2014 National Outdoor Education Conference - Adelaide Learning Engagement, Flow and Facilitation Tony Robinson David Low

2014 National Outdoor Education Conference Tony Robinson Gilson College (13 years) 32 years secondary school teaching primarily with young adolescents Year 9 L4L Program

2014 National Outdoor Education Conference David Low Avondale College

from at the dedication stone in memory of an 18 year old taken by a shark at West Beach in 2004 “We possess the potential to unite like mighty rivers that flow and mingle in our great oceans. The best of men can be likened to water for water benefits all living things.”

(Cavanagh, 2012)

❖ I propose a third dimension to these schema: motivation ❖ The key to engagement, whether it be learning or any other kind, is motivation: “Motivation is literally the desire to do things.” (2014, Psychology Today)

Skills/capabilities Intrinsic Cognitive Challenge/expectations/conditions Extrinsic Behavioural Motivation/need/desire Holistic Self-determination

❖ Much has been written about the experience fluctuation model and, to a lesser extent, the expectations capabilities model ❖ Much has been written separately about theories of motivation from the early behavioural theories (Instinct: Bernard, 1924; Drive: Hull, 1943; and Deficiency/Growth needs: Maslow, 1943.) to the more recent cognitive theories (Attribution: Weiner, 1986; and Self-efficacy: Bandura, 1977, 1982; Schunk, 1991) and the meta-theory of Self-determination (Deci, et al, 1991) ❖ Consideration of these may provide a richer framework within which to organise and facilitate OE programs - particularly for adolescent participants

❖ Scaffold mooted by Belland, et al (2013), for motivation for improved learning engagement which may be helpful in structuring facilitation in OE programs Establish task value Promote mastery goals Promote belonging Promote emotion regulation Promote expectancy of success Promote autonomy

1/. Establish task value Facilitation approach Choice on aspects of the program Focus on fostering interest Attainment value Expert modelling Expectation of perceived outcomes

2/. Promote mastery goals Encourage short-term goals Provide and promote informational feedback Promote cooperation rather than competition Emphasise rational goals

3/. Promote belonging Encourage shared goals Accommodate social goals Allow students to co-construct standards

4/. Promote emotion regulation Highlight controllability of actions Promote reappraisal

5/. Promote expectancy of success Promote perception of optimal challenge Support productive attribution Enable identification of reliable processes

6/. Promote autonomy Lack of autonomy: Compulsory school attendance and program participation Use non controlling language Provide meaningful cognitive choice Help students direct their own learning

❖ Thinking about competence from an intrinsic perspective Hattie found that the self-report grades had the highest effect size (1,44). ❖ Unpacking this relates to the grade (What they think they will get/can do) they believe they will achieve ❖ Improvement is found when the student is asked about/shown ways they are able to improve on this

❖ L4L program has about an 80% participation rate for the OE component ❖ Most of the incentives are extrinsic: L4L Badge; academic disadvantage; ❖ moving the motivation from outside to inside - extrinsic to intrinsic may improve participation and learning outcomes

❖ Conclusion, comments and questions: ❖ we've looked at flow, learning engagement and motivation ❖ self-determination theory ❖ scaffold to assist facilitate improved motivation to learn/engage in OE contexts ❖ ways this might work in an OE program