technology and outdoor education: some experiential possibilities

Slide 1

Technology &
outdoor education

Some experiential possibilities

Dr. James Neill
Centre for Applied Psychology
University of Canberra

National Outdoor Education Conference, Jan. 10-13, 2010

James T. Neill
University of Canberra16th National Outdoor Education Conference, 10-13 January, 2010Copyright for this presentation: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wilderdom/4232592124/Image author: James NeillImage license: CC-by-SA 2.0: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en

Copyright:
Creative Commons
Attribution 3.0

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Presentation url:
http://bit.ly/5P3HwQ
(wilderdom.com)

Email:
[email protected]

Twitter:
http://twitter.com/jtneill

Contacts & resources

Abstract

Philsophical tensionbetweenoutdoor education& technologyOn one hand,
outdoor educators
seek to distance
participants
from technology
in order to provide
a place apart.On the other hand,
OE programs rely
on a growing plethora
of technology e.g.,
outdoor activity, safety,
navigation,
communication,
transport and
multimedia gear.

A
creative,necessarytension?Image name: Why are waves coolImage author: Kevin Dooley, http://www.flickr.com/people/pagedooley/Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pagedooley/2671269820/Image licence: CC-by-A 2.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en

Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lefthand.svgImage source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Righthand.svg

Proposal

That there is (or can be) a
symbiotic rather than antagonistic
relationship (between tech & OE)
and that outdoor education
can contribute to facilitating
experiential and adventurous
learning with
and about technology.Image name: Why are waves coolImage author: Kevin Dooley, http://www.flickr.com/people/pagedooley/Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pagedooley/2671269820/Image licence: CC-by-A 2.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en

Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lefthand.svgImage source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Righthand.svg

Thesis: That there is (or can be) a symbiotic rather than antagonistic relationship and that outdoor education can contribute to facilitating experiential and adventurous learning with and about technology.

Session aim

to explore the creative tension and
experiential possibilities of different kinds of technology in outdoor educational settings

Image name: Why are waves coolImage author: Kevin Dooley, http://www.flickr.com/people/pagedooley/Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pagedooley/2671269820/Image licence: CC-by-A 2.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en

PhilosophyHistoryPossibilities
(Applications & Trends)Discussion

Overview

Image name: Why are waves coolImage author: Kevin Dooley, http://www.flickr.com/people/pagedooley/Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pagedooley/2671269820/Image licence: CC-by-A 2.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en

OE & Technology:
Philosophical dilemma

Is outdoor education a victim of technology?
e.g., invaded, colonised, overtaken by technology?

Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/katmere/92121158/Image author: katmere, http://www.flickr.com/people/katmere/Image license: CC-by-A 2.0, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en

OE & Technology:

Or will we work with technology?
e.g. use technology to enhance outdoor education skills and understanding?


OE & Technology:

Is modern technology
a problem
or an opportunityfor outdoor education?


OE & Technology:

...but this is an
intimate & necessary tension

Tech & OE are
uneasy bedfellows


OE & Technology:

Outdoor education relies on technology because OE exists as a
cultural reaction to industralisation.


OE & Technology:

Conventional outdoor education practices rely significantly on modern technology
(e.g., transport,
outdoor gear, mobile communication).


OE & Technology:

Technology is
NOT the antithesis of the outdoors
(indoors is) Tech is a vital component of OE


Tech is a vital component of OE directly and indirectly.

A brief history of technology in the outdoors

Have thingschangedthat much?

Image name: * Blackboard *Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/8078381@N03/3279725831/Image author: pareeerica, http://www.flickr.com/people/8078381@N03/Image license:CC-by-A 2.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en

Image author: Frikinzero

What is technology?

Artificial aid e.g., tool

(Useful) cultural artifact

Capacity not inheritedHard (gear)

Soft (know-how)

Image author: Frikinzero

Wild gorillas are
handy with a stick

In the Republic of Congo, researchers observed an adult female gorilla was observed at the edge of a pool of water, looking intently at the water in front of her. She walked into the water, but stopped and returned to the edge when the water reached her waist. She then walked back into the water, grabbed a branch, detached it, and, grasping it firmly, repeatedly jabbed the water in front of her with the end of the branch, apparently using it to test the water depth or substrate stability. She continued walking across the pool, branch in hand, using it as a walking stick for postural support.

Congo, 2005Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gorilla_tool_use.pngImage license: CC-by-A 2.5This adult female gorilla in Nouabal-Ndoki National Park, northern Congo, uses a branch as a walking stick to gauge the water's depth, proving that gorillas use tools too.

From the magazine: as part of an ongoing study of western gorillas in Nouabal-Ndoki National Park in the Republic of Congo, Thomas Breuer, Mireille Ndoundou-Hockemba, and Vicki Fishlock reveal that gorillas are just as resourceful as the other great apes. From an observation platform at Mbeli Bai, a swampy forest clearing that gorillas frequently visit to forage, Breuer et al. observed an adult female gorilla named Leah (a member of a long-studied gorilla group) at the edge of a pool of water, looking intently at the water in front of her. Leah walked upright into the water, but stopped and returned to the edge when the water reached her waist. She then walked back into the water, grabbed a branch in front of her, detached it, and, grasping it firmly, repeatedly jabbed the water in front of her with the end of the branch, apparently using it to test the water depth or substrate stability. She continued walking across the pool, branch in hand, using it as a walking stick for postural support.

Homo sapiens are not the only hominids to use tools
e.g., Neanderthals did too

Otzi - Iceman - 5300 years ago

Bow & arrows

Bread

Copper axe

Fire starting kit

Knives

Medicine

Shoes / Snowshoes

Tattoos

Frozen, mummified body discovered in 1991 on the Italy/Australian border.

Otzi had the latest technology.

Image source: https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/wiki/File:%C3%96tzischuh_2.jpgImage author: Helge Sternke at de.wikipediaImage license: CC-by-SA 2.5

Mt Everest Expedition, 1953 Gear (Hillary and Tenzing)

Cotton tents 2-3 x heavier than today

Wool, leather and canvas clothing

Primitive ice-climbing equipment e.g., wooden-handled ice-axes

Value of oxygen weight debatable

Information source: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/everest/exposure/gear.htmlImage source: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/everest/exposure/gear.htmlImage license: Unknown

History of
tool usage

Industrial machines:
150 yearsStone/Wood: 500,000? years

Computers:
20 years

Copper/Iron:
3,000 years

- Humans have been characterised by their association with tools and technology through the agesTool-making and the use of technology arguably dates from when man first mastered fire, roughly about 500,000 years ago?Humans became able to extract metals from the ground, e.g., Iron Age in Britain ~ 750 BC to early AD150 years ago, human work in the Western world became characterized by its focus on finer tools, e.g., machines20 years ago, this tool-making lead to the creation of computers; 10 years ago the internet went into the public domain.http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/prehistory/ironage_intro_01.shtml

Modern electronic technologies are leap-frogging
industrial development

Image source: Unknown

Disruptive technology

Innovations that improve a product or service in ways that the market does not expect, typically by being lower priced or designed for a different set of consumers.

Disruptive technologies threaten to virally leap-frog and make redundant expensive mainstream technologies.

e.g., digital cameras vs. film cameras

e.g., wireless vs. landline

See also: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_designhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appropriate_technology

4 waves of technological change
(Peter Russell, 1983, Global Brain)

Agriculture

Industry

Information

Mind

21st century age of biotech/cybertech?

From Peter Russells Global Brain, approx. 29 minutes

Open design

Development of physical products, machines and systems through use of publicly shared design information.

Consistent with philosophy of free & open source software & information.

See also: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_design

Goals and philosophy are identical to free and open source software.Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sustainable_Portable_Classroom_-_The_Learning_Kit.jpg

Appropriate technology

Effective, ethical technologies for addressing the social and environmental needs in developing societies. e.g., WhirlwindPedal-powered
wheelchairwashing machine

See also: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_designhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appropriate_technology

Web 1.0: Read

Web

User

StaticPassive

Web 2.0: Read & Write

Web

User

Dyna-
micExper-
iential

Singularity (Kurzweil)

Hypothetical point of
massive interconnection

Paradigm shifts & technological innovations occur unprecedently rapidly.

Whenever technology approaches a barrier, new technologies will cross it.

Kurzweil, 2001, 2005

Singularity (Kurzweil)

leading to technological change so rapid and profound it represents a rupture in the fabric of human history

Singularity will occur before the end of the 21st century, ~2045.

Kurzweil, 2001, 2005

Some technological applications & trends
for outdoor education


International Life Cycle
(Priest, 1999)

Source: Priest, S.(1999).National life cycles in outdoor adventure programming. The Outdoor Network, 10 (1),16-17, 34-35.

Source: Priest, S.(1999).National life cycles in outdoor adventure programming. The Outdoor Network, 10 (1),16-17, 34-35.

Low
techHigh
techIntimate TensionMid
techMinimalistNormalExperimental

HistoricalTypicalElectronic

Hand-madeCommonWeb 2.0

Levels of technology
& outdoor education

Low tech: Primitive skills programs

NavigationLow
tech

High
techGPSMap
CompassSextantGoogle
EarthMemorySonglines

tzi's shoes

Waterproof and wide (seemingly designed for walking across the snow)

Bearskin soles, deer hide for the top panels, netting made of tree bark.

Soft grass went around the foot and in the shoe and functioned like modern socks.

Plans for commercial production

Frozen, mummified body discovered in 1991 on the Italy/Australian border.

Image source: https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/wiki/File:%C3%96tzischuh_2.jpgImage author: Helge Sternke at de.wikipediaImage license: CC-by-SA 2.5

Minimalist footwear

High tech
or low tech?

http://flickr.com/photos/trucolorsfly/301701664/

Oscar Pistorius

Blade-runner -
the fastest man on no legs

Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Oscar_Pistorius-2.jpgOriginal image author: Elvar Plsson, http://www.flickr.com/people/erlendurkafari/Image license: CC-by-A 2.0, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Barefoot living?

http://willderdom.com/wiki/Barefoot

Waterproof

Dropproof

Wind-up

Mesh

Educational

Cheap

OLPC-XO computer used for taking photos on a hike (Thailand)

See also: http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Learning_activities/Bug_Blitz

Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:OLPC-Thailand-Hiking01.jpgImage license: CC-by-A 2.5, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/deed.enImage author: UnknownSee also: http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Image:Hiking01.jpg

OLPC-XO computer used for taking photos on a hike (Thailand)

See also: http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Learning_activities/Bug_Blitz

Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:OLPC_pilot_Thailand_-_Ban_Samkha_06.jpgImage license: CC-by-A 2.5, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/deed.enImage author: UnknownSee also: http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Image:Hiking02.jpg

Technology trends

Web 2.0 (read/write web)

Mobility

Virtualisation

Singularity

Openess / Freedom

Diffusion of innovations
(Rogers, 1962)

Rogers, E. (1962) Diffusion of innovations. Free Press, NY.

Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Diffusionofideas.PNGImage license: Public domainRogers, E. (1962) Diffusion of innovations. Free Press, London, NY, USA.

Outdoor
education
could aim to
educate across
the technology
spectrumOutdoor education:
Across the technology spectrum

There could be a pedagogical argument for moving from modern to ancient or ancient to modern.

New & old
technology couldbe synthesised
towards our goalse.g., recreation,
education,
development,
therapy,
sustainability Outdoor education:
Across the technology spectrum

There could be a pedagogical argument for moving from modern to ancient or ancient to modern.

Web 2.0

= Collaboration
Collective Intelligence
(via recording, sharing, reflection, discussing etc.)

Outdoor education - Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outdoor_education

Outdoor education - Wikiversity


Outdoor education - Wikibooks


Jessica Watson:
Youngest Solo Circumnavigation Attempt

http://www.jessicawatson.com.au/http://youngestround.blogspot.com/

Jessica Watson:
Most Watched Blog in Australia

Outdoor education groups e.g., on facebook


Apple Tree Flat Hike Route

StartCliff line safetyRiver crossingsOurHikeRoute

Off track hikingUnmarked Cliff lines

Attribution: Ian Boyle

Glengarry Looking West

Apple Tree Flat Camp Site 24km West of GlengarryAttribution: Ian Boyle

Collaborative mapping

Community-generated Google Map of Ropes Course locations

Images: http://wilderdom.com/oe/map.html (from Frappr)

Collaborative mapping:
Google Picasa + Google Maps

Interactive image sources: http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/albumMap?uname=JamesTNeill&aid=5404277789608045121#maphttp://picasaweb.google.com/JamesTNeill/GibraltarFalls/people

Greenwich Emotion Map

5ooMB MPEG4 from http://www.archive.org/details/GreenwichEmotionMap

Photo-sharing

Image: http://flickr.com/photos/tranquilo/sets/72157600734297162/

Tag Cloud

Tag cloud: http://del.icio.us/jtneill

Future OE conferences

Live streamed presentations

Auto-recorded & uploaded

Hashtags:#NOEC2010, #NOEC2012

#OECurriculum

Back-channel conversations

Editable, commentable, mashable

Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Augmented_reality_-_heads_up_display_concept.jpgImage license: CC-by-A 2.0, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en

Bio
feed
back

Image source: http://www.the-gadgeteer.com/assets/heartmath-emwave-2.jpgSee also: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biofeedback

Biofeedback

Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Biofeedback_EN.gifImage license: CC-by-A 3.0, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/Image author: Marek Jacenko

Mood ring

http://cagreetings.com/images/moodring.jpg

Infield biofeedback tools to enhance stress management training
(ORIC, 2008, 2009)

See also: http://www.oric.org.au/Conference/Conf09/SpeakersPresentations.html

Virtual Worlds

Virtual worlds

computer-based simulated environments

http://flickr.com/photos/trucolorsfly/301701664/

What outdoor education can we do in virtual worlds?

Image name: crags! green ones! Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/70285332@N00/3677756252Image license: CC-by-SA 2.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.enImage author: Torley, http://www.flickr.com/photos/torley/

Botanical Landscaping, Garden and Environmental Design Center (Second Life)

Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/torley/4254726035/

Camping in the digital wilderness

http://www.informatics.sussex.ac.uk/research/groups/interact/publications/chi02.pdfPitching a tent and spending the night under canvass, with friends, a rucksack, a flashlight, surrounded by strange shadows and sounds, is an exciting experience for most children. It is also often the closest that many come to the wilderness, a primitive unfamiliar place that is far removed from their everyday world. What better environment is there for experiencing stories?Previous research reported at CHI has discussed using a tent as a projection interface for ambient and informal experiences [5]. This paper explores the use of a tent interface to give young children an engaging and shared experience of a virtual world, targeted at public spaces such as museums, theme parks and classrooms.Figure 1: The structure of the tentPOINTING WITH FLASHLIGHTSOur first interaction technique employs flashlights, essential items of camping equipment, as pointing devices(figure 2). Video cameras placed alongside the projectors track the positions of beams of light thrown onto the surface of the tent from inside and outside.

Augmented reality

Live view of a real-world environment whose elements are merged with (or augmented by) virtual computer-generated imagery - creating a mixed reality.

Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Augmented_reality_-_heads_up_display_concept.jpgImage license: CC-by-A 2.0, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en

Milgram's
Reality-Virtuality Continuum

Milgram, P., & Kishino, A. F. (1994). Taxonomy of mixed reality visual displays. IEICE Transactions on Information and Systems, E77-D(12), 1321-1329.

Image source:http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Milgram_Continuum.pngImage license: Public domain


QR codes

Image source: http://s3.amazonaws.com/ppt-download/augmentedrealitypatrickcollings-090307154220-phpapp02.pdf?Signature=4ZpGJRwnW8k1GaltrGnRysJyseg%3D&Expires=1263086591&AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAJLJT267DEGKZDHEQ

QR codes

Image source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Japanese_poster_with_QR_codes.jpgImage license: CC-by-A 2.0, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.enImage author: Alexis Rondeau from L.E.S., USA

Wikitude World Browser

http://www.wikitude.org/

Wikitude World Browser is an augmented reality (AR) browser for the Android platform based on location-based Wikipedia and Qype content. It is a handy application for planning a trip or to find out about landmarks in your surroundings; 350,000 world-wide points of interest may be searched by GPS or by address and displayed in a list view, map view and Augmented Reality cam view.

The latest version of WIKITUDE World Browser includes an Augmented Reality Photo Feature, which allows you to capture and share the AR camera view you experience through your mobile.http://www.mobilizy.com/en/wikitude-ein-reisefuhrer

Augmented reality: Social applications

Image source: http://www.slideshare.net/trendmatcher/augmented-reality-arno-coenders/30

Discussion

Practices? (What are we doing?)

Issues? (Problems encountered?)

Ideas? (What could we do?)

Opportunities? (Collaborations?)


References

Boyle, I. (2008). Technology and outdoor education. http://www.slideshare.net/digger_boyle/technology-and-outdoor-ed-presentation

Green, J., Schndelbach, H., Koleva, B., Benford, S., Pridmore, T., & Medina, K. (2002). Camping in the digital wilderness: tents and flashlights as interfaces to virtual worlds. In Proceedings of CHI '02 extended abstracts on Human factors in computing systems, Minneapolis, MI, 780-781. Retrieved January 10, 2010, from http://www.informatics.sussex.ac.uk/research/groups/interact/publications/chi02.pdf


Priest, S.(1999).National life cycles in outdoor adventure programming. The Outdoor Network, 10 (1),16-17, 34-35.

Rogers, E. (1962). Diffusion of innovations. Free Press, NY.

South, D. (2009). The use of infield bio-feedback tools to enhance stress management training. Presentation to the Outdoor Recreation Industry Council Conference, Novotel Hotel, Sydney.