Allan, J

McKenna, J

Robinson, M

English

Leeds Beckett Repository

Building student resilience through first-year OutdoorAdventure residential experience in higher educationJohn Allan, Jim McKenna and Mark Robinsonevaluate their personal qualities or protective(resilience) factors, irrespective of theirbackgrounds. Further, we explore practices thatencourage them to use and therefore build theirpersonal strengths.Types of resilienceConceptually, resilience comprises ecological,cultural and psychological dimensions (Neill, 2003).Each of these elements helps to provide the detailof how young people might develop personalstrengths. For example, psychological resilience canbe viewed as either an outcome (based on a set offunctional responses and adaptations tocircumstances and events) or as an ongoingprocess which ensures adaptation.  Research intostudent retention in higher education (e.g. Cote,2002; Hammond, 2004; Walker et al, 2004) suggeststhat adaptable and endurance resilience are requiredto meet the needs of a prolonged challengingenvironment. The use of adventureResilience is considered an active process ofadaptation, developed from direct exposure touncertain situations and risk (Luthar and Cicchetti,2000). Optimising exposure to OA, where challengeis matched to perceived capability, acts as amotivator for positive behaviours. Through carefullymanaged experiential learning, OA has beenassociated with heightened markers of resilience(Neill and Dias, 2001) and provides a medium forthe development of a range of protective (resilience)factors (Sheard & Golby, 2006; Russell, 2001; Hattieet al, 1997).  Some of these outcomes seem not onlyto be retained over time but increase still furtherinto adulthood. Unger et al (2004) state that OA programmespositively affect young people through theimmediacy of learning and feedback in a naturalsetting.  The authenticity of experience provides theopportunity to develop and demonstrate newcompetencies, problem-solving, autonomy,helpfulness and other positive attributes associatedwith resilience (Bunting and Townley, 1999).  BackgroundA primary objective for the Government is to raiseand widen participation in higher education andimprove the proportion of students who continueinto their second year. One in ten students will notcontinue into Year 2, particularly those from non-traditional backgrounds, making the pursuit ofeffective remediation in Year 1 especially importantfor those institutions emphasising wideningparticipation. There are also longer-termconsequences; for every five students enteringuniversity, one will not complete their studies,leading, in many cases, to suffering from problemslike depression, low self-esteem andunemployment in later life (Public AccountsCommittee, 2008).In 2004, a Government-commissioned Review ofResearch on Outdoor Learning (Rickinson, 2004)called for rigorous, UK-based research to providedeeper insights into the value of adventureeducation for university students.  Our researchproject has already involved 3,000 incoming LeedsMet students in 2005-07 and explores the enduringimpact of induction-based outdoor adventure (OA)experiences on their psychological resilience(personal growth). Such a theoretically-orientedapproach aims to provide evidence that canenhance the scope and application of HE pedagogyin enabling new students to fulfil their potential.This paper highlights the design of the project andreports selected findings. ‘Building’ strong young peopleIntervention strategies to promote psychologicalresilience (capacity for psychological maintenance,recovery or improvement following life challenges)will, potentially, be an important feature in helpingstudents to complete their educational programmeswith optimal value. To heighten preparedness fortheir student experience, Carnegie Great Outdoorsfacilitates OA-based residential experiences thatequip all new students in the Carnegie Faculty withthe capacity to withstand stressors and developthrough their studies.Consistent with the tenets of positive psychology,our project encourages new students to identify and6 ALT JOURNAL NUMBER 4: SUMMER 200836257 New ALT Journal:Layout 1  19/8/08  16:28  Page 6chaos is supposedly permeated by overt andincipient negativity. Yet OA seems to capitalise on aunique blend of “uncertainty with realisticoutcomes” to promote adaptive responses.  Project overviewOur project is divided into three progressive studies.The first study measures the psychologicalresilience of the incoming student populationthrough self-report questionnaires.  Fine-grainedbiographies also highlight the evolving orientationof student groups. The second study explores theprocesses of personal growth attributable to theresidential adventure programmes. Quantitativeand qualitative data capture levels of engagementwithin the OA programme. Our analysis links OAexposure to changes in resilience. The third studyexplores the sustained effects of the residentialprogrammes to wider aspects of achievement. Datadrawn at three months identify the enduring andadaptable components of resilience and link themto accepted benchmarks of achievement (attritionrates, course progression and academicattainment).Project findings: narrative styles Life narratives (Frank, 1995) embody issues thatreflect qualities associated with resilience, yet littleis known about their empirical relationship withresilience. Within our project, students were askedto indicate their narrative style (meaning andpurpose given to literature) by the type of story thatwould best describe their lives at present. (Chaos:“I can describe details but not how things cameabout or why”; Quest: “I understand my experiencesand talk about them to help others”; Restitution: “Ican see the problems and know solutions that willwork for me.”). Focus groups and field interviewsexplored the immediate impact of experiencesduring and after the OA programme.  Unexpectedly, resilience changed as much forChaos students (who represented 10% of incomingstudents) as for others.  OA appears connected tothree underpinning resilience themes in studentswho described their life narrative as being chaotic:cognitive competence (“…learning how to findsolutions in different ways”), emotional intelligence(“…learning to accept failure”, “I can overcomefears – I feel stronger than I thought I was”) andsocial connectedness (“Struggling helped breakdown barriers”, “Knowing I can ask for help”). Wewere surprised at this because everyday life lived in7ALT JOURNAL NUMBER 4: SUMMER 2008Imagine first a lumpy university bed,slanted light coming through a slit between greycurtains, not quite enough Pot Noodles for oneweek, and a self-imposed set of blinkersfocusing your eyes on a spread of franticallyannotated texts. A knock on the door whichmust be ignored because “friends meanfailure”; too much fraternising with friends, thatis. And imagine also a sweaty grasp on a wellchewed biro as the looming clock ticks to amuch more sinister 3 o’clock than you’ve everseen before, and not enough words windingfrom a sluggish nib.Hope: hope now that the light coming throughthe curtains widens and smoothens thecrumpled sheets as an unaffected morningbegins, a packed bag with a proud essay’s A4corner gleaming at the edge and a quick coffeewith roommates before lectures, discussing therevision you’ll all be doing together later. Acramped study hall with other students you’vecome to know, their ideas holding a familiarquality, each one slightly different;commonplace grown from absurdities.  And imagine now, also, the clock tickingonwards to 3 as the last words round off the exam, closing the writing-dented paper and knowing the pleasure of knowing.Emily MarchantLower 6th, Skipton Girls’ High SchoolHoping to study English Literature““36257 New ALT Journal:Layout 1  19/8/08  16:28  Page 7SummaryResilience involves a complex interplay of forcesand adaptive qualities necessary for transformationand change. OA residential programmes havehelped address many issues highlighted bystudents as instrumental in their decision to leavefirst-year courses – lack of social integration andbonding with peers and the institution, lowconfidence for meeting course demands and lack ofpreparedness (National Student Survey, 2007).There is still much to be learned from this project.The conceptual fabric of resilience will be tested inrespect to its validity as a unitary construct.Retention and achievement profiles are being linkedto inductees’ resilience data so that they canultimately be used to predict the performancepotential of incoming students, highlighting bothneeds and qualities that can be built upon. Similardata for students now completing their second andthird year programmes are being sought forlongitudinal analysis. ‘Continuation’ OAprogrammes are being considered for Level 2 and 3students at key points in their academic cycle.Though the evidence for the effectiveness of theseadventure residential programmes is still emergingand students will respond to risk and adversity indifferent ways, these findings clearly indicate thatexposure to adventurous experiences help facilitatepersonal growth that enables adaptability.ReferencesBunting, C.J and Townley, J.T. (1999) A Synthesis ofEnvironmental and Adventure Education Concepts:A Professional Responsibility. In: Miles, J.C. andPriest (eds.) Adventure Programming. State College,PA: Venture Publishing, 433-44.Cote, J.E. (2002) The role of identity capital in thetransition to adulthood: the individualisation thesisexamined. Journal of Youth Studies 5(2), 117-134.Frank, A.W. (1995) The Wounded Storyteller: Bodyillness and ethics. Chicago: The University ofChicago Press.Hammond, C. (2004) Impacts of lifelong learningupon emotional resilience, psychological andmental health: field work evidence. Oxford Review ofEducation 30(4), 551-568.Project findings: resilience changeWe found by using psychometric measures thatthere were significant increases across cohorts inpsychological resilience immediately following anOA-based residential. Although on some coursesfemales display more consistent comparativeincreases, this is not significantly different acrossthe Faculty.  Follow-up data after three monthssuggest that resilience scores resume pre-residential levels during the transition touniversity, although pockets of increased resilienceremain. Qualitative data show an overwhelmingopinion among students that the inductionresidential experience is integral to effectivetransition into university life. Factors identified asfacilitating this include the fostering of meaningfulpeer relationships, interaction with Faculty staffand balancing student expectations with those ofthe institution. While these data are important, theyfall short of providing empirical evidence ofmechanisms of change following exposure toadventure programmes for students with differinglevels of resilience. Further analysis has succeeded in identifyingimportant elements of the residential experiencethat can promote personal growth. These includethe extent to which students feel in control, actindependently and are able to solve problems.These data enable optimum exposure to thesefactors to be ensured through the design andfacilitation of tailor-made programmes by CarnegieGreat Outdoors. Logistic regression statisticalanalysis has been used to identify how specificfeatures of the programme predicted morebeneficial levels of resilience for those with low andmoderate levels of resilience following theprogramme. A resulting single factor that led tochanges to moderate levels of resilience was being“inspired by the countryside”.  Every increase inexperience of this factor increased the likelihood ofbeing ‘moderately’ resilient by 55%.This highlighted the particular value of keeping anopen mind about what is going on in OA. With thismindset, regular exposure to natural, inspirationalelements of OA residential programmes increasesthe chances of securing at least moderate levels ofresilience.8 ALT JOURNAL NUMBER 4: SUMMER 200836257 New ALT Journal:Layout 1  19/8/08  16:28  Page 8As lnog as the frist and lsat letters in awrod are in the rghit palce, the biarn can uasullyraed waht is on the pgae. I sutdy Sorpt Scnienceand found Pysochgloy raelly irtetnisng. Lerannigabuot why we do thngis, waht tehy maen andhow inrceidble the biarn is mdae tihs sujbectraelly apaelping to me. The aesmessent wasjtus an eaxm but beuacse I had so mcuhpaisson for the sujbect I phsued myslef to dowlel. Haienvg deon a lot of cuoreswrok lsat yaerit had been a lnog time snice I had dnoe aneaxm so I was raelly nrevuos. Pysochgloy iscmoplctaied, wtih much to leran, which mdaereivesing hard; hwoveer, uiseng tehcnqiuessutdeied in my ltceuers and seimanrs form thismoedule allwoed me to sdtuty btteer not olnyfor tihs sujbect, but aslo for ohters.The eaxm wnet raelly well and I edned upgtteing a Frist for Pysochgloy and a 2:1 oevrlalfor my frist yaer. Tihs rsuelt gave me thecofnidnece and metnaltiy to phus mysleftrhough unevirstiy, hlepping me cocnertate onatitiainng the hghiest drgeee pssioble. Taht one mduole alone has muolded my oultook on unevirstiy and the way I leran.Adam Hall2nd year Sport ScienceWalker, C., Gleaves, A., and Grey, J. (2004) Canstudents within higher education learn to beresilient and, educationally speaking, does itmatter? Educational Studies 32(3), 251-264.John AllanSenior LecturerJim McKennaProfessor of SportMark RobinsonDirector of Carnegie Great OutdoorsCarnegie Faculty of Sport and Physical EducationHattie, J., Marsh, H., Neill, J. and Richards, G. (1997)Adventure Education and Outward Bound: Out-of-class experiences that make a lasting difference.Review of Educational Research 67(1), 43-87.Luthar, S. S. and Cicchetti, D. (2000). The constructof resilience: Implications for interventions andsocial policies. Development and Psychopathology 12,857-885.National Student Survey (2007). Bristol: HigherEducation Funding Council for England (HEFCE).Neill, J. T. (2003). Resilience and OutdoorEducation. Keynote presentation to the 1stSingapore Outdoor Education Conference,Singapore, 5-6 November.Neill, J.T. and Dias, K.L. (2001) Adventure educationand resilience; The double-edged sword. Journal ofAdventure Education and Outdoor Learning 1(2), 35-42.Public Accounts Committee (2008) Staying theCourse: the retention of students on Higher Educationcourses, Tenth Report of the Session. HC 322 (2007-8). London: The Stationery Office.Rickinson, M., Dillion, J., Teamey, K., Morris, M.,Mee Young Choi, Sanders, D. and Benefield, P.(2004) A Review of Research on Outdoor Learning.London: National Foundation for EducationalResearch and King’s College, London.Russell, K.C. (2001) What is Wilderness Therapy?The Journal of Experiential Education 24(2), 70-79.Sheard, M. and Golby, J. (2006) The efficacy of anoutdoor adventure education curriculum on selectedaspects of positive psychological development.Journal of Experiential Education 29(2), 187-209.Unger, M., Dumond, C., and McDonald, W. (2005)Risk, Resilience and Outdoor Programmes for At-Risk Children. Journal of Social Work 5(3), 319-338.9ALT JOURNAL NUMBER 4: SUMMER 2008““36257 New ALT Journal:Layout 1  19/8/08  16:28  Page 9

2nd year Sport Science

A Review of Research on Outdoor Learning. London: National Foundation for Educational Research and King’s College,

A Synthesis of Environmental and Adventure Education Concepts: A Professional Responsibility.

Adventure education and resilience; The double-edged sword.

Bristol: Higher Education Funding Council for

Resilience and Outdoor Education.

Risk, Resilience and Outdoor Programmes for AtRisk Children.

Senior Lecturer Jim McKenna Professor of Sport Mark Robinson Director of Carnegie Great Outdoors Carnegie Faculty of Sport and Physical Education

Staying the Course: the retention of students on

The construct of resilience: Implications for interventions and social policies.

The efficacy of an outdoor adventure education curriculum on selected aspects of positive psychological development.

The role of identity capital in the transition to adulthood: the individualisation thesis examined.

The Wounded Storyteller: Body illness and ethics.

What is Wilderness Therapy?

Building Student Resilience through First-Year Outdoor Adventure Residential Experience in Higher Education

Building Student Resilience through First-Year Outdoor Adventure Residential Experience in Higher Education

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Leeds Beckett Repository