THE ancients although relied primarily on physical prowess to obtain food, needed to utilize their intelligence to devise new and creative ways to hunt and store animals. The relationship between food, physical activity, and learning is hardwired into our brain's circuitry. In the modern world, although our survival no longer hinges on our ability to trap and kill a large animal, physical excursion is still plays an important role in our learning process.

As our species has evolved, our physical skills have developed into abstract abilities to predict, sequence, estimate, plan, rehearse, observe ourselves, judge, correct mistakes, shift tactics, and then remember everything we did in order to survive. the brain circuits that our ancient ancestors used to start a fire are the same ones we use today to learn French.

Evolutionary science taught us that learning is the survival mechanism we use to adapt to constantly changing environments. Inside the microenvironment of the brain, that means forging new connections between cells to relay information.

Emerging research shows that physical activity sparks biological changes that encourage brain cells to bind to one another. For the brain to learn, these connections must be made; they reflect the brain's fundamental ability to adapt to challenges.  The more neuroscientists discover about this process, the clearer it becomes that exercise provides an unparallel  stimulus, creating an environment in which the brain is ready willing, and able to learn. Aerobic activity has a dramatic effect on adaption, regulating systems that might be out of balance and optimizing those that are not --- It is an indispensable tool for anyone who wants to reach their  own full potential.

To better understand the link between mind and body, many scientist have focused their research on a particular class of  master molecules, called BDNF (Brain-derived neurotrophic factor). To date there are more than 5,400 published researched papers on the topic. Scientists discovered something quite startling, namely that BDNF exists in the brain and nourishes neurons like fertilizers!

A study has been conducted about exercise and BDNF in mice. The finding was that exercise elevated the learning fertilizer (BDNF) throughout the brain. Another study conducted by UC Irvine shows that the increase in BDNF through exercise occurred not only in the motor sensory areas of the brain, it occurred in the our brain's learning center - the hippocampus as well! By showing that exercise sparks the master molecule of the learning process, Dr. Cortman from UC Irvine, established a direct biological connection between movement and cognitive function! [i]

A unique case study

An initiative known as Zero Hour PE, implemented by Naperville district 203, which requires high school participants to conduct rigorous physical exercise, where participants will reach 185 HPM prior to class shows a dramatic 17% improvement in reading and comprehension, compared with a 10.7% improvement among the other students who opted to sleep in and take standard phys ed.

TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) has been administered every four years since 1995. The 1999 edition included 230,000 students from thirty-eight countries, 59,000 of whom were from the United States. Naperville 203, who implemented the above Zero Hour PE program, enlisted their eighth graders for the assessment, incredibly finished first on the science section just ahead of Singapore and the rest of the participating country. On the math section, Naperville scored sixth, behind only Singapore, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Japan . As a whole, US students ranked eighteenth in science and nineteenth in math, which districts from New Jersey and Miami scoring dead last in math and science.

The results were staggering, even accounting for the relative prestige and affluence associated with the Naperville district, the correlation between their unique brand of physical education and its test score is undeniable. This is evident in poorer districts where Naperville- style PE has taken root, such as Titusville, Pennsylvania, where test scores have improved measurably. [ii]

In the context of our outdoor education model

At Zen Quest, our education model utilizes a scenic and diverse wilderness environment, where groups of students are arranged into teams, we set physical and mental challenges that have a perceived level of risk and adventure, the completion of which requires team work, physical prowess and intelligence.

Aside from the confidence it instills in participants of achieving tasks previously thought to be beyond their capabilities, the above research clearly indicates that such activities increase learning capabilities at a neurological level. Once a student is taken out of his usual environment, the wilderness provides such a environmental enrichment that is conducive to the opening of new neuron pathways, the physical activities increase the BDNF, which in turns provide an unparallel advantage to increase the learning capabilities in developing minds.  

Our first challenge presents a seemingly simple, but complex case of “Who will Eat the Apple?” Participants will split into different “companies”: Pear, Sisung, Yeskia, GSB, Huabei, Husan, Soelbow—fierce competitors in the mobile consumer electronics game who sometimes do cooperate and other times crush each other. Each participant will be given a random role in the company: CEO, CFO, marketing, R&D, receptionist. Each will be given an identical starting “budget” with the goal of deciding how much to spend on product development on up to five new products. The right to develop each product will be decided at an auction, and the winning team will be the one who picks the best product mix based on the secret future value of each product.

Before the event, each participant will be given some information based on their assigned role. Furthermore, each team will receive some more information along with general industry information. The challenge will be to use the two hours allotted to apply orienteering skills taught in the morning workshop to find as many clues—hidden around Maluanshan—as possible to increase the individual and the team’s knowledge and then use this knowledge to come up with a winning strategy to use in the technology auction after lunch. Only basic tools will be allowed--a map, a compass, and walkie-talkies. (cell phones?) along with the information you are given, that which you find, trade, buy, or steal—to devise your strategy to become number one.

Can your team find and interpret the clues? Can you bid effectively? Can you buy from your competitors? Will you form alliances? Will you betray your team for a better offer from a competitor? Will you beat Steve Jobs and the legacy of apple? Are you up to the challenge? A debrief after the event will be held along with a roundtable and metrics on performance.

Location: Maluan Mountain

About Maluan Mountain: sourse - Shenzhen Daily November 10, 2004, from

"Maluan Mountain is not the most famous mountain in the Shenzhen area, even among the city's long-term residents.
However, it is extremely popular among avid hikers because it's easy, safe, beautiful and varied with clear streams, lush woods, Chinese plum blossoms and one of the area's largest waterfalls.
The mountain's paths aren't surfaced, yet the climb is not strenuous, as the summit is only half the height of Shenzhen's highest peak, Wutong Mountain.
Lan Chou Gu, a veteran member of Shenzhen's largest online outdoor pursuits club, Mofang, once wrote: "It's hard to say how many Shenzheners have fallen in love with hiking when climbing Maluan Mountain, but who, if they love hiking, has not climbed Maluan Mountain."
Expeditions to Maluan Mountain usually start at Diecuihu Reservoir, 15 minutes from Xiaomeisha beach, and end at Dameisha beach.
The summit is accessible from various routes, but the most attractive one is along a stream.
The stream is less than half-a-meter deep, with boulders forming natural steps for hikers. Jumping from one boulder to another is a real test of balance, as some boulders are pointed and far apart from each other. In other places, the boulders are so large and close together that you have to scramble over, squeeze between and slide down them.
In nice weather, falling into the water is not the end of the world, although you have to be careful because your shoes become wet and slippery. However, after heavy rain, the water can run very fast and the rapids can carry you downstream.
Despite the challenges, trekking up the stream is quite refreshing.
Even on the hottest summer days, you will not feel it because much of the stream is under tree cover. The sounds of water splashing add to the tranquility and coolness of the mountain. Looking down, a continuous mountain chain extends in front of you, completely separating you from the city.
When a section of the waterway is too difficult to pass, a nearby mountain trail is a good alternative. Cool, damp, lush and with the sound of rushing water, the trail passes through what seems like a temperate forest.
Maluan Waterfalls is one of the largest in the Shenzhen area, about 16 meters high. There are also some smaller falls. While many leisurely hikers just enjoy watching the thundering waterfalls or bathing in the cool water, rock-climbers practice their skills on the cliffs beside the waterfalls.
The mountain is best known for its plum blossom trees, which bloom in January. The Plum Blossom Pavilion at the summit offers an excellent view of the blue sea and the red and white plum blossoms in January.
If you start your expedition at about 10 AM, you will arrive at the Plum Blossom Pavilion by midday, in time for a relaxing lunch at the small village about 30 minutes walk from the pavilion.
You can buy some farm produce from the villagers and cook at their houses. If you are lucky, you can get a chicken raised by farmers for 50 yuan (US$6). But don't expect to recharge your mobile phones here because most of the village houses have no electricity.
If you want to climb Maluan Mountain, you'd better be quick. The mountain may soon lose part of its natural beauty because a golf course is being built on it."

A BA Outdoor Leadership year 3 assignment 1, Practice Outdoor Leadership By Eben Farnworth

Introduction

The science of outdoor leadership aims to identify the key factors that make an activity successful or unsuccessful. It is based around the following statement:

The single most important attribute for an effective outdoor leader is the ability to accurately assess the current and potential ability level of a client. (Wilson 2003)

There are lots of different aspects of leadership covered in this report, including action centred learning, leadership styles, communication, risk management, and others.

Clarification

This report assumes that the above statement refers to the generic skill of client ability assessment covering all outdoor work with paying clients. This includes every activity from base jumping to dry stone walling holidays, nature walks, skiing, kayaking, climbing and all other outdoor activities in all outdoor environments.

What is outdoor leadership?

Leadership covers so many aspects and means different things to different people. Some people who have tried to define it have come up with statements like:

Leadership is the capacity to move others toward goals shared with you, with a focus and competency they would not achieve on their own. (Graham 1997: 12)

See appendix 1 to for the questionnaire response that he used to write the above quotation.

The leader's role is to help the party achieve the team's objectives in a safe, enjoyable manner, with minimum impact on the … environment. (Cox and Fulsaas 2003: 461)

A leader helps a person or group of people achieve something they could not achieve on there own. At the same time looking after safety, environmental impacts and enjoyment for the people involved. However as Graham points out:

Leadership is not a science to be picked up in one book or course, but an art to be learned over time. Good leaders sometimes tell people what to do, but leadership is not just giving directions-it's liberating people to do what is needed in the best possible way. (Graham 1997: 9)

Leadership is a skill that takes time to learn and develop, this is especially the case in outdoor environments because of there diversity and ever changing nature.

Criticism of the starting statements

The first and most obvious error in this statement is that it encompasses all outdoor instructors, leaders, teachers and facilitators. For example, a bungee jumping instructor does not need to know his or her client’s ability for a standard jump. They just need to know their weight; their ability to fall can then be predetermined according to the laws of gravity. 

The other problem with this statement is that it forsakes all other considerations and decisions that an instructor has to make. It is equally important to judge the environmental conditions and objective risks in an ever changing outdoor world. These can then be related to client ability to make decisions for the situation.

Interpersonal

Action Centred Leadership

Barnes (2002: 18-19) discussed Adair’s model of action centred leadership showing that it demonstrated the three main areas which every leader has to consider, task, group and individuals. Truly effective leadership is the point where the leader is meeting the needs of the group, the individual requirements and staying focussed on the task. See the model below:

See also in appendix 1, a table displaying the key actions of action centred leadership.

This implies that action centred leadership solves all the problems in a simple way; as long as the leader is constantly making sure that the group is catered for, the task is getting completed and the individuals are being looked after properly, every thing will go well. Outdoor leadership is more complicated than that; in an outdoor environment the leader’s role is often always changing, moving from assessing the environment and risk, to the client’s ability or giving encouragement, teaching skills, using remote supervision and many more. Hersey and Blanchard (1982) suggested that as well as the three elements of action centred leadership a leader needs to look after and monitor the working relationships of the group members and be able to adapt and change leadership styles to suit different situations.

Why do we lead in the outdoors?

A lot of leadership text books discussed the importance of outdoor leaders knowing why they lead. For example Hampton (2002: 85) and Langmuir (1998: 318) both discuss in the introduction of their leadership chapters the importance of each individual leader finding out why they wish to coach, or why they are coaching.

Why do you coach or lead others? Are you trying to replicate your previous experiences for them? Why sacrifice personal paddling time for other people? Is it money, ego, or have you been drawn into a coaching situation almost by accident. (Hampton 2002: 85)

Langmuir said similar for mountain leaders; both are making the point that a leader’s motivation to lead, coach and facilitate in the outdoors will determine the types of outcome they will achieve. “The point here is that why we do certain things will often define how we do things.”  Hampton (2002: 86) A good leader will be leading for the right reasons as Graham highlights below:

The most important aspect of leadership is having a reason for leading beyond investing in your own ego. It takes passion and genuine intention to be a good leader. (Graham 1997:16)

So having the right reason for leading can make people better leaders, see appendix 2 for Daumal and Analogue's poetic suggestion on why people should be taken into the mountains. Graham backs up the augment for knowing why leaders lead:

What you believe about leadership--your attitudes--will greatly influence the results you get as a leader. They'll not guarantee success--but they'll definitely improve your odds. (Graham 1997:15)

Technical

For outdoor leader’s technical competency is very important: 

"If, as an outdoor leader, you are able to perform at a proficiency higher than that of the group members, you will probably have a much easier time in maintaining group control during these activities, giving you a greater margin of safety by providing a cushion of competence." (Priest and Gass 1997: 3)

Priest and Gass regard technical skills as being the most important starting point for outdoor leaders. They believe that for someone to become an effective outdoor leader they must first have a good knowledge base for the activity and personal competence. This can help people develop belief in their ability and build their confidents as a leader. They will be able to operate safely because of their technical capability, which is the fundamental job of an outdoor leader. And in relation to the starting statement to assess client ability a leader must first be able to assess the activity to compare with what the clients are capable of achieving.

Eben’s thoughts and experiences 2005

Rational for this section

This section is written is the first person as it is about the writer; this aids clarity for the reader and makes it easier to read.

As a practitioner of outdoor education for the past four seasons I have found that being flexible in my work and quickly developing rapport with groups are my most useful soft skills. Underpinning this is communication and technical skills. For me technical skills are easier to learn and perfect; they are more tangible and measurable than soft skills.

An instructor may be able to communicate very effectively with one group but another group from a slightly different culture may be much more challenging. This is where experience comes into its own, as a leader with more experience can generally build rapport quicker with groups they have not worked with before.

Here is a list of important generic attributes of outdoor leaders created by the righter:

• Assessing risk

• Developing rapport

• Communication skills

• Interpersonal skills

• Teaching skills

• Technical skills (Paddling or climbing ability and competence)

• Environmental awareness

• Working under pressure

• The ability to stay focussed to the task when cold tired and hungry

• Meta skills

• Knowing one’s own limitations

• Risk Management

• Academic theories

See appendix 1 to compare the writers list with the one made by Graham (1997) and appendix 3 to compare with priest’s and Gasses study off outdoor leadership qualities.

British Mountaineering Council (BMC) and Mountain Leader Training Board England (MLTE)

Langmuir (1998: 317) explains the importance of outdoor leaders knowing their subject so well that they can instigate all the components simultaneously “…similar to the way in which tapestry threads interweave to form a pattern or picture”. Each thread and pattern has a relationship with the whole object. He said that the factors and their relationships must be totally understood by the leader so leadership decisions can “… occur naturally and spontaneously” Langmuir (1998: 317)

“There is no such thing as a bad group only poor leadership” (Mick Jenings 2002 M.I.C.)

The management of risk

Risk management is one of the most important skills for an effective outdoor leader because “Being a leader also means taking on risk and responsibility” (Graham 1997:16). "Successful risk management requires combining technical, leadership and people skills on the part of the instructor in an on-going process of decision making”. (Peter 2004: 207) Outdoor activities are dangerous; outdoor leaders have to constantly monitor and evaluate risk in an ever changing environment. This is called an ‘ongoing risk assessment’; the leader can assess the risk and compare it to the client ability to make stable judgments of the situation. It is therefore vital that the leader has the correct amount of experience, knowledge and the skills for the task. If the leader does not then they will not be able to make informed, safe and suitable decisions. Langmuir (1998: 318) discuses the balancing act of risk management in the outdoors, between what is safe and perhaps dull for the group and what is more dangerous and potentially exiting and stimulating. the British Canoe Union (BCU) use this formula in the Canoe and Kayak Hand Book “Technique + experience + being dynamic = skilful judgements” Hampton (2002: 86) good judgement + successful risk management = keeping clients safe, which for fills the many criteria for an effective outdoor leader.

What is the most important attribute for effective outdoor leadership?

Priest and Gass identify the following 12 points as being the most important attributes for an effective outdoor leader:

1.  

2. Technical skills

3. Safety skills

4. Environmental skills

5. Organizational skills

6. Instructional skills

7. Facilitation skills

8. Flexible leadership style

9. Experience-based judgment

10. Problem-solving skills

11. Decision-making skills

12. Effective communication

13. Professional ethics

(Priest and Gass 1997: 2 - 4)

See appendix 3 for a collection of research answers on what makes an effective outdoor leader from around the world compiled by Priest and Gass.

They are in order of priority with technical skills at the top. This is in contrast with Barnes who says communication and Wilson who says assessing client’s current and potential ability are the most important attributes. But overall the righter agrees with Barnes that communication is the starting point for all leadership activities. There are so many skills required by outdoor leaders that its not possible to cover them all in this report. At the root of all leadership activity is communication skills. Without these a leader is power less, however good there technical skills are:

Leadership, to a large extent revolves around communication; it is the basic skill or tool around which all other facets of a leader stem. Barnes (2002:24)

Communication comes in many forms, all of which an effective leader should make use of. For example:

• One way and two way communication

• One to one and one too many

• Verbal and non verbal communication

One and two way communication when a leader gives an instruction they should always look for a response. It could be a spoken response for example Leader – ‘is that carabineer dun up’. Client – ‘I don’t know I think so’. That example is of verbal one to one communication. However when a leader is speaking to a group (one too many) they will not always get verbal responses from all there clients. This is when the leader needs to look for the non verbal sine’s which may give him/her clues to how the group is feeling; for example hot, cold, tired, scared or content. The leaders non verbal communication is also very important; the sine’s that he/she is giving out need as much monitoring as what is said.

Effective communication allows a leader to:

• Keep groups safe - provided the instructions are correct

• Develop rapport

• Keep a group interested

• Teach skills

• Set bounders

• Be effective.

Communication is the back bone of interpersonal skills, which are needed to influence people and as Priest and Gass say below, the ability to influence people, is the ability to lead:

Leadership is a process of influence. In most informal group settings, people who become group leaders influence other group members to create, identify, work toward, achieve, and share mutually acceptable goals. (Priest and Gass 1997: 3)

Conclusion

This assignment identifies some of the many skills, considerations and values concerning outdoor leadership. It finds that communication is the fundamental skill for outdoor leaders to build all the others around. However other than the ability to communicate there is no ‘magic key’ to leadership, no single skill or ability that is important above all else. This is because outdoor leadership is so varied, every single group is different from each other and every individual is unique within all groups. The outdoors and the activities which leaders guide their groups through are as diverse as the groups themselves. This multitude of diversity in groups and environments should be promoted and celebrated, not put into boxes, refined or sanitised for the ease of outdoor practitioners. 

It is acknowledged that assessing client ability is essential but is not always of the utmost importance in all outdoor adventure situations. To assess client ability a leader must first have the technical skills for the activity to relate to the clients ability, and the communication skills to teach and lead safely and effectively.

So to conclude - The two most important skills for an outdoor leader to have is – Communication and Technical competence.

Bibliography

Cox S.M., and Fulsaas K., (2003) Mountaineering The Freedom of the Hills, Shropshire, Swan Hill Press. 7^th Edition.

Graham J., (1997) Outdoor Leadership, Technique, Common Sense & Self-confidence, Leicester, Mountaineers.

Hampton K., and Taylor B., (2002) British Canoe Union – Canoe and Kayak Handbook, (Chapters used 6 Leadership and 7 coaching), Gwynedd, Pesda Press.

Hersey P., and Blanchard k., (1999). Management of Organizational Behaviour, 

Englewood Cliffs, Prentice-hall, 4^th edition.

Hopkins D., and Putnam R., (1998), Personal Growth Through Adventure, London, David Fulton Publishers.

Langmuir E., (1995) Mountaincraft and Leadership, Glasgow, Rexam Cartions, Third Edition.

Miles, J, C., Priest, S., (1999) Adventure Programming, Philadelphia, Venture Publishing.*

Ogilvie K., (1993) Leading and Managing Groups in the Outdoors, Sheffield, Hallam University Print Unit.

Peter L., (2004) Rock climbing essential skills & techniques, Nottingham, Clearpoint Colourprint.

Priest S., and Gass M.A., (1997) Effective Leadership in Adventure Programming, Human Kinetics.

Word count 2485

Appendix 1

People expect good leaders to: 

• be good at planning and organizing; 

• be self-confident; 

• be technically competent, which for outdoor leaders includes competency in basic skills such as first aid, route finding, and reading the weather; 

• care for other people; 

• make good decisions; 

• be trustworthy; 

• communicate well; 

• inspire others to be at their best; 

• build and maintain morale; 

• be good teachers and coaches; 

• be able to deal with difficult people and handle conflicts; • be able to build and guide teams; and 

• anticipate problems and deal with them proactively.

Appendix 2

You cannot stay on the summit forever: you have to come down again...

So why bother in the first place? Just this: 

What is above knows what is below, but what is below does not know what is above. One climbs, one sees, one descends, one sees no longer. But one has seen. 

There is an art of conducting oneself in the lower regions by the memoo' of what one has seen higher up.

When one can no longer see, one can at least still know. (Daumal and Analogue 1998: 1).

Appendix 3

This is Priest and Gass’s summary of the skills and qualities that are vital for an effective outdoor leader. They come for 10 manger studies from around the world which looked at what outdoor leader need be effective.

(Priest and Gass 1997: 4)

Any approach to education must ask itself, what is the goal of education? Is it our aim to cultivate doctors, engineers and other brands of professionals?

Is education simply a form of vocational training and a vehicle to career advancement? Alternatively is education more a way of studying rather than a specific course or field of study, where we impart a philosophy of education that empowers individuals with broad knowledge and transferable skills, and a stronger sense of values, ethics, and civic engagement? 

The above represents the two predominant school of thoughts regarding senior secondary and higher education. However, the seeming dichotomy could be resolved by combining the two school of thoughts where professional training is complimented and supplemented by liberal and experiential education anchored on moral and ethical grounds, thereby combining into a holistic form of education. 

In order to achieve the objectives of holistic education we must seek to develop the whole person to face the challenges of life, which, as we shall see, may also mean finding a meaning for one's life.  For this, the prevalent institutional mechanisms, even in the top world-class universities, are far from enough.

Students today face stark challenges when they leave university, employers are often looking beyond the academic achievements of students. In fact  A recent study by the global consultancy McKinsey & Co points to the need to identify new approaches to helping those leaving education to secure employment. It is submitted that outdoor education plays an important role in both the provision of employment and the preparation of people for employment.

As Donald Schon puts it in the" Education of a Reflective Practitioner", the terrain that human beings have to negotiate is like an immense swamp. Scattered far and few between are isolated islands, which are the existing academic or professional disciplines. 

But the problem is, when one encounters a challenging situation to which one has to cultivate creative solutions to overcome or bypass, such solutions are always situated at a site distant from those islands, with the result that the recognized or documented resolutions will at best be marginally helpful. This is the case when one is doing scientific research, pursuing artistic creation, starting a small business or solving a problem in one's business, social, political, legal or educational organization. Thus, professional education does give us a map in negotiating the swamp, but it may not be adequate, experiential education acts as a compass giving our students direction in navigating the swamp. From this analogy, one could see that both are integral parts in enabling our students to face the challenges of life. 

Thus, the students must be given the chance and support to learn to negotiate uncharted terrains and ambiguous situations. Furthermore even when existing techniques are more or less applicable, one must be able to learn them in an authentic constructivist mode.  As Jean Piaget pointed out decades ago, ‘knowledge is constructed by the learner.' This is invariably true for real learning, starting from infancy when one learns to speak, discerning and extracting amidst an ocean of ' noise' certain sounds that seem to be connected to some objects or events in the real world, and in no time begins to utter those sounds in a coherent fashion. Here, knowledge has indeed been constructed. The construction of knowledge, therefore could not be achieved through rote learning, it must be fortified by experience and guidance. The role of an outdoor/experiential educator is not to dictate, but rather like a coach, to bring out the latent qualities within the students through challenging themselves and pushing them out of their comfort zone. 

A meaningful education must therefore try to help students develop a certain quality, what John Keats referred to as ' Negative Capability' i.e. the patience, resilience and fearlessness when confronted with an ambiguous or unknown situation, and in the course of time, through relentless search, find a way through it, constructing knowledge with what Charles Handy called 'the Third Eye'.  The “Third eye” is essentially a new discovery or solution which could only be achieved through one’s “negative capabilities”. Thus, it is reasoned that “negative capability’ is instrumental in producing new discoveries and solutions – which are the hallmarks of innovation. 

But what constitutes the pre-requisite for Negative Capability?  The answer is 'Passion', a passion for exploratory learning which is innate in all human beings, otherwise they wouldn't even learn to talk or walk. But which in most cases has been buried, through years of neglect or suppression by institutional education. Here, I would like to stress the futility in preaching and lecturing the students, in an attempt to exhort in them a sense of passion.  The only way to re-ignite their passion is through 'enticing' them to go through authentic learning experiences. 

The strategy is to identify 'Zones of Excitement' for our students, and use them as entry points for student learning. Outdoor experiential education is the perfect vehicle for instilling passion in students, using the breathtakingly beautiful wilderness as a platform to create problems and challenges where students will have to employ various skill sets, such as communication, creativity and physical prowess to come up with innovative solutions to the challenges presented to them. 

Through this process the student goes around and around the cycle of passion, where negative capability is cultivated and resulting in the ‘third eye’. With the 'passion' element perpetually invigorated by the Eureka Effect, the journey becomes an upward spiral. The student grows holistically as a whole person.

Ethical education will result organically in the process too. Through cultural exposure to the unique destinations selected by our staff at Zen Quest coupled with living for prolonged periods in a commune setting, it helps to instill in our students a deep sense of empathy for one's fellow man. A further advantage for the developing mind, is that not only will one have the opportunity to see the larger world, but also one's place in it, and the part that one could play to make one's life a meaningful, and thus a fulfilling, one. He or she begins to glimpse a 'meaning of life', against the background of the real world that one has to grapple with for the rest of one's life. As pointed out by humanistic psychologists like Abraham Maslow and Viktor Frankl, and confirmed by empirical research, the search for a ' meaning of life ' is a basic human drive, though this again may be temporarily buried due to a number of external factors.

Thus we have a vision, and a strategy for attaining it. To actualize this, we must take students outside of their comfort zone for a prolonged period lasting for at least 14 days. The students will be taken to a remote location and will be taught basic outdoor navigation, survival and planning abilities. Genuine task and challenges will be set, where groups of student must come up with creative solution to solve them. The entire process will be captured by video camera, and shown to the students in the evening using portable projectors and a white screen. This review session helps to solidify what they have learnt and to facilitate introspection where they could review their own conduct, attitude and abilities. After which our staff and students will sit in a circle around a fire, the tranquility and unity afforded by such an environment is conducive to deep sharing of thoughts and feelings.

At Zen Quest our goal is to provide the most unique outdoor education experience in the world. Our instruction techniques embody the latest research in neuroscience, psychology and educational philosophy, taught by the most qualified instructors in China and the UK. Here, safety is our paramount concern, our staff are constantly reviewing new safety technique from around the world, to ensure that our programs are of world class quality. 

For more on our educational research on outdoor education, please see our article "The connection between physical exercise, environmental enrichment and learning capabilities".

There have been many studies all over the world looking at the mental, physical and sociological benefits of participation in outdoor sports. One of our primary aims is to help further this research by providing research data free of charge and open for use by anyone. Also find information on all our past programs and achievements.
Click on the links below to see what we are working on.

Overview

The education of the young mind often requires an individualised and multi faceted approach.  Prevalent educational institutes often advocate such approaches, but due to the need of uniform policies and funding allocations, often fail to achieve the stated aims. Spartan Challenge is an extracurricular activity that seeks to provide an individualised learning experience in a wilderness setting. Its ultimate aim is two-fold:

1. The cultivation of leaders. As such, latent leadership qualities are seen to be necessary for eventual participation. 

2. Journey of self discovery, to discover one's talent, potentials, strengths and weaknesses

Everyone has natural dispositions, a one size catch all educational methodology often favours those with natural dispositions that happen to coincide with the narrow criteria of advancement featured in primary and secondary institutions, namely that of academic excellence and conformity. Deviances from these criteria often leads to perceived incompetence and unruly conduct. In reality, these conducts are merely a rebellious reaction towards the closing of opportunities and perceived prejudicial attitudes held by their respective educational institutions. The resulting lack of self esteem, forfeiture of further advancement opportunities and antisocial behaviours not only leads to immediate social problems; it also deprives the young person from reaching his full potentials. 

SC is a comprehensive extracurricular reward program that seeks to deal with this educational gap in the HK secondary school system. It uses psychological tools such as the MBTI personality test and multiple intelligence theory to create an individualised profile of each participant. Each student will be treated as an individual, with his/her peculiarities, learning style, preference and personality considered when constructing instructional preferences. 

Selection

There will be a 3 phase selection process. 

Initial screening

All interested participants will have to fill in an application form (See application form doc) and answer the following questions using any medium they feel comfortable, which may include writing, videos, voice recording and animation. The three questions are:

What do you want to gain from the experience?

Describe your best and worst traits and how these traits affect your life.

What are you willing to give/do to take part in this challenge? 

Students who exhibit the most originality, creativity, commitment and desire to partake in the program will be selected for the Lamma Island elimination race. 

Lamma Island race

Students will be split into groups of 4 and will be asked to partake in a team orientation race held at Lamma Island. Each team will be asked to delegate within themselves the positions of leader, navigator, morale booster and scribe. The race will have 16 checkpoints, some will have questions in placed and some will have team challenges, the team must devise a strategy to obtain the most points within the pre determined time limit. 

Selection will be based on a lexical ranking of the following:

1. Overall attitude - 4

2. Individual performance within the team (assessed by Zen Quest staff) - 4

3. Final team results - 2

Expedition

We envision 20 finalists who will partake in the final expedition. Before the commencement of the expedition, we shall construct an individual profile of each participant which will include the following elements:

• Age 

• Gender

• Socioeconomic background 

• Past academic results 

• Sporting experience 

• Hobbies 

• Aspiration 

• Their results in the multiple intelligence test 

• Their personality type according to the Myer-Briggs personality test 

Here I shall expand on the theory of multiple intelligence and Myer Briggs personality test and seek to demonstrate the importance of these two theories when applied to the education of adolescences.  

MBTI personality type

MBTI is a psychometric tool developed by Isabelle Myers based on the Carl's Jung research into personality types.  The Jung/Myers theory of psychological types is a way of describing and explaining certain consistent differences in the ways that normal people use their minds. The MBTI questionnaire purports to identify these differences through a 93 item, self administered, paper and pencil questionnaire (Form M). 

Results show the respondent's preferences on each of four pairs of opposite categories, which are called dichotomies. The constructs that comprise each of the four dichotomies are board and multifaceted rather than narrow and unidimensional. That is, rather than tapping a single aspect of the domain covered in the dichotomy, a number of different aspects or expressions are addressed. To better illustrate the dynamism of this tool, the four dichotomies are:

Introversion  ------------------------------------ Extroversion

Sensing ------------------------------------------- iNtuition

Thinking ------------------------------------------ Feeling

Perceiving ---------------------------------------- Judging

 Extraversion - Introversion dichotomy is not limited to socialisation, but includes activity level, expressiveness, and other legitimate areas. Accordingly, all eight categories, or preference poles are used at least some of the time by each person, so we all possess these functional domains. However, individuals are assumed to have an innate disposition toward one pole of each dichotomy. The goal of MBTI assessment is to accurately identify preferences by sorting respondents into the categories (preferred poles) to which they are already disposed. 

Here I shall explain each dichotomy in more details

Sensing and Intuition - opposite functions of perception
Sensing perception uses the five senses to become aware of facts and details occurring in the present. When Sensing perception is being used, regardless of whether or not the person prefers Sensing, the perceiver is using the evidence of the senses, focusing on concrete reality and the gathering of facts and details. The emphasis is on what is known and can be verified. With little conscious effort, a person who prefers Sensing has a memory that is specific, detailed, literal and complete. Sensing is a process that avoids inferences and conjecture and prefers instead to make decisions based on verifiable facts. 

Intuitive perception, on the other hand, looks at patterns, meanings, and future possibilities that are believed to be implicit in current reality.  When intuition is being used the perceiver focuses on concepts, ideas and theories, inferring connections among diverse pieces of information. With little conscious effort, a person who prefers intuitive perception moves quickly and easily from what is present in the here and now to what is implied and possible in the future. Intuition is a process that is less experienced and interested in acquiring, remembering, and using facts for their own sake. People who prefer intuition can experience such a focus as inhibiting to their free flow of ideas and as a pointless distraction from what is important. 

Thinking and Feeling - opposite functions in judgment 
Thinking judgment applies specific criteria and principles in a linear, logical analysis of Sensing or Intuitive information. The goal is to arrive at the objective truth or a reasonable approximation of truth. When Thinking judgment is being used, the person making the judgment takes an objective and dispassionate approach to the available data. With little conscious effort, individuals who prefer Thinking can maintain an objective stance and personal distance by keeping issues of their own and other's personal values and well-being separate from their decision making. 

Feeling judgment applies specific, usually personally held values to assess the relative importance of the Sensing or Intuitive information available. When Feeling judgment is being used, there is concern for the impacts and consequences of a decision on individuals or groups of people. The goal of a Feeling decision is to maximise harmony and well-being for people and situations. Without conscious effort, people who prefer Feeling takes into account their own and other's feelings, values, and welfare. Although people who prefer Feeling can readily recognise logical principles and objective criteria for decision making, they avoid using such criteria if harm and disharmony will result from it. 

N.B: The thinking and Feeling dichotomy does not indicate one's intelligence, it simply points to the preferred domain in making judgments to a given set of circumstances. 

Extraversion and Introversion: Opposite attitudes of energy
Extraversion as an attitude directs psychic energy to and receives energy from the outer world of people, things, and action. When in the Extraverted attitude, a person interacts with the environment, receives energy through actively engaging with people and activities, and takes a trial and error approach to acquiring new experiences and skills. People who prefer Extraversion tend to think most effectively when interacting with and talking to others and it takes little conscious effort for them to approach others and explore the outer world. Without conscious effort, it is hard for them to think only internally, since they often become aware of what they are thinking only when they are verbalising. 

Introversion as an attitude directs psychic energy to the inner world of ideas, reflection, and internal experiences and is energised by operating in that realm. When in the Introverted attitude, a person spends time reflecting on and reviewing ideas and experiences, and observes and thinks about whether or not to interact with new people or try new outside activities. People who prefer Introversion tend to think internally before expressing their thoughts to others. It takes little conscious effort to keep what they are thinking to themselves. Without conscious effort, it is uncomfortable and difficult for them to express their thoughts without first reflecting them. 

Judging and Perceiving: opposite attitudes toward the outside world
A Judging attitude involves the habitual use of one of the judging functions, Thinking or Feeling, when interacting with the outer world. When a Judging attitude is being used, there is a desire to reach a conclusion (use Judgment) and make a decision as quickly and efficiently as possible. Without conscious effort, individuals who prefer a Judging attitude are organised, structured, effectively worked within schedules, and begin tasks sufficiently early so that deadlines can be comfortably met. 

A Perceiving attitude involves the habitual use of one of the perceiving functions, Sensing or Intuition, when interacting with the outside world. When a Perceiving attitude is being used, there is a desire to collect as much information (i.e. Perceive) as possible before coming to a conclusion. Without conscious effort, a person who prefers a Perceiving attitude is flexible, adaptable, and spontaneous when operating in the outside world, works comfortably and effectively when there is pressure of an imminent deadline, and welcomes interruptions and diversions because they stimulate new energy and may provide additional useful information.

Dynamism of personality type
Personality type is the result of the interplay of a person's four preferences, represented by one pole of each dichotomy. This interplay is of a dynamic and interactive nature rather than a static or additive one: The whole type is hypothesised to be greater than the sum of the four preferences it encompasses. It is assumed and verified under numerous clinical conditions, that every individual has access to all eight preference poles. The underlying rationale for this assumption is that each of these functions and attitudes is necessary for psychological adaptation and therefore is present in every person's psychological makeup. However, each is likely to be used with greater or lesser comfort and facility by an individual, depending on its dynamic status within his or her type. 

Dynamic status is represented in the Jung/Myers theory as the likely use and development of the system's four function, or processes (Sensing, Intuition, Thinking, Feeling) which may be dominant (most used, capable of development, and under conscious control), auxiliary (second in use, development, and consciously accessible), tertiary (third in use and development, and relatively unconscious) and finally inferior (least used and developed, and primarily unconscious). 

The theory also specifies that the auxiliary function must be the "other kind" of mental function to that of the dominant; that is, if the dominant function is one of the perceiving functions (Sensing or Intuition), then the auxiliary function must be one of the judging functions (Thinking or Feeling) and vice and versa. 

By conceptualising the psyche in this way, an individual has reasonable conscious access to one kind of perception and one kind of judgment so that two critical human endeavours can be directed and controlled. Furthermore, both Jung and Myers specified that people who by nature prefer the Extraverted attitude and are more comfortable in that attitude tend to use their dominant, most consciously accessible function when extraverting; people o by nature prefer Introverted attitude and are most comfortable in that attitude, tend to use their dominant, most consciously accessible function when introverting. 

How does this tie in with outdoor education?
The essence of outdoor education is a journey of self discovery, it is an opportunity for participants to work outside their comfort zone, achieving tasks that require team efforts. The psychometric tool  serves three purposes in our pilot research program:

1. As back end information to organise teams, ensuring that people of different personality dispositions are put together in one team. It takes such a step for participants to realise and appreciate the various different ways of thinking and tackling a problem.

2.  As a tool for self reflection employed during nightly sharing sessions. All facilitators will be familiarise with the theory and will raise issues concerning each person's disposition in a group discussion setting. 

3. It helps instructors to understand the natural disposition of each of his students, which will enable the instructor to better assess each individual based on his idiosyncrasies and mode of relating to this world. An instructor could then adapt his strategy in helping the given participant realise his strengths and weaknesses. It provides a valuable framework of reference. 

Multiple intelligence

Personality types may give us a reasonable picture regarding a person's way of relating to this world. But it does not speak of the potency or potential of one's cognitive abilities. In our quest to create an individualised profile of each participant, We shall also employ the multiple intelligence theory.

Multiple Intelligences is a theory put forward by Howard Gardener, a professor in Harvard Graduate school of Education. It is gaining a lot of traction within the circle of education practitioners. Defining intelligence as a computational capacity, Dr. Gardener put forward the following eight types of intelligences:

- Logical Mathematical intelligence

- Linguistic intelligence

- Spatial intelligence

- Interpersonal intelligence

- Interpersonal intelligence

- Musical intelligence

- Emotional intelligence

- Body Kinaesthetic intelligence

- Emotional intelligence

In profiling these intelligences, Howard Gardener have noticed an intriguing contrast: the contrast between "laser" and "searchlight" intellectual profiles. Individuals with laser profiles, have a sharp spike in their profile. The spike is likely to involve one or two intelligences. For ex, Mozart had a laser profile emphasising musical intelligence; Einstein had a laser profile with spikes in logical-mathematical and spatial intelligences. Individuals with laser profiles draw heavily on a single or a pair of intelligences, usually choose to work in a domain in which the strong intelligences are privileged, and generally spend decades probing ever more deeply into the relevant domains. 

The searchlight profile, by contrast, is characteristic of individuals who have roughly equivalent strengths in three of more spheres but do not exhibit a single, markedly pronounced intellectual strength. Whilst the laser profile is found chiefly among artists, scientists, scholars and inventors, the searchlight profile is common among people involved in politics and business. A person with a searchlight profile is expected to have a wide radar screen, to monitor it regularly, and to make sure that nothing vital is completely missed. 

It is crucially important for adolescence between the ages of 15-18 to understand their natural disposition, potential and inclination. The creation of an intelligence profile will help them gauge what best career path to take for themselves, what course to take in university and how best to harness their natural abilities and enhance their weak points.

Furthermore according to the theory of successful intelligence (Sternberg, 1997), people achieve success by recognising and capitalising on their strengths, and at the same time recognising and taking measures in correcting or compensating for their weaknesses. In other words, there is no small and delimited set of abilities (e.g., general intelligence in Spearman’s [1904] theory or eight multiple intelligences in Gardner’s [1983, 1999] theory) that can adequately predict who will be successful and who will not be. People find their own, idiographic patterns of strengths and weaknesses, and develop patterns of capitalisation, correction, and compensation that enable them either to achieve their goals or not.

This goes back to the overarching idea that outdoor education is a journey of self discovery.  Our program provides a unique platform for our participants to  realise their relatively strengths and weaknesses which will be brought up in sharing sessions and how we organise team dynamics. 

It is maintained by practitioners of the theory that the most effective teams were those whose members’ cognitive mode preferences together encompassed all eight modes. Constructing such teams therefore required knowing the favoured modes for every student.  We will organise the 20 students into teams of 5, each with 4 participants with preferences in different modes. Furthermore we will change leadership roles day by day depending on the task assigned. 

The basis of such an arrangement is based on the postulation by Sternberg & Determane that intelligence as traditionally defined refers to adaptation to the environment (see e.g., Sternberg & Detterman, 1986). In addition, successful intelligence involves not just adaptation to environments, but a balance among adaptation to environments, shaping of environments, and selection of environments. In particular, adaptation involves changing oneself to suit the environment; shaping involves changing the environment (including people in it) to suit oneself; and selection involves finding a new environment. Leadership is largely a shaping function, although inevitably it involves compromises calling for a balance of adaptation with shaping. Thus, while conventional intelligence emphasises adaptation, successful intelligence as applied to leadership emphasises shaping. 

Moreover, in an increasingly globalised environment, the role of leadership is ever changing. In order to succeed, a leader must possess other tools such as social and emotional intelligence, and be well equipped working under stressful conditions. Bernard M. Bass, distinguished professor emeritus in the School of Management at Binghamton University, explores how three types of intelligence—cognitive intelligence, social intelligence, and emotional intelligence—contribute to transformational leadership. Bass’s thesis is that truly exceptional leaders, those we call “transformational,’’ must possess multiple types of intelligence. Social and emotional intelligence are particularly important because these contribute to the transformational leader’s ability to inspire and build relationships with followers.

During the expedition, in an unfamiliar environment, students are made to work on the edge of their comfort zone. In such an environment, one must adapt themselves and exhibit high levels of social and emotional intelligence to drive their team in achieving  given tasks. It is submitted that no other avenue provides the same opportunities for students at such an age to understand the intricacies of leadership. That coupled with a better understanding of their potentials provides an unparalleled opportunity for self growth.

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