Kurt Hahn had a huge influence on the fields of outdoor and experiential learning, adventure education and, not least, badge schemes (Gordonstoun, Moray, and County Badges; and Duke of Edinburgh Award) throughout the world. This book provides a detailed historical account, centred on Hahn and the movement which surrounded him, of the early development of adventure education up to 1944. This includes an examination of themes present throughout Hahn’s educational endeavours. It looks at Hahn’s founding of Salem School (Germany) in 1920 and then Gordonstoun School (Scotland) in 1934. At both of these fee-paying schools activities such as sailing and hill-walking, often through expeditions lasting more than one day, played a prominent role in the education of the students. At Gordonstoun Hahn expanded his educational ventures, through the use of badge schemes, to include young people from the surrounding district who were not students at his school. Hahn expanded his badge schemes, firstly across the county in which Gordonstoun was situated, Morayshire, and then across Britain. The Outward Bound Sea School was founded by Hahn and Lawrence Holt, a ship-owner, at Aberdovey (Wales) in October 1941. It was a training centre where students could go for four week courses and it followed the badge scheme syllabus. During this period Hahn’s educational vision was one of those that influenced the Norwood Report and consequently the 1944 Education Act in terms of outdoor activities. This act provided the framework within which Outdoor Centres were set up by Local Education Authorities in the UK. This book looks at the various contexts, which came together through Hahn, and which help the reader understand his actions: German educational practice; Hahn’s and Prince Max’s (owner of Salem School) experiences of the First World War and its aftermath and the need to educate people to speak out and act upon their convictions; Hahn’s and Prince Max’s inclusive agenda; British educational practice; the Second World War; and Hahn’s expansionist aims. Kurt Hahn was one of the field’s greatest advocates and this book provides a detailed historical examination of his work and brings light to the complex tapestry of events which led to the rise and development of adventure education.

The impact that one of this century's most creative educators had on nearly 4 million girls and boys is chronicled here. For over 75 years up to this present day, Hahn's schools have enrolled students world-wide including such notables as England's Prince Charles and Prince Philip. Though it is his famous Outward Bound program that has received such international recognition, Hahn's tenets of teaching formulated so many years ago still are proving valid today. Surviving in the wilderness and surviving in a complex society requires similar basic character traits. The author, himself a Hahn's school alumnus, presents the life of his subject in an intriguing manner. The book will hopefully shed more light on a man about whom even many of his current students know so little. And Mr. Flavin can be even more illuminating via a telephone interview. His observations are insightful, witty and poignant in recalling the life of Kurt Hahn.

This is the first book to describe in detail the principles of Outward Bound, told through the stories of former instructors and graduates who show how to apply them to create healthier, more effective teams, organizations, and communities. For nearly six decades Outward Bound USA's education programs have shaped the lives of tens of thousands of participants. Strangers are put in an unfamiliar and unpredictable setting, where to succeed they must develop a sense of teamwork, resilience, self-confidence, and a focus on the greater good. But, Mark Brown asks, isn't the modern world just as unpredictable and challenging as any mountain or desert? He shows how the same principles that bind people together in the natural world work just as well in cities, companies, and communities. This book explores the concept of Expeditionary Leadership through the stories of people such as third-generation business steward Laura Kohler, the Home Depot cofounder Arthur Blank, and former United States Senator Mark Udall, whose lives were touched by Outward Bound and who then went on to make a positive difference in the world. They show how each of us can, in our own way, use the Outward Bound philosophy to bravely face the wild unknowns in our daily lives. From training the first Peace Corps volunteers to partnering with thousands of educational institutions and corporations, Outward Bound has helped build the self-confidence and character of participants who have gone on to live richer, more fulfilling, and successful lives. Outward Bound internationally operates in thirty-three countries and impacts nearly a quarter of a million people annually.

Experiential education is a philosophy and methodology for building knowledge, developing skills, and clarifying values by engaging learners in direct experience and focused reflection. To understand experiential education, what should one be reading? This sourcebook introduces philosophers, educators, and other practitioners whose work is relevant to anyone seeking answers to this question. Following brief snapshots of John Dewey and Kurt Hahn, the book is organized in four sections: Philosophers and Educational Theorists Nature Educators and Outdoor Educators Psychologists and Sociologists School and Program Founders. Each chapter focuses on an individual whose philosophy and practice exemplify a biographical and historical model for reaching a deeper understanding of experiential education. An appendix includes short biographical sketches of forty-five additional people whose contributions to experiential education deserve a closer look. This volume provides a much-needed overview and foundations for the field – for students in courses addressing experiential education, challenge education, outdoor experiential education, recreation education, and related fields; for learning theorists and curriculum specialists; for experiential educators; and for educational philosophers.

Have you ever been on the receiving end of gross injustices, forced out of your home or country or endured life-threatening events because of misguided political or religious zeal? Are you and your descendants bearing the emotional and physical scars of inhumane brutality? Is it possible, under such circumstances, to simply survive, make sense of life let alone find true happiness, love and forgiveness?