Autumn Finch


Parental and Organizational Perceptions of Risk in the Inclusion of Students with Special Needs in Outdoor Education

There is a strong basis of research examining the benefits of outdoor education for students, particularly those with special needs (Dillon et al., 2017; Farnham & Mutrie, 1997; Wilson, 1994; Zachor et al., 2017). However, there is very little research on the inclusion of students with special needs in outdoor education. This study aims to identify risk perceptions that outdoor educators hold about teaching youth with special needs in nature, and that families of children with special needs hold about enrolling their children in such programs. To understand educator perceptions of risk, I conducted interviews with teachers and program directors at environmental education centers. I also interviewed parents of youth with special needs. I coded the transcripts using a priori and emergent coding. The outdoor educators I spoke with did not perceive greater risk when working with students with special needs, however, they identified that parents and school teachers often perceive additional risk in bringing these students to the outdoors. The parents I spoke with perceived heightened risk to their children in outdoor education settings. Both groups expressed concern for children’s emotional well-being and the potential for exclusion. This suggests that outdoor educators could do more to address caregiver concerns about safety, but that this heightened attention should be done in an inclusive way. These findings also suggest that schools could learn from outdoor education, in which children are less likely to be labelled and excluded based on exceptionalities.

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