research questions, Fall, 2002

Drawing on narrative inquiry and working under modernist assumptions about the self, knowledge and power, I began my doctoral studies in the fall of 2002, asking:

•  What does it mean to be a teacher of an intensive interdisciplinary outdoor/environmental education program? What do these teachers do? What is it like? What are the joys, frustrations etc. in teaching such a program?

•  Why do teachers of integrated programs choose to teach the way they do? What are their motivations, beliefs, values and goals, their philosophies about teaching and learning, their relationships to the environment, etc.?

•  How did they get there? What were the historical influences in their lives, including experiences, people, education and socio-cultural contexts that led them to develop and teach an integrated program?

These questions continued to evolve as my study progressed.