Leisure Education Research Articles

Rates of Missing Responses in Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) Versus Paper Assessments

This article describes rates of missing item responses in personal digital assistant (PDA) assessments as compared to paper assessments. Data come from the evaluation of a classroom-based leisure, life skills, and sexuality education program delivered to high school students in Cape Town, South Africa. Analyses show that the paper assessments had much higher rates of missing-ness than PDA assessments. This association is moderated by item order. Certain analyses also suggest that paper assessments have higher rates of missingness for items pertaining to participants' sexual behavior. Implications of these results for evaluation research will be discussed.

Freedom, Creativity, and Leisure in Education: Tagore in Canada, 1929

Abstract

The fun factor: Adolescents’ self‐regulated leisure activity and the implications for practitioners and researchers

There is mounting interest in Canadian society regarding the leisure activities of children and youth and the ensuing positive or negative effects. Complex influential factors on adolescent self‐regulated time coupled with increasing levels of sedentary activity have provoked a societal dilemma. Consequently, it is essential to determine the motivating factors in adolescents’ leisure choices in order to fully address the societal dilemmas involving youth inactivity. Understanding perceptions of “fun” by children and youth in relation to their leisure time formed the basis for this inquiry. Theoretically grounded in self‐determination theory, this study focused on fun‐provoking favourite activities among Grade 6 through Grade 8 students (n=220) at 13 schools across Ontario through surveys and interviews, as part of a larger study on children's media consumption. Also, the adolescents’ media consumption and physical activity patterns were examined in order to assess their leisure habits and gain insights into positive and effective programming for youth. The discussion includes dominant themes of “fun” in the adolescents’ lives. Implications for the development of a critical pedagogy are offered for researchers and practitioners in leisure education and physical education.

Do persons with intellectual disability have a social life?The Israeli reality

Living in the community does not, in and of itself, guarantee social integration and inclusion for persons with intellectual disability. Social life and leisure participation can indicate the beginning of such a process and its impact on the quality of life. The present study investigated the social life quality of persons with intellectual disability who live in community settings or with foster families and its impact on their quality of life. The sample consisted of 85 adults with intellectual disability, ranging in age from 18 to 55 years. Forty-five of them lived in community residential settings and 40 lived with foster families in Israel. Five questionnaires were used: 1) a demographic questionnaire; 2) Quality of Life Questionnaire; 3) the Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale; 4) Social Relationships List; and 5) Leisure Activities List. The main findings showed no significant differences between the two groups in social life or feelings of loneliness. Foster residents were more involved and more independent in their leisure activities than were those who lived in community residences. An association between social life and quality of life was partly confirmed. The need for intervention programs and leisure education programs is discussed.

Camp AdventureTM Youth Services in Hong Kong: Toward an Integrated Model of Leisure, Health, Physical Activity, Sport and Generic Skills in Education

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in English; abstract also in Chinese.
 The Camp Adventure™ Youth Services program is a national award-winning model which provides a full range of innovative and dynamic age-appropriate leisure activities. The purpose of this study is to examine basic understanding of how Camp Adventure™ Youth Services uses an integrative cultural model joining leisure, health, physical activities, sport and generic skills in education. This study focuses specifically on applying these areas in Hong Kong primary school settings. A total of 112 Chinese children aged 8-12 year-old from Baptist (Sha Tin Wai) Lui Ming Choi Primary School in Hong Kong, who completed the four and half days residential camp program, served as subjects for this study. The evaluation survey given to the participants used a Likert-type-5-points scale ranging from 1 (strong disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). The participants were asked their opinions on the linkage of a number of generic skills with various camp activities; as well as their understanding of the culture of the United States of America following their participation in the program. The generic skills domain mean score (±SD) and the mean (±SD) for the understanding of the culture of United States of America were 4.14 ±0.60 and 4.14 ± 0.80, respectively. Participants tend to agree that they improve their generic skills and have a better understanding of the culture of the United States of America after participating the program. Participants were also asked in an open question format to identify the variables in the various learning areas that participants perceived as the most important. Variable responses are categorized into four groups: 1) sports (e.g. America football, baseball), 2) physical activity (e.g. games), 3) English Language learning, and 4) generic skills (e.g. time management, collaboration skill, creativity, self management, and independence). Physical activity was the most cited learning areas among the four categories. The implications for Camp Adventure™ Youth Services and Baptist (Sha Tin Wai) Lui Ming Choi Primary School in the Hong Kong Education Reform and an integrated model of leisure, health, physical activity, sport and generic skills in education are then discussed.
 Camp Adventure™ 青年服務是一個榮獲美國國家優異模型獎的計劃，它是一個創新，富有活力而且適合各年齡組別的休閒活動。本文的目的是闡釋Camp Adventure™ 青年服務計劃如何透過綜合文化模式把休閒運動與健康、體育活動、競技運動及基本共通能力融入到教育之中，並針對以上幾點在香港小學校本設計中的實踐情況進行了研究。112位(年齡：8—12歲)來自香港浸信會沙田圍呂明才小學，完成了為期四日半宿營的香港學生參與了問卷調查，問卷採用5分制的李克特式量表由1(極度不同意)至5(為極度同意)作為評分標準。問卷問及參與者對營中不同活動與共通能力之間關係的意見，以及對美國文化的認識。調查結果顯示，共通能力改善情況的平均值(±SD)及了解美國文化的平均數(±SD)分別被評為4.14 ± 0.60及4.14 ± 0.80。參加者普遍認為本次宿營帶給他們多方面的學習效能，可歸納為四大類：(1)競技運動(例：美式足球，棒球)，(2)體育活動(例：遊戲)，(3)英語學習，及(4)共通能力(例：時間管理、合作技巧、自我管理能力及獨立能力)。由此可見，通過本次活動提高了他們的共通能力及對美國文化的認識，其中體育活動被認為是四個項目中學習效能最高的一類。本文綜合Camp Adventure™ 青年服務計劃和香港浸信會沙田圍呂明才小學的合作結果，作者就此次活動對香港教育改革的影響，以及如何將休閒運動與健康、體育活動、競技運動和基本共通能力融入到教育之中進行了分析和探討，並提出了一些可行的建議，以供香港教育工作者參考。

Effect of a Home Leisure Education Program After Stroke: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Desrosiers J, Noreau L, Rochette A, Carbonneau H, Fontaine L, Viscogliosi C, Bravo G. Effect of a home leisure education program after stroke: a randomized controlled trial. Objective To evaluate the effect of a leisure education program on participation in and satisfaction with leisure activities (leisure-related outcomes), and well-being, depressive symptoms, and quality of life (primary outcomes) after stroke. Design Randomized controlled trial. Setting Home and community. Participants Sixty-two people with stroke. Intervention Experimental participants (n=33) received the leisure education program at home once a week for 8 to 12 weeks. Control participants (n=29) were visited at home at a similar frequency. Participants were evaluated before and after the program by a blinded assessor. Main Outcome Measures Change from preintervention to postintervention in: minutes of leisure activity per day, number of leisure activities, the Leisure Satisfaction Scale, the Individualized Leisure Profile, the General Well-Being Schedule (GWBS), the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, and the Stroke-Adapted Sickness Impact Profile (SA-SIP30). Results There was a statistically significant difference in change scores between the groups for satisfaction with leisure with a mean difference of 11.9 points (95% confidence interval [CI], 4.2−19.5) and participation in active leisure with a mean difference of 14.0 minutes (95% CI, 3.2−24.9). There was also a statistically significant difference between groups for improvement in depressive symptoms with a mean difference of −7.2 (95% CI, −12.5 to −1.9). Differences between groups were not statistically significant on the SA-SIP30 (0.2; 95% CI, −1.3 to 1.8) and GWBS (2.2; 95% CI, −5.6 to 10.0). Conclusions The results indicate the effectiveness of the leisure education program for improving participation in leisure activities, improving satisfaction with leisure and reducing depression in people with stroke.

The Impact of Teacher Beliefs on the Provision of Leisure and Physical Activity Education Curriculum Decisions

This study investigated (a) variables that predict amount of time students with severe disabilities spend in leisure and physical activity education and (b) teacher beliefs about provision of these services. Participants included 35 secondary special education teachers and 170 students with severe disabilities. Findings suggest that special education teachers provided recommended duration, but valued other curriculum domains over leisure and physical activity education. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) indicated individual teacher differences are a significant predictor of students' participation in leisure and physical activity. Further, HLM analysis indicated that teachers' beliefs about their role in providing leisure education explained a significant portion of the variance among teachers. Recommendations for policy development and teacher education are provided.

A study on the actual conditions and the formative process of collaboration towards realization of resource circulation in society based on biomass: case of “Aito Yellow Nanohana Eco-project” in Aito Town, Japan

This paper focuses on the actual conditions and the formative process of collaboration toward the establishment of resource circulation in society. The subject of this research is the Aito Yellow Nanohana Eco Project, a recycling system based on rape blossom cultivation in Aito Town, Japan. The main findings include: (1) This regional system can be classified into nine sections: rape blossom cultivation, rape blossom harvest, extraction of rapeseed oil, manufacture and sale of rapeseed oil, use of rapeseed oil, collection of waste oil, manufacture and sale of soap, refinement to bio-diesel fuel (BDF) and the use of BDF. (2) This regional system was established in 1998. It was formed gradually, in parallel with the movement toward environmental improvement. (3) The Environmental Co-operation and the Town Office played major roles in the establishment and management of the system. Besides these two bodies, the regional system comprises 14 bodies such as enterprises, residents, elementary and junior high schools tourists, etc. (4) The incentives to participate in the Nanohana Project are numerous. They can be divided into approximately five categories: economic profit, the promotion of environmental activity, social service (public welfare), leisure and environmental education.

Critical Space and Leisure Education in the 21st Century Case Study—Outdoor Studies

This paper examines leisure education in the context of the expansion of Higher Education provision and the diversification of purpose and values of Higher Education in the UK. It draws attention to the contribution of critical frameworks of Basil Bernstein to understanding theory and practice in Higher Education leisure studies content and pedagogy and asks what are the principles underpinning knowledge creation and transmission? The paper considers the implications of the recent rapid expansion of Higher Education provision in UK to course development and pedagogic approach in leisure education. It draws attention to its impact upon ‘new’ and traditional subject areas and organizational cultures. This is exemplified through ‘case study’ research into the changes in outdoor studies curriculum, locating it within broader national and institutional contexts. The paper raises questions about the impact of government policy on Higher Education and its curriculum in UK and the marginalization of particular principles, practice and knowledge.

Leisure Choice and its Fulfilment in Latvia

This paper reports the results from a survey of 889 individuals from Riga, other towns, and rural areas in Latvia. The results show expected variations in uses of leisure by age and gender. They also show that all such groups experienced constraints (which differed in detail from group to group). It is argued that some of the constraints could be overcome by a better leisure education, which could lead to the adoption of healthier lifestyles in all sections of Latvia's population.

Quality of Life and Leisure Education: Implications for Tourism Economies

Tourism is rapidly growing in many parts of the world. Although tourism development has much to contribute economically, the long term value will also be based on the environmental and social sustainability. The thesis of this paper is that the leisure needs and interests of local residents and their quality of life should be considered along with the development of tourism economies. Providing the best tourism and local leisure services is dependent on determining means for leisure education, professional education, and research leading to equitable opportunities for all citizens and visitors.

Leisure as a Context for Youth Development and Delinquency Prevention

This article highlights the importance of leisure as a context for human development as well as for prevention of risky behaviour, including crime and delinquency.We offer a brief review and synthesis of current criminology literature that examines leisure activity and then describe leisure research that may provide additional insight into why leisure may be an important context for understanding and preventing delinquent behaviour.We end with a brief description of an intervention that teaches youth to make healthy decisions in their leisure and describe a set of post hoc analyses from a data set from 628 rural youth in the United States used to evaluate the leisure based intervention. Although the data we report were not collected to examine delinquent behaviour, we tentatively conclude leisure-related variables can serve as risk and protective factors to property damage and by extension other delinquent behaviours. We suggest that helping youth become more intrinsically motivated by having goal-oriented leisure pursuits and decreasing levels of a motivation, learning to overcome peer pressure, and becoming more aware of leisure opportunities may reduce the risk of damaging property. Additionally, having parents who are aware of leisure interests, activities and friends is also a protective factor.We also found evidence to suggest that some form of leisure education intervention may be effective in preventing delinquent acts.

An Analysis of Blogs as a Teaching Tool as Perceived by Hospitality Management Students

An Analysis of Blogs as a Teaching Tool as Perceived by Hospitality Management Students

CARTA INTERNACIONAL DE EDUCAÇÃO PARA O LAZER COMO FERRAMENTA DE INTERVENÇÃO PEDAGÓGICA

The present article aims at revealing the contents which are present in the International Letter on Leisure Education, justifying it in face of the literature pertaining to this research theme, as well as pointing it as an important tool in the process of pedagogical intervention for professionals who work directly in schools and higher learning institutions. This article intends to enable community agents to disseminate critical values and attitudes concerning the current social reality. KEYWORDS: education to and through leisure – pedagogical intervention and knowledge

Leisure, contemplation and leisure education

I argue in defense of Aristotle's position that contemplation (theoria) is the proper use of at least some of one's leisure and that, consequently, leisure education must consist in teaching the inclination and capacity for contemplation. However, my position is somewhat more flexible than Aristotle's, in that I allow that there are other activities worthy of some leisure. My argument examines Aristotle's own comments on the importance of theoria as well as commentaries by Ackrill, Nagel, Broadie, Green and Telfer. In the conclusion I argue that there are good reasons to think that studying Philosophy is one of the best strategies for leisure education.

Design and Evaluation of a Leisure Education Program for Caregivers of Institutionalized Care Recipients

Family caregivers are confronted with stressors such as depression and guilt resulting from institutional placement decisions. Leisure education programs can enhance caregivers' sense of caring for themselves too. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a leisure education program for caregivers of persons with dementia residing in an institution serving veterans as therapeutic recreation service provision. The program was designed to assist caregivers to develop personal knowledge and understanding of oneself in leisure and to develop the knowledge and ability to plan for leisure. Results indicated a positive impact on the leisure knowledge and self-care practices of the caregivers and a need for ongoing modifications of the leisure education program content and process.

Learning for Fun: The Unique Contribution of Educational Leisure Experiences

Abstract What do visitors want or expect from an educational leisure activity such as a visit to a museum, zoo, aquarium or other such experience? Is it to learn something or to experience learning? This paper uses the term “learning for fun” to refer to the phenomenon in which visitors engage in a learning experience because they value and enjoy the process of learning itself. Five propositions regarding the nature of learning for fun are discussed, drawing on quantitative and qualitative data from visitors to a range of educational leisure activities. The commonalities between learning for fun and other theoretical constructs such as “experience,” “flow,” “intrinsic motivation,” and “curiosity” are explored. It is concluded that learning for fun is a unique and distinctive offering of educational leisure experiences, with implications for future research and experience design.

Leisure Boredom and Substance Use Among High School Students in South Africa

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent of leisure boredom, and investigate the relationship between leisure boredom, substance use and demographic variables among high school students in Cape Town, South Africa. 621 students from 39 high schools selected through a multistage cluster sampling procedure completed a questionnaire which measured substance use and demographic information, and included the Leisure Boredom Scale (LBS). Using generalized estimating equation models, leisure boredom was modeled on the demographic variables, and substance use indicators on leisure boredom. Although no significant association between leisure boredom and substance use was found, girls reported significantly higher leisure boredom than did boys. Also, Black and Colored students reported significantly higher leisure boredom than White students. This finding may be partly attributed to socio-economic status, as race is still a strong indicator for socio-economic status in South Africa. The findings imply that there is a need for leisure education programs for adolescents which are developmentally and socio-culturally appropriate.

Perker med no-life i Velfærds-danmark

Migrant youth with no-life in Danish welfare society
 
 This article analyses how children and youngsters with ethnic minority background are constructed as ”strange troublemakers” and assume identities as “migrant with no-life” in a social educational leisure institution, ”Baglandet”. Baglandet admits children considered to be ”associationless” and ”at risk of criminality”, and attempts to ease the children back into ”normal” institutions. However, the institution is a part of the Danish social welfare system characterized by contradictory and paradoxical institutional logics as well as professional practices. Dynamics of both inclusion and exclusion are at stake in this system, and therefore Baglandet works simultaneously both with and against its own purpose. One problematic consequence of this is the production and institutionalising of deviant identities for ethnic minority children in Denmark.

The Effects of a Leisure Education Programme on the Self Concepts and Life Effectiveness of At-Risk Youth in Taiwan

For a long time in Western countries, outdoor adventure education programmes have been used with at-risk youth. Following these successful examples, the City-Guy Foundation in Taiwan organised a 28-day programme for 12 at-risk youth during July and August 2004. A self concept scale and a life effectiveness questionnaire were used to examine the effects of this programme. The findings reported here show that the participants improved their self-concepts and on all the measures of life effectiveness. The paper concludes with some implications of the findings for future research and future leisure education programmes for at-risk youth.