the OBT

uphold Hahn’s original philosophy within these courses and it is evident that the organisation is deeply connected to the very place-specific natures of its six residential centres (explored in more detail later). It is this strong affiliation with iconic British landscapes that the OBT frequently draws upon to justify the quality and impact of its work. For example,

“Close to the imposing ridge of the High Street fells, Howtown outdoor education centre is an inspirational place for participants to learn and develop - a stunning yet accessible location for learning through adventure.” (OBT 2018a: n.p.)

“Frontier adventure” and “striving to journey into the ‘big environment’ […] and give people as intense and challenging experience as possible” is now “just part of the everyday wallpaper” of the OBT (OBT 2018a: n.p.). One of the most salient OBT tag lines is the commitment to “developing people, naturally” (2017c: 10). The dual meaning of this statement – as an ode to the Trusts use of natural environments and the suggestion that these are the sorts of experiences that young people should have access to – has powerful implications for the image that the organisation projects. The unique Outward Bound experience all comes at a price, of course – secondary schools and colleges can opt for a three or five-day outdoor residential experience, with prices starting at £1,404 or £2,268 respectively (for a group of twelve participants and one member of visiting staff) (OBT 2018a). Consequentially, the OBT brand is essential for

continued success – prospective clients must be able to associate the OBT with a certain calibre of experience not offered elsewhere in the ‘market place’ of outdoor experiential learning. 2.7. Conclusion

This chapter has sought to outline the debates and approaches which frame this thesis. Overall, four key inter-disciplinary issues have been discussed: the problematic notion of citizenship and learning for citizenship; the role of learning spaces beyond the classroom; dominant and exclusionary nature discourses; and young peoples’ experiences of nature. These debates crosscut geographies of education and children’s geographies and bring them into dialogue with dominant discourses regarding nature. In addition, this chapter has introduced the research case study. It has identified some initial connections between the OBT and literature on youth and citizenship, and how nature/youth relations are played out in context of the OBT, which will be a central focus of the discussion chapters.

To date, the social and physical spaces of outdoor education remain largely underexplored, especially within geography. This thesis responds to the relative lack of research on outdoor education in the of geographies of education through an exploration of the particular spatialities of the OBT. Interrogating how the core components of people, place and process coalesce in particular time-spaces serves to broaden our knowledge of informal educational practice, and young people’s experiences of such practices. The research methodology used to address this research objective is outlined in the following chapter, which details the original programme of research and fieldwork.

CHAPTER THREE