The mirror of the sea : Narrative identity, sea kayak adventuring and implications for outdoor adventure education
- Authors: Miles, Beau , Wattchow, Brian
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Australian Journal of Outdoor Education Vol. 18, no. 1 (2015), p. 16-26
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- Description: This paper explores the complex and changing nature of adventure as a form of cultural practice. Borrowing from Joseph Conrad's memoirs The Mirror of The Sea (1907), sea kayaking is contextualized here as a journey that takes place just as much between 'landfall and departure' as it does between the paddler's ears (i.e., in the paddler's mind). That is to say, to gain useful insights into the experience of sea kayaking it is necessary to consider both the external and internal journey of the paddler, and the relationship that exists between these two phenomena. Using tenets of personality psychology which presents new ways of understanding narrative identity, we will 'waymark' textual vignettes from four modern day sea kayaking adventure narratives to explore ideas of self, narrative identity and meaning making. These key passages aim to reveal how the adventurer's story is influenced by "external factors that shape the public expression of stories about the self" (McAdams & McLean, 2013, p. 233). Summary discussion will address potential implications for contemporary outdoor adventure education, offering a way of stimulating reflective practice about the culturally and textually constructed nature of adventure.
The pedagogic moment : enskilment as another way of being in outdoor education
- Authors: Prins, Alex , Wattchow, Brian
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning Vol. 20, no. 1 (2020), p. 81-91
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- Description: This theoretical paper aims to contribute to the debate about a perceived activity-environment tension in outdoor education. Tim Ingold’s extensive writings on enskilment are used to explore what it means to be skilful in outdoor activities and how this can contribute to dwelling in outdoor places. Four ‘threads’ of enskilment—taskscape, guided attention, storytelling and wayfinding—are each discussed in terms of how they contribute to the way that leaners learn to become enskiled. Discussions of Ingold’s ideas are coupled with van Manen’s insights into the pedagogic moment to describe what is required of the educator to teach for enskilment. The authors’ draw examples from their teaching experiences on coastal outdoor education programmes and conclude by suggesting some practices that favour an enskilment approach. © 2019, © 2019 Institute for Outdoor Learning.