The impact of an experiential/adventure intervention on male adolescents with special needs

Abstract

The number of special needs, high school age students who stay in school and graduate is low and needs attention. Further, it is unclear what the impact of the No Child Left Behind policy will ultimately have on vulnerable groups such as students identified with special needs. For approximately 30 years, the "I" Team programs of the Cherry Creek School District have supported students with special needs. The "I" Teams have as goals for each attending student, personal growth and academic achievement. This study examined the impact of an experiential/adventure intervention on male students with special needs. The adventure intervention process stage took the form of a 5-day hiking and camping trip to the mid-eastern, high desert region of Utah in March 2005 and all pre-adventure staging activities. This study examined the impact of an adventure education intervention on attendance, academic achievement, and self-efficacy behaviors and perceptions of male high school students (ages 16-21). The study approach was a nonequivalent comparison group, quasi-experimental, pretest, posttest 1, and posttest 2 design of moderate strength. The gain score approach was utilized for primary data analysis and independent r-tests were implemented. Students who participated in the entire intervention process were found to have higher levels of general self-efficacy (GSE) and social self-efficacy (SSE) perceptions than their control group counterparts. Additionally, adventure group students had improved academic achievement and significantly fewer absences than the no adventure comparison group. Self-efficacy data collected by staff in the field supported the quantitative findings regarding students' self-efficacy perceptions; on average, 9 out of every 10 students were observed performing at high levels on the self-efficacy checklist through the accomplishment of related tasks and behaviors. Ultimately, this study strengthened service provision to male students identified with special needs while also making an important contribution to research knowledge regarding experiential/adventure education. Specifically, the examination of adventure education processes via a valid and reliable study methodology produced evidence based data supporting a previously suspect intervention strategy.