Researching the outdoor education journey

Vanessa Petersen, Deputy Head – Vision Valley Campus, co-presented at the IOERC10 (International Outdoor Education Research Conference) in Tokyo, on Pymble’s Vision Valley Year 9 Residential Program with Professor Tonia Gray and Helen Cooper.

The conference brought together internationally leading experts who are paving the way to revolutionise outdoor education globally. Pymble was the only school represented amongst delegates – something which Vanessa hopes to change by making the conference and others like it a regular professional learning goal amongst our outdoor education staff.

The Pymble Ladies’​ College Year 9 Residential Program is a month-long program at Vision Valley, the College’s outdoor education campus. The intentions of the program are not for students to co-exist with static learning opportunities, but rather to become co-constructors of their learning and promote a deeper connection to self, others and the natural world. Pymble’s research into this area commenced in 2022 and continues in 2024 as the program develops. It is focusing on ways of enhancing girls’ sense of belonging, academic buoyancy and resilience.

The research report on the first phase of the outdoor education residential program was undertaken by the Centre for Educational Research, School of Education at Western Sydney University (WSU) and the Pymble Institute. We are pleased to share this record of the first cohort who experienced the program and look forward to following up with these pioneers, now in Year 11, through longitudinal research methods.