Summary: Lena Dahl HiSF/NiH
Outdoor education have through reform -94 and L-97 and through “Kunnskapsløftet” been
implemented strongly as a subject in the school system of Norway. There has especially been a focus
on safety in the outdoor education in secondary school, through the subject of “aktivitetslære”,
where the youth have to “plan, conduct and consider safe trips in the outdoors” (Udir 2013). At the
same time we see some tendencies towards increased competition between schools, together with
increased use of more risk based activities in the schools. This can challenge the teachers’ everyday
life through use of resources, skills and competence. A smaller research project of outdoor teaching
in secondary school showing that there are big safety issues in schools (Nastad 2000), and that the
frequencies of near misses and accidents in outdoor education are high. In an international
perspective safety issues in a school perspective have long been focused (Boyes and O´Hare 2011;
Brown 2006), but this is not the fact in Norway where little attention has been paid to research
projects on these issues.
Research questions: In this context it will be important to seek information about how many
accidents and near misses that actually happen in secondary school at physical education subjects
today. At the same time, it is central to investigate how the teachers relate to safety and risk issues in
their teaching of outdoor education. What kind of organizational frames, what knowledge, attitudes
and norms the teachers are being influenced by in their teaching of outdoor education are important
questions as well. The safety culture between leaders and teachers is also an interesting
perspectives.
The main issue is then: “How are knowledge, attitudes and norms related to safety and risk issues
being expressed in the outdoor education among teachers and leaders on 3. grade physical
education subjects in secondary school.
Methods: It is planned to make 4 sub studies which will end up in 4 articles. Study no.1 will be a
quantitative mapping study of the whole range of teachers teaching outdoor education at physical
education research in secondary school (106 schools). The main issue will be: “In which settings and
in which ways do near misses and accidents happen in outdoor education in secondary school in
physical education subjects? From the relevant findings in study 1 4 secondary schools will be
chosen. Those will be used in the 3 following sub studies: Study no. 2 will be a qualitative in-depth
interview of teachers in secondary school. The main issue will be: “How is the safety issue prioritized
in the teaching of outdoor education at secondary school on “idrettsfag”? Study no. 3 will be 4
qualitative focus group interviews at the 4 schools. The main issue will be: “How is the general safety
culture at these 4 schools perceived by the teachers? What challenges do the teachers experience in
the field between their own teaching and safety issues, and the leadership and school organizations
safety culture”? Study no. 4 will be a qualitative in-depth interview of leaders at the 4 schools
responsible for the teachers on physical education subjects. The main issue will be: “How is the
school’s safety culture connected to the school’s outdoor education being expressed by the leader’s
organizational constraints and priority of resources in the school?”
Theory: Due to the PhD project’s interdisciplinary profile the theory will be based broadly. A
theoretical comparative framework through the works of Brooke’s (2007) similar studies in Australia
will together with Reason (1997) and Haddock (1999) pose for study no. 1. In study no. 2, 3 and 4 the
theories to Grimen (2008) and Illeris (2008) will be the central. But also Kvale (2010), Reason (1997)
and Schön (1997) will through their organizational theoretical focus be important interdisciplinary
theoretical foundations for the project.