Connecting the Dots: Building an Experiential Education Movement Laurie Frank & Jeff Glover AEE 2014

How will we build a Sustainable Adventure Movement?

CREATING COMMUNITY, BUILDING a MOVEMENT AEE Annual International Conference Kurt Hahn Address November 1, 2013

Adventure Cycling Association Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA) America Outdoors Association (AOA) American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAPHERD) American Art Therapy Association (AATA) American Camp Association (ACA) American Dance Therapy Association (ADTA) American Education Research Association (AERA) American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Cooperative and Experiential Education Division (CEED) Association for Challenge Course Technology (ACCT) Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education (AEOE) Association for Experiential Education (AEE) Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) Association of American Colleges and Universities (AACU) Association of Outdoor Recreation and Education (AORE) Association for Play Therapy Christian Adventure Association (CAA) Connecticut Experiential Education Association (CEEA) Equine Experiential Education Association (E3A) Experiential Training and Development Alliance (ETDA) Independent Schools Experiential Education Network (ISEEN) International Association for Professional Wilderness-, open- and swiftwater-, and Mountain Guides International Art Therapy Organization (IATO) International Association for Research on Service Learning and Community Engagement (IARSLCE) International Experiential Dynamic Therapy Association (IEDTA) International Expressive Arts Therapy Association (IEATA) Minnesota Association for Experiential Learning (MAFEL) National Society for Experiential Education New York State Cooperative and Experiential Education Association (NYSCEEA) North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) North American Association for the Community of Inquiry (NAACI) Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) Professional Ropes Course Association (PRCA) Wilderness Education Association (WEA) Wilderness Guides Association (WGA) Wilderness Risk Management Conference (WRMC) World Adventure Association World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA) World Environmental Education Congress (WEEC)

II.Why We’re Coming Together? A. Why are you here? B. EE Definition & Principles C. Values

“There is nothing more difficult to plan, more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to manage than the creation of a new order of things….” Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince (1513)

Convergence of New Knowledge Experiential & Adventure Education The Entrepreneurial Society Innovation Platforms

MOVEMENT: A group of people working together to advance their shared political, social, or artistic ideas

What is a Sustainable Experiential Movement ? Inspired by the book The Tipping Point by Malcom Gladwell (2002) that introduces the concept of social epidemics… “Ideas, products, messages, and behaviors spread just like viruses do.” Experiential Education is an idea that can spread like an epidemic, more specifically a social movement, thus the quest for a… Sustainable Experiential Movement

Why are You Here? Get it Back!

Experiential learning and experiential education are buzzwords within many educational circles. These terms are often used interchangeably. There are numerous published definitions of experiential education (Joplin, 1981; Luckman, 1996; Itin, 1999). The Association for Experiential Education (2004) defines experiential education a philosophy that informs many methodologies in which educators purposefully engage with learners in direct experience and focused reflection to increase knowledge, develop skills, and clarify values. Central to this definition is the distinction between experiential education as methodology and experiential education as philosophy. This distinction suggests that there is a difference between experiential learning and experiential education. Experiential Education … a philosophy that informs many methodologies in which educators purposefully engage with learners in direct experience and focused reflection to increase knowledge, develop skills, and clarify values. Association for Experiential Education (2013)

Exploring EE Values A Movement is Grounded on Core Values – Adventure – Environmental Stewardship – Safety – Compassion – Service – Diversity

III.Vision Statements What could the world look like if we put these values into action through EE in its many forms – and why would we want that?

Diffusion in Action Derek Sivers: How to start a movement

Connecting the Dots and the Diffusion Model for Experiential Education

Simon Says: “People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it”

The Golden Circle

What Every organization on the planet knows WHAT they do. These are products they sell or the services they offer.

Wilderness Education Adventure Based Counseling Inquiry Service Learning Art, Play, Music, Drama & related Therapies Simulations Experience Based Training and Development Environmental Education Internships Expeditionary Learning Adventure/Challenge Education Philosophy of Experiential Education And more… Equine Assisted Therapy Cooperative Education Project Based Learning Problem Based Learning Adventure Education

The Golden Circle What Every organization on the planet knows WHAT they do. These are products they sell or the services they offer. How Some organizations know HOW they do it. These are the things that make them special or set them apart from their competition.

The Golden Circle What Every organization on the planet knows WHAT they do. These are products they sell or the services they offer. How Some organizations know HOW they do it. These are the things that make them special or set them apart from their competition. Why Very few organizations know WHY they do what they do. WHY is not about making money. That’s a result. It’s a purpose, cause or belief. It’s the very reason your organization exists.

The Golden Circle

The Golden Circle + Human Brain

The Golden Circle + The Cone

AMP Delphi Panel  Pam McPhee, M.S.W.,Executive Director of the University of New Hampshire's Browne Center- Bravo  James Niell- Center for Applied Psychology, University of Canberra (Australia) – Delta  Ella Echo- Regional Director of a Non-Profit School Reform Organization- Echo  Arlene R. Ustin- Graduate Mentor, Prescott College- Golf  Betsey Upchurch- CEO, P4 Consulting-Hotel  Cliff Knapp- Northern Illinois University (Retired)- Kilo  Preston Cline- Director Wharton Leadership Ventures, Wharton School, U. of Penn.- Lima

Start with Why? Why does outdoor adventure education matter? “For the same reason Kurt Hahn thought so. Because, if done right, you can help someone realize that they are greater than they think they are. It is the single greatest thing we can do in education.” Preston Cline

Why is a purpose, a cause or a belief….

The Stickiness Factor Message Memorable Sticky

The Stickiness Factor We all want to believe that the key to making an impact on someone lies with the inherent quality of the ideas we present. But in none of these cases (Blues Clues and Sesame Street) did anyone substantially alter the content of what they were saying. Instead, they tipped the message by tinkering, on the margin, with the presentation of their ideas. (p. 133)

Why EE? EE intimately engages three critical areas which will determine the future of this planet; 1)sustainability; 2)innovation; and 3)servant leadership.

Achieve Sustainability “We do not understand the natural world as the source of all other resources. We must protect it and we can only do that with people who have been there” Betsey Upchurch with agreement from Preston Cline.

Drive Innovation Business organizations have a crisis of people who have business skills. Adventure education builds business skills such as responsibility, accountability, the ability to work successfully in teams, the ability to lead and influence others, the ability to see the big picture and what needs to be done now,” stated Upchurch with agreement from Cline.

Inspire Servant Leadership A strength of Outdoor Adventure Education as stated by Cline is it can, “Start teaching people how to navigate uncertainty. No this is not easy, but fundamentally it is what we are great at.”

The AMP Model: Turning Thesis into Reality

Pre Planning Phase What relationships have experiential educators built in mainstream education? Who are our allies? Build Trusting Relationships How can we focus the energy of experiential educators on one goal? What institutions can and should take the lead in organizing “company” unity? High Degree of Company Unity

Star Fish Analogy

V.Call to Action Possibilities & Challenges – Conversations, Ideas, Commitments - Individually - Jointly - Organizationally AMP AEE - Formally/informally

AMP-WORTHY

Why Not? Machiavellian Attitude: The Crossing the Chasm Plan Experiential Learning Programs The Entrepreneurial Society in a Flat World The Tipping Point principles to create a Social Movement

“… if one advances confidently in the direction of their dreams, and endeavors to live the life which they have imagined, they will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. … If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.” Henry David Thoreau