
We recently had a school at one of our sites who had to bring some classroom work with them because there were some assessment deadlines they couldn’t shift for camp. They didn’t like doing it – the preference of many schools is to make camp a time away from the pressures of the classroom. That doesn’t mean however that schools, students and parents shouldn’t expect learning and educational outcomes from their Queensland school camp experience.
A quality school camp should be what psychologists call a “liminal” experience. A liminal space is a place of transition, waiting, and growth. Liminality happens when you get removed from your everyday environment into a place of experience, learning and relational memory.
When booking a camp it is important to understand the subtle distinctions operators make between their programs. Calling a camping program a “recreational” or “adventure” package means it’s probably a very different experience to an Outdoor Education program. There’s not anything wrong with any of these options, but it matters when you book to know that they have a different focus and outcomes.