Context of the Study

Abstract

As a teacher educator I am impelled to find answers to crucial questions about the ends and means of both teacher education and outdoor education in schools. Ends and means do not exist independent of wider societal influences. In response, this chapter places the research in context: my beliefs about outdoor education and teaching, a description of the course being examined, the context of outdoor education and initial teacher education in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Over the past decades, outdoor education has been constructed and reconstructed under the foci of personal and interpersonal skills, outdoor pursuits, place-based approaches and environmental and sustainability discourses. Initial teacher education has also been shaped by the divergent agendas of deregulation, social justice and professionalism. This chapter examines how these diverse influences have constructed our milieu and influenced my work. Coming to understand the contested landscape of outdoor education teacher education is critical in order to develop informed and capable outdoor education teachers.