Seeing What Children See: Enhancing Understanding of Outdoor Learning Experiences Through Body-Worn Cameras

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18666/JOREL-2018-V10-I1-8192

Keywords:

place-based education, visual methods, child participation, body-worn camera

Abstract

This study investigates innovative ways that outdoor educators can actively promote young participants’ authentic voice in educational research and, in turn, increase our understanding of their worldview through accurately recording what children are seeing, hearing, doing, and touching when they are beyond our researcher’s gaze. The study was conducted with an Australian primary school class who completed a 1-year place-based outdoor learning program. It employed a novel research design wherein video footage was obtained from body-worn cameras mounted on the chests of the children. The footage depicts first-person visual and audio data from children’s viewpoints and deepens our understanding of children’s learning experiences. Additional data included observations, curriculum work samples, academic results, interviews, and student-generated photographs. Results highlight that footage provides unique insights regarding triangulating findings on student learning experiences. Body-worn cameras may be used to enhance young people’s participation in research when integrated into a broader child-friendly approach.

Subscribe to JOREL

Author Biographies

Amanda Lloyd, Independent Scholar and Practitioner

Amanda Lloyd, PhD is an outdoor learning educational consultant and practitoner. Her focus area is the primary school years of children aged 5 – 12 years. Amanda’s specality is in researching and developing outdoor programs that connect children to nature, encourage resilience, wellbeing and foster deep learning of the curriculum by utilising place-based pedagogies.

Tonia Gray, Western Sydney University

Tonia Gray, PhD is a Senior Researcher at Western Sydney University's Centre for Educational Research, Australia. She has been involved in wilderness studies and outdoor education for over 35 years as a researcher, practitioner, and curriculum developer. With a Master’s in Community Health and PhD in Outdoor Education, her interdisciplinary research explores human–nature relationships and their impact on wellbeing and human development.

Son Truong, Western Sydney University

Son Truong, PhD is a specialist in Health and Physical Education Curriculum and Pedagogy, and is a member of the Sustainability Research Group in the Centre for Educational Research, at Western Sydney University. He has extensive experience working with young people in diverse educational settings, in both minority and majority world contexts. His research interests centre on wellbeing and environments. 

References

References

Angrosino, M. (2007). Focus on observation. London: Sage.

Australian Government (2007). National statement of ethical conduct in human research (2007). The National Health and Medical Research Council, the Australian Research Council and the Australian Vice-Chancellors’ Committee. Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra.

Barratt-Hacking, E., Cutter-Mackenzie, A., & Barratt, R. (2013). Children as active researchers: The potential of environmental education research involving children. In R. Stevenson, M. Brody, J. Dillon & A. Wals (Eds.), International handbook of research on environmental education (pp. 438-458). New York: Routledge.

Barton, J., & Pretty, J. (2010). What is the best dose of Nature and Green exercise fro improving

mental health? A multi-study analysis. Environmental Science & Technology, 44, 3947-3955.

Buckler, S., & Walliman, N. (2016). Your dissertation in education (2nd ed.). Los Angeles: Sage.

Canosa, A., Wilson, E., & Graham, A. (2016). Empowering young people through participatory film: A postmethodological approach. Current Issues in Tourism, 1-14. DOI:10.1080/13683500.2016.1179270

Charles, C., Louv, R., Bodner, L., & Guns, B. (2008). Children and Nature 2008: A report on the movement to reconnect children to the natural world. New Mexico: Children and Nature Network.

Chawla, L. (2007). Childhood experiences associated with care for the natural world: a

theoretical framework for empirical results. Children, Youth and Environments, 17(4), 145–170.

Christensen, P., & James, A. (Eds.). (2008). Research with children: Perspectives and practices. New York: Routledge.

Clark, A. (2004). The mosaic approach and research with young children. In V. Lewis, M. Kellett, C. Robinson, S. Fraser & S. Ding (Eds.), The reality of research with children and young people (pp. 142-161). London: Sage.

Clark, A. (2010). Young children as protagonists and the role of participatory, visual methods in engaging multiple perspectives. American Journal of Community Psychology, 46(1), 115-123.

Clark, A., & Moss, P. (Ed). (2011). Listening to young children: the mosaic approach (2nd ed.). London: National Children’s Bureau.

Corsaro, W. A. (2015). The sociology of childhood (4th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Costantino, T. (2008). Constructivism. In Given, M. (Ed), The sage encyclopedia of qualitative research methods. (pp. 116-121). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Creswell, J. (2015). A concise introduction to mixed methods research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Cutter-Mackenzie, A., Edwards, S., & Quinton, H. W. (2015). Child-framed video research methodologies: Issues, possibilities and challenges for researching with children. Children's Geographies, 13(3), 343-356.

Davies, M. (1996). Outdoors: An important context for young children’s development. Early Child Development and Care, 115(1), 37-49.

Delamont, S. (2012). Handbook of qualitative research in education. Massachusetts: Edward Elgar Publishing.

Dowdell, K., Gray, T., & Malone, K. (2011). Nature and its influence on children’s outdoor play. Australian Journal of Outdoor Education, 15(2), 24-35.

Gillham, B. (2000). Case study research methods. London and New York: Continuum.

Gray, T., & Birrell, C. (2015). Touched by the earth: A place-based outdoor learning programme incorporating the Arts. Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14729679.2015.1035293

Gray, T., & Martin, P. (2012). The role and place of outdoor education in the Australian National Curriculum. Australian Journal of Outdoor Education. 16(1), 39-50.

Hart, R. (1992). Children’s participation: From tokenism to citizenship. Innocenti Essays, Number 4. Florence: UNICEF, International Child Development Centre.

Hart, R. (1997). Children’s participation. London: Earthscan.

James, J., Jenks, C. & Prout. (1998). Theorizing childhood. Cambridge: Polity Press.

Kahn, P., & Kellert, S., (eds). (2002). Children and Nature: Psychological, Sociocultural, and

Evolutionary Investigations. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.

Kim, C. Y. (2016). Participation or pedagogy? Ambiguities and tensions surrounding the facilitation of children as researchers. Childhood, 0907568216643146.

Kopelke, D. (2012). Environmental education through listening to children. Doctor of Education Thesis: Queensland University of Technology.

Lloyd, A. M. (2016). Place-based outdoor learning enriching curriculum : a case study in an

Australian primary school, PhD thesis, Western Sydney University,

http://researchdirect.uws.edu.au/islandora/object/uws%3A38701

Lloyd, A., & Gray, T. (2014). Outdoor learning and the importance of environmental sustainability in Australian Primary Schools. Journal of Sustainability Education. http://www.jsedimensions.org/wordpress/content/place-based-outdoor-learning-and-environmental-sustainability-within-australian-primary-school_2014_10/

Lloyd, A., Truong, S., & Gray, T. (2016). Beyond the walls: within the curriculum: exploring the niche position of place-based outdoor learning for primary schools. In Book of Abstracts: 7th International Outdoor Education Research Conference, Unama’ki/Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada, July 4-8th, 2016 (pp. 32-32).

Mason, J. & Danby, S. (2011). Children as experts in their lives. Child Inclusive Research, 4, 185-189.

Maynard, T. (2007). Forest Schools in Great Britain: an initial exploration. Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 8(4), 320-331.

McClain, C., & Vandermaas-Peeler, M. (2015). Social contexts of development in natural outdoor environments: children’s motor activities, personal challenges and peer interactions at the river and the creek, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning. DOI: 10.1080/14729679.2015.1050682

Muñoz, S A. (2009). Children in the Outdoors, A Literature Review. Forres, Scotland: Sustainable Development Research Centre.

O’Brien, L., & Murray, R. (2006). A marvellous opportunity for children to learn. A participatory evaluation of Forest School in England and Wales. Surrey: Forest Research.

Punch, K. (2009). Introduction to research methods in education. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Rickinson, M., Dillon, J., Teamey, K., Morris, M., Choi, M. Y., Sanders, D., & Benefield, P. (2004). A review of research on outdoor learning. Shrewsbury: Fields Study Council.

Santer, J., Griffiths, C., & Goodall, D. (2007). Free play in early childhood: A literature review. London: National Children’s Bureau.

Truong, S., Gray, T., & Ward, K. (2016). ‘Sowing and growing’ life skills through garden-based learning to re-engage disengaged youth. LEARNing Landscapes Special Issue Linking Education and Community: Present and Future Possibilities 10(1)361-385.

Truong, S. & Mahon, M. (2012). Through the lens of participatory photography: engaging Thai children in research about their community play centre, International Journal of Play, 1(1), 75-90.

Tzibazi, V. (2014). Primary schoolchildren's experiences of participatory theatre in a heritage site, Education 3-13, 42(5), 498-516.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological process. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

Yin, R. (2011). Qualitative research from start to finish. New York: The Guilford Press.

Downloads

Published

2018-01-25

Issue

Vol. 10 No. 1 (2018): Special Issue: International Perspectives in Outdoor Education Research

Section

Regular Papers

License

Sagamore Publishing LLC (hereinafter the “Copyright Owner”)

Journal Publishing Copyright Agreement for Authors

PLEASE REVIEW OUR POLICIES AND THE PUBLISHING AGREEMENT, AND INDICATE YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THE TERMS BY CHECKING THE ‘AGREE TO THE TERMS OF THIS COPYRIGHT NOTICE’ CHECKBOX BELOW.

I understand that by submitting an article to Journal of Outdoor Recreation, Education, and Leadership, I am granting the copyright to the article submitted for consideration for publication in Journal of Outdoor Recreation, Education, and Leadership to the Copyright Owner. If after consideration of the Editor of the Journal of Outdoor Recreation, Education, and Leadership, the article is not accepted for publication, all copyright covered under this agreement will be automatically returned to the Author(s).

THE PUBLISHING AGREEMENT

Assignment of Copyright

I hereby assign to the Copyright Owner the copyright in the manuscript I am submitting in this online procedure and any tables, illustrations or other material submitted for publication as part of the manuscript in all forms and media (whether now known or later developed), throughout the world, in all languages, for the full term of copyright, effective when the article is accepted for publication.

Reversion of Rights

Articles may sometimes be accepted for publication but later be rejected in the publication process, even in some cases after public posting in “Articles in Press” form, in which case all rights will revert to the Author.

Retention of Rights for Scholarly Purposes

I understand that I retain or am hereby granted the Retained Rights. The Retained Rights include the right to use the Preprint, Accepted Manuscript, and the Published Journal Article for Personal Use and Internal Institutional Use.

All journal material is under a 12 month embargo. Authors who would like to have their articles available as open access should contact Sagamore-Venture for further information.

In the case of the Accepted Manuscript and the Published Journal Article, the Retained Rights exclude Commercial Use, other than use by the author in a subsequent compilation of the author’s works or to extend the Article to book length form or re-use by the author of portions or excerpts in other works.

Published Journal Article: the author may share a link to the formal publication through the relevant DOI.

Author Representations

  • The Article I have submitted to the journal for review is original, has been written by the stated author(s) and has not been published elsewhere.
  • The Article was not submitted for review to another journal while under review by this journal and will not be submitted to any other journal.
  • The Article contains no libelous or other unlawful statements and does not contain any materials that violate any personal or proprietary rights of any other person or entity.
  • I have obtained written permission from copyright owners for any excerpts from copyrighted works that are included and have credited the sources in the Article.
  • If the Article was prepared jointly with other authors, I have informed the co-author(s) of the terms of this Journal Publishing Agreement and that I am signing on their behalf as their agent, and I am authorized to do so.