Adventure learning as a curricular approach that transcends geographies and connects people to place

Abstract

Effectively communicating scientific research has taken on greater importance as climate change impacts the world we live in. It is increasingly incumbent upon the science and education communities to produce and deliver curriculum that is timely, accessible, and scientifically accurate. In the summer of 2012, scientists and educators worked together to develop and conduct the Adventure Learning @ Greenland (AL@GL) project, which explored the capacity of hands-on and web-based climate science education experiences that occurred in Greenland and the US. The Adventure Learning approach and associated framework was used to design the learning experience during AL@GL activities. Participating students were from Greenland, Denmark, and the US; these students included participants who were diverse, rural, and traditionally underrepresented. Participating students worked closely with educators and scientists to learn about an atmospheric observatory at Summit Station, located on the Greenland Ice Sheet. The purpose of this article is to inform readers in how they may use Adventure Learning and the newly developed curriculum model called Content, Transition, Inquiry, and Synthesis for the education and outreach of research projects.