Can A New Models-Based Approach to Adventure Education Promote Affective Learning Through the PE Curriculum?

French, Graham (2025) Can A New Models-Based Approach to Adventure Education Promote Affective Learning Through the PE Curriculum? Doctoral thesis, University of Wales Trinity Saint David.

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Abstract

This study investigated how a pedagogical model for adventure education (AE) could be refined, implemented, and evaluated. Building on Williams and Wainwright’s (2015) advocacy for, and design of, a pedagogical model for AE within physical education, the research explored these ideas in the context of secondary education in Wales, a nation with devolved education policy and curriculum. In examining the rationale for the proposed model, the study identified epistemological inconsistencies between the cognitively focused, outcome-driven education system (in Wales and beyond) and the affective, blended traditions of formal and informal learning expressed in the curriculum as ‘Outdoor and adventurous activities’. Literature synthesis revealed a fundamental challenge to how knowledge is valued in modern education, with emphasis heavily skewed toward the cognitive domain (Bloom et al., 1956) at the expense of the affective. The study highlighted parallels between the affective learning often associated with AE (e.g. Mortlock, 1984; Nicol, 2003; Takano, 2010) and the aims of personal and social education (PSE). A gap in teachers’ pedagogical knowledge was identified: while responsible for delivering both PSE and AE, often within PE, many lacked an understanding of how AE might promote affective learning (Backman, 2018). This raised the question of whether teachers using Williams and Wainwright’s model could influence young people’s affective learning and PSE outcomes. The model provided a structure for PE teachers familiar with models-based practice (Casey and Kirk, 2021) to address this gap through design principles or ‘non-negotiables’ (Metzler, 2011). Teachers’ understanding developed not through implementation alone, but through the process of lesson planning within the model, which foregrounded affective rather than psychomotor or cognitive goals. A close-to-practice action research design (Gray, 2014) aligned with the constructivist paradigm and involved four enquiry cycles. The first refined the model through interviews with heads of PE. The second piloted it with one teacher to test feasibility. The third extended implementation with the same teacher over time, using reflective diaries and interviews. The fourth rolled the model out across the department, with multiple teachers using reflective journals and pupil focus groups. While attainment data were inconclusive regarding cognitive or psychomotor outcomes, qualitative findings indicated that pupils and teachers developed deeper awareness of affective learning, and teachers’ reflections showed a growing appreciation of its value. The research concluded that minor modifications were needed to align the model’s non-negotiables with the practical and epistemological realities of PE. The refined model achieved high fidelity of implementation, strengthened through teachers’ iterative reflection, planning, and delivery. This process deepened teachers’ recognition of affective learning and its curricular relevance. Although student attainment impacts were inconclusive, the study suggests the need for alternative assessment approaches aligned with affective outcomes. Evidence also indicated an emergent shift in teachers’ epistemological perspectives as they engaged with the AE model and its affective focus.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	adventure education, physical education, models-based practice, affective learning
Subjects:	L Education > LB Theory and practice of education > LB1603 Secondary Education. High schools
Divisions:	Theses and Dissertations > Doctoral Theses
Depositing User:	Graham French
Date Deposited:	23 Oct 2025 14:32
Last Modified:	23 Oct 2025 14:32
URI:	https://repository.uwtsd.ac.uk/id/eprint/3949

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