This quote was on the front cover of an Outdoor Education diary presented to us at the conclusion of our journey in Singapore by Susanna Ho and has provided the inspiration and direction for this blog post.
The Singapore culture lives in you….. A clip of photos from my outdoor experiences in both Singapore and Australia, highlighting the many similar beauties and potential for connections to be made with places at our doorstep.
Sitting in my study back here in Melbourne Australia, I realise how much I miss Singapore; the people, the culture, the natural wonders and of course those spectacular man made appearances. However I believe the Singaporean culture lives on in me and my work as an Outdoor Educator, whilst it also lives within the Australian culture. Martin & Ho (2009) state that Outdoor Education contributions need to be grounded over time through place and culture. The above photos highlight similarities whilst also contrasting many natural areas within both Singapore and Australia that I have visited, whilst also including historical and man made locations within the two countries. When the photos are put together, I have come to realise that although Australia is a much larger country we share similar values and amazing locations with the potential to increase the knowledge and value our citizen’s place on these places.
Within our crazy group of Fed Uni students I believe our perceptions and understandings of Outdoor Education have been increased after working closely with the crew at OutwardBound Singapore (OBS).
I feel the Singaporeans are working to make their natural beauties more accessible to their people. An example of this is the new proposed rail way that goes along the Green Corridor and straight through Central Catchment Reserve. After talking with a group of individuals at OBS, we have learnt that it will allow their people easy access to nature, however many of us believe this new railway may disconnect the people from nature due to the potential distribution of nature caused by building a new railway.
Often when we think of silence within a group, key words such as; awkwardness, stillness and uncertainty come to mind. But this silence can be so powerful in allowing others to process and put their thoughts into words. Facilitating my group through a debrief after walking the Green Corridor was a massive struggle of mine. I have always found leading my peers a challenge, as I tend to want to stay within the participant role, and share my ideas. Through reflection I have come to realise that I have taken away from my peers experience of learning through the debrief. Through research and processing the learning experience, I have identified two key aspects of using silence within questioning.
1. Two types of wait time.
There are two types of wait time when asking questions within debriefs. The first time is the gap between the leader asking a question and a student responding. The second wait time is the gap between the completion of a student answering a question and the teacher responding or talking again.
2. A teacher waits on average of one second for a student to respond to a question.
This is the time an average teacher waits, where as the opimal time to wait is six seconds for a response. Providing students time to collect their thoughts before responding, also ensures students do respond as many students will sit in silence if the teacher keeps talking and providing prompting questions, not allowing the students to delve into critical thinking.
I hope to carry these skills I have learnt here in Singapore, back home in Australia to practice within my debriefs, to allow my students learn from their experiences.
I fall down seven times, but stand up eight.….
I have chosen a selection of photos that I feel highlight the contrasts between these two natural environments of the Super Trees and Central Catchment Reserve. The Super Trees are a self sufficient tourist spectacular demonstrating sustainable human made initiatives; whilst the Central Catchment Reserve is a natural wonderland that contains human made features to create accessibility and decrease impact.
Although both natural environments are very different, they allow individuals to connect to nature on different levels through different mediums.
