My Experience and Understanding of Adventure-Based Counselling Essay

According to Neill (2004), ‘Adventure therapy is the use of adventure-based activities and/or adventure-based theory to provide individuals with emotional and behavioral problems with experiences which will lead to great change in their lives. ‘ Adventure therapy is also “programming aimed at changing [specified] unable to start behavior habits, using excitement experiences since forms of habilitation and rehabilitation” (Priest & Grass, 2005). The fundamental philosophy of adventure-based guidance (ABC) can be experiential education and it stresses on one’s personal improvement through full worth contract, excitement wave and challenge by choice (Schoel, Prouty & Radcliffe, 1988). After several lectures, diverse skills had been explained and even applied on yourself.

In this article, these hypotheses and encounter will be discussed. Adventure-based guidance is area of the means of experiential learning. Educational psychologists usually define learning as “a change in the person caused by experience” (Slavin, 1986, p. 104). Through various experiences, persons can learn from them and gain personal growth. Kolb (1984) recommended an experiential learning routine, pointing out four essential elements of experiential learning, which are experience, review, bottom line and preparing.

Applying to Adventure-based counseling, knowledge means a few challenging actions for organizations or people. Review means encouraging visitors to reflect, identify, communicate and learn from the experience. Conclusion means concluding previous and present experiences and planning means applying fresh learning in the foreseeable future. There are several learning theories detailing how experience can lead to learning, which means behavioral changes or perhaps cognitive improvements.

Operant fitness proposed simply by Skinner declares that success, praise, positive feedbacks or rewards can easily act as positive reinforcers in order that the subjects can be reinforced to act the same way again. Similarly, failures, punishments or bad comments might act as bad reinforcers which will deter the topics to act once again (Skinner, 1968). In adventure-based counseling, participants would face some difficulties and work. Some activities would cause positive results, which would further reinforce participants to act in the same manner when they encounter similar circumstances again.

Several actions bring about negative effects, which make all of them aware and change their behaviours next time. This is applied likewise to changing of individuality and problem-solving skills. Unfavorable personalities will be discouraged by failures or perhaps negative feedback while attractive personalities will be reinforced. Bandura suggested cultural learning theory that people may learn through observational learning and modeling (Bandura, 1986).

Through observational learning, people would replicate others’ behaviors and learn via others’ success or failures. In adventure-based counseling, once participants deal with the challenges individually, they can imitate that which participants do, or consider others’ success and failures in dealing with the challenges while example. So when they encounter the problems, participants could improve along the sequence.

Once encountering group challenges, participants would replicate the socially desirable actions of their group mates or remind themselves not to respond socially disagreeably after observing their group mates’ failures. This can boost participants’ social skills. In cognitive aspect, James Coleman (1977) distinguishes between the info assimilation procedure for the regular classroom and the experiential learning method. In traditional classrooms, know-how is trained to learners through direct instruction and they simply memorize the knowledge.

Through information assimilation, the scholars are expected to advance from cognitive and symbol-processing sphere for the sphere of action through applying the typical principles learned into book situations. Experiential learning is in a turned order, that involves actions sufficiently repeated that the learner can generalize in the experience. However , it is even more etched into the brain since the learning could be associated with concrete actions and events, not simply abstract emblems or basic principles (Mllre, & Priest, 1990).

There are several important rules of adventure-based counseling, particularly “Full Value Contract” and “Challenge by Choice” (Schoel, Prouty & Radcliffe, 1988). “Full Value Contract” means an agreement between group people to benefit one’s own ideas and needs without overlooking or discounting others. “Challenge by Choice” means ‘individuals can choose their very own level of engagement in any activity. ‘ (Neill, 2007) During our lectures, our lecturer Lau Sir has discussed different hypotheses by concerning us to try out games. Following playing games, Lau Sir will explain the way the games worked, the meaning of numerous procedures, and what do we learn through them. Inside the first lecture, a game ‘throwing the chicken’ was played.

It is an ice-breaking game, aim at knowing the titles of group members. Even though it is a very convenient game, they have lots of micro-skills included. At the beginning, Lau Friend has asked did any individual feel scared of the poultry, which could present his patient to the members, in order to build-up the relationship between the leader and the participants.

Following one round of the game, Lau Friend required the participants to repeat the process, good results . a more quickly speed, the participants will then maneuver their chair towards the center. This is applying indirect intervention method, supporting them to receive closer and involve even more into it, devoid of directly telling them to stay closer or perhaps involve even more. The different micro-skill ‘Challenge by Choice’ was as well frequently used during lectures. For example , the ‘throwing the chicken’ game inside the first spiel, the ‘trust ladder’ in the second spiel and different games during the immediately camp.

All these may only be just simply asking the individuals that whether they want to experience, but it was vital as it shows the respect for the participants. Having these skills were the best thing staying omitted, nevertheless without this, the counselling work may be affected or even have some negative effects. Although half of the lectures possess passed, there is one more High-event Challenge Day and several classes.

I am looking forward to find out more different skills in guidance and leading games. Reference List Bandura, A. (1986). Social foundations of thought and action: A social-cognitive theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Coleman, M. A. (1977). Differences between experiential and classroom learning. In M. T. Keeton (Ed. ), Experiential learning: Rationale characteristics, and evaluation, pp. 49-61. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Marketers.

Kolb, G. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience since the source of learning and development. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Area. Mllre, J. C. & Priest, T. (1990). Adventure education.

Condition College, DA: Adventure Posting. Neill, L. (2004). Excursion therapy definitions. Retrieved from http://www.wilderdom.com/adventuretherapy/adventuretherapydefinitions.html Neill, J. (2007). Adventure-based counseling (ABC).

Gathered from http://wilderdom.com/ABC/ Priest, H., & Gass, M. (2005). Effective management in adventure programming (2nd ed. ). Champaign, ARIANNE: Human Kinetics. Schoel, L., Prouty & Radeliffe, P. (1988). Islands of treatment.

A guide to experience based guidance. U. H. A: Job Adventure. Skinner, B. N. (1968). The technology of teaching. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. Slavin, L. E. (1986). Educational psychology: theory in practice. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

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