1. Complete all blog/journal assignments you have been assigned throughout the semester.
2. Complete the student competency survey. As you complete this, please be aware that there are several competencies mentioned on the survey that you have not yet been exposed to, and therefore will probably not rank highly on (this is OK - complete the survey based upon what you know at this point in your education).
3. Critique the various guides, instructors, and facilitators you have worked with this past year. Focus on the following aspects, as well as others that you may think of. Use specific examples and situations to demonstrate your perspective, and offer suggestions on how you may have done differently. Be sure to include Teri Woodruff, Stephen Leavins (Katahdin), Tess & Steve Ftorek, Butch Harris (Schooner Captain), Rob Gordon, Jon Tierney, etc.
- Professionalism
Organization
Appearance
Teaching Style
Personality
Sense of Humor
Technical competence
Patience
Planning
Conflict resolution
Equipment used
Other
4. Comment on how you think you performed as a student leader this past year. Think about the concepts relative to leadership that were presented to you before the canoe trip last week, and identify at least one example of how you performed relative to:
- Planning and Preparation
- Equipment
- Food & Water
- Personal Preparation
- Navigation
- Promptness & Timeliness
- Group Management
- Communication
- Safety & Risk Management
- Leadership Style
- what worked
- what didn't work
- how you think the Adventure Rec program and WCCC could better serve your needs as a learner
I encourage you to compose your thoughts in a manner that is constructive and includes suggestions for improvement. I look forward to reading your posts. Have a great summer, and I look forward to seeing you in the fall.
Robin Brady
ReplyDeleteThis year has gone by very fast. I can’t believe that today is the last day and this is my final blog. It creeped up so fast. I enjoyed working with all my instructors that I have had over the past year. I loved working with Tess and Steve Ftorek. They taught me a lot in kayaking and tides. I feel like I had a great opportunity to be able to paddle with them. I really enjoyed our first day out on the water doing capsize drills and getting to know them. I wish the best for them. Working with John Tierney was interesting. I feel a learned a lot from him. Working with Butch Harris on the sai boat was nice for me because I have known him for years. I feel that they knew what they were best in very well. The ropes course was nice working with Teri. We learned how to trust each other as a group. They all had everything we needed and were willing to help us if we had any questions. I believe that I did well as a student this year, but it was hard for me once I got sick. I found it a really big struggle to come to class and want to study. I really struggled through Wilderness First Responder because I was very sick. I feel I would have done better if I had not have gotten sick this winter. I also think I would have done fine in Nautical Navigation if I had not heard bad news about my aunt getting breast cancer. That was constantly on my mind and I think that is why I did so poorly in that class. I loved Stephanie’s class. I learned a lot in her class. I never knew that there was so many different worms and species in the mud flats. I really liked learning about the different types of tree’s there are because I never knew. Her class was very helpful and I feel that there should be more classes like her’s.
I feel I worked well with groups. Our group works well together most of the time, but I do feel that we need to work together more when it comes time for packing for trips. We all needed to work together more. Group meals worked out good. I just don’t enjoy doing them because I think I am too independent for them. We did great when it came for time management. We were always getting up ready and packed up quickly in the morning. Overall, I feel as though I did well.
As I look back on my experiences this past year I feel I accomplished a lot. I learned that I like some things and don’t like others. Such as, sailing. I was scared to death of those little boats. I do think that if you fear something you should not have to do it. I fear those things. Its not that I didn’t want to do it , but I was scared to death. I tried at the end and sucked it up, but I feel as though I should have gotten a higher grade. I have enjoyed this class even though I might not have liked everything in it. I do think this program needs to consider girls on the trip more. For example, on our canoe trip, during the hydrology lesson, there was no place for a girl to get changed or go to the bathroom. I think that should be taken into consideration more. Getting out of a wet suit is hard when you are a girl and there is no where to change. I also think that we should not have paddeled at night during the thunder storm. That’s just my opinion because I am scared of lightening because my dad got electrocuted and I don’t like being anywhere near lightning.
Overall, I have had a good time getting to know every one. I will have done a lot of things I didn’t think I could do. I’m going to miss everyone and wish you guys the best of luck next year. Don’t forget me and let me know when the kayaking trip is so I can stop by. Robin
Dana Marble
ReplyDeleteThis year has been fast, fun, and a great learning experience. Everyone in the program has come away with knowledge, skills, an competance in some or all the areas covered, even those who didn't finish out the year.
Tess Florek started us out with the kayak class. It was a great confidence builder, and she was wonderful to work with. Each step from capsize-rescue, to the final kayak trip was well structured and a good learning experience. Anyone who takes a class from Tess will appreciate the time and effort that she obviously put into the program.
Then came the Field Biology class with Stephanie. There were a lot of areas covered and I can say that I learned a lot from all of them. I especially enjoyed the wild Edible Foods and learning to identify wild animals and amphibians by their tracks, skulls, and calls.
Then came the ropes course with Teri Woodruff. This was my least favorite. A lot of the course was in disrepair and it was a long drive.
Butch Harris and Rob Gordon were very competent at handling the boat and I believe had a very tight schedule. Since I had very little contact with them it's hard to evaluate them.
One of the most informative and useful training sessions we had was anchor building on Katadin. Steve was very instructive and had a very smooth teaching style. He held my interest mainly because we all became particpants in building and testing the anchors. It was a short couple of hours that imparted a great deal of knowledge.
Also when we arrived at Chimney Pond, the first day we held avalance training, this was one of my least favorite experiences. This was not John's fault at all, it was the cold. I fould it very difficult to concenctrate on the instruction when I was so cold and tired.
The Wilderness First Responder training was an altogether a different story. John is not only a very good instructor but also an impressive personality. I found the program difficult and demanding, as it is meant to be. There was a lot to learn in a very short time. I came away feeling that I had learned a lot and I just hope that if ever I am in a situation where someone needs medical help, I can use what I have learned compently.
Scott, I am not going to evulate you but I will say that you deserve high marks.
That leaves only one person left to evaluate and that is myself. I feel it is difficult to give myself an accurate evulation. After being away from a classroom for over 35 years it was a challenge to develop good study habits and become a student again. There was a lot of material covered over the year and I tried to stay on top of it. One of my greatest short commings was my lack of computer skills. I've learned a lot but there is still a lot for me to learn in this area. Some of the areas that I feel good about are things that have to do with our expeditions. For example the meals prepared on the canoe trips were far superior to what we had done before. So food prepartion and planning were defintely imporved upon. One of the more difficult things that I did was to belay down the Otter Bluffs. I knew that the anchors were safe and I trusted the person belaying me. Our training also helped, we checked each other and had a good knowledge of the knots and gear. So I believe Safety and Risk Management was a definate plus. Other areas that sood out were santitation, water purification, and how well our personal equipment performed.
There are some things that could be improved upon. The first thing that comes to mind is the travel that was required the first semester. It was a burden especially with the price of gas over four dollars a gallon. Another things is winter camping, a night or two would be good experience and help test our personal gear.
On the plus side I think that each expedition was instructive and for the most part well planned.
I hope everyone has a good summer and comes back this fall.
Samantha Sutton
ReplyDeleteI learned a lot this past year. Pretty much everything we did in Adventure Recreation and Tourism was all new to me. Guest instructors came in and taught many different things to us. In my opinion I learned the most from Jon Tierney, the Wilderness First Responder Instructor. I really liked his hands on method of teaching. We did scenarios that give us an idea what it would be like to really be a first responder. Also he has a lot of experience in wilderness medicine, which gives him an advantage of teaching things he is very familiar with. Although sometimes I wouldn’t be completely sure what he was asking us, which made it hard to answer sometimes. But it also really got us thinking. I felt that Jon was professional in his teaching. He took class time seriously, but he also was laid back and let us have some fun during class. I think he was as organized as he could be; he is a very busy person. One day he was late and a little unorganized, but it was because he had to drive an ambulance to Boston, and drive back to teach us without any sleep. And along with that his appearance wasn’t always professional. Like he wore the same clothes for most of the days, and didn’t always smell shower fresh, but that was because he was teaching us literally all day (WFR and the climbing class) then doing his other ambulance thing. So he really didn’t have the time. But overall I think that Jon Tierney is “the man”, he did walk down a mountain with a broken spine. I really enjoyed learning from him, and I think that you should always use him for a WFR instructor.
Then there is Tess and Steve, which are the best sea kayak instructors. Tess was one of those teachers that you feel actually cares about their students, which I feel is pretty rare. She told me that she was thinking of me while I was on Katahdin all cold with a bunch of guys. Tess is the type of teacher that you wouldn’t mind hanging out with outside of class. She had really well planed organized classes, where we started with the basics and worked our way to more technical stuff. The only equipment we really used was the sea kayaks, paddles, and paddle floats. She also had the tourism seminar class where guest speakers would come in every class to tell us about their experiences and things they have done, which gives us more ideas of jobs in this major, and we also got to learn a lot about tourism and different places and cultures.
Teri Woodruff was the ropes instructor, where we learned leadership and group management skills. We played games and learned how to facilitate games and activities to others. We also did some team building through the rope climbing and belaying. In this class we had fun while we were learning, and it was hands on learning. One day Robin, Rachel, and I had to facilitate a bunch of games for the pre kindergarten class, which was harder than I expected. Teri was very professional and organized during class. She also had really good control over our group, one day we weren’t “behaving” and she got pretty mad at us. So we pretty much did what she wanted from us. We used a lot of climbing equipment in this class, which was a good intro to someone who has never climbed anything other than a ladder.
Steven Leavins was the guide on Katahdin who taught us about building anchors, and assisted Jon Tierney with the beacon training. I really liked his personality. He just seemed really cool. I didn’t summit so I didn’t really get to know him as much as some others. But when it’s really cold out and hard to pay attention, he did a really good job holding my attention. From the short time I spent with him, he seemed to be professional and organized. The equipment we used was climbing gear to build anchors in the snow. Overall I think he was a good instructor, however I didn’t really get to know him all that well in the couple hour anchor building workshop.
Butch Harris and Rob Gordon are two schooner captains that we sailed on the Hailey and Mathew together. I knew these too the least probably because I was so sick on the sailing trip that I wasn’t the most social. But we learned how to sail and manage the hull. They seemed professional and organized for sailors. They kind of had to do there own thing, run the sail boat, so they didn’t really teach us that much. Buster taught us to splice a rope, Rob taught me to run the hull, and DJ taught me to beehive coil a rope. Other than that I was sick most of that trip.
This past year we have had many experiences where we each had to step up and take on a leadership position. Before we go on each expedition we had to do a lot of planning and preparation. Like we need to make out our meal plans. We also need to plan what were going to pack. And before Katahdin I went to the gym to get in shape to climb Mt. Katahdin. The equipment we used on each expedition would kind of go along with planning and preparation. Before we use equipment we learn how to use it. Like on the climbing trip we learned how to build anchors, but before that we needed to know how to use the equipment like the cams, hexes, and stoppers. Also before we go on trip we plan on bringing what equipment we will need, then we need to find out how to pack everything. Like on Katahdin we had to bring sleds just to get all the equipment we needed with us. Food and water I had kind of touched on. For water we need to decide if were going to bring water with us or if were around water we can just bring a filter and treat our water. And we do meal plans for our food. One the sailing and this past canoe trip we had to cook meals for everyone so we are getting to taking a leading role in preparing food for everyone else. Personal preparation is just getting yourself mentally and physically ready for the next expedition. Like for Katahdin I went to the gym to get into shape. And for the climbing trip we needed to learn knots and anchors, and you could also go to the rock wall to get practice in climbing. On the sailing and this past canoe trip we got to lead in navigating. On the sailing trip I got to manage the hull for a while. And this past trip I got to help lead the night paddle, but I couldn’t really see anything past a foot in front of me, so I guess I wasn’t doing too much. Promptness and timeliness I feel I have done fine in, like getting up at the right time and packing up our camp. Except for on Katahdin, one morning nobody woke up so I didn’t get to summit, but I was feeling like crap at that point so I really didn’t care too much about getting to summit. I feel that in ropes course we learned a lot in group management. Communication I think is very important in climbing. You need to have good communication with your be layer. Also on this last trip communication helped you and your partner paddle your canoe a lot more efficiently. Safety and risk management we learned a lot in Wilderness First Responder. We all had to demonstrate that we could take control of a situation in the safest way.
I think what really works is well… this whole program. We learn basics to pretty much everything that has to do with the out doors, and then we go out on an expedition which allows us to put everything we learned into real life situations. And personally I think that is the best way to learn. Also what really works is how well we all work together. We have a really good group, we all help each other out, and there aren’t really any arguments between any of us.
What hasn’t really worked this past year is the winter camping. And it’s not that it didn’t work, because it did. It’s just that I think it would be better to have a five day winter camping trip the first year to give you an idea what Katahdin would be like the next year. That way we would have a better idea what it would be like, so we could better prepare ourselves mentally and physically for the next year.
Other than what I just said above, I don’t really think I would change anything at all about the Adventure Recreation Program. I just think this program is perfect for someone who is sure they want to work in this industry, but if it isn’t the right fit for you, then it won’t work for you. So students really need to be sure that this program is good for them before they enter it. You also need to be pretty dedicated to it too. I found it kind of hard to work around my schools schedule. We have expeditions and lots of other activities we need to attend, so it takes up more of your time than an average Liberal Studies Program would.
Casey Ryder
ReplyDeleteLast Blog
5/13/09
Teri Woodruff was a good instructor. I have been using that type of equipment for years in camps and such and never new the names. She taught us to work as a team and I feel her teachings will come in use later on in life. She had a fun personality and good sense of humor I found Stephen from Katahdin to be a lot of fun. He taught in a very informative and universal way. I was also able to tell that he loved what he was doing and that inspires me and reassures me that I to can find my passion somewhere in life. Tess was awesome I had a lot of fun in her class and she proved to be a good mentor out of class. Her patient teaching methods really paid off and I was glad to have her as a teacher twice. Learning all I did and finding a liking in sailing was very rewarding for me. Rob and Butch had a lot to offer and I am glad to have had them involved with the sailing portion this year. They are both good resources later on in life if I am ever interested in sailing a vessel. And last and probably my favorite instructor was john Tierney. That guy was awesome and he really had a lot to offer. He was an inspiration to everyone I feel and really shows that one person can really do a lot. I hope to further my education with him later on in the future.
This past year I feel I proved to be a good student leader. In a couple occasions I have been able to pull everyone together in order to complete an objective. Especially in WFR training when we were required to take a leadership role I new what had to be done and I directed the group in an efficient way. On the trip I took a leadership role making the food for the group and navigating at night in the dark and pouring rain. I am also confident that when need be I can take that leadership role in a situation that calls for it and utilize the skills learned in this course.
I feel that overall these trips we have been taking all year have really had there impact on me and have taught me so much. Before this program I did a lot of things outdoor and thought I new a lot. But this course has shown me how much more there really is to something even as simple as camping. I feel that this is one of the goals of this program and to me that mean it has worked.
I really didn’t feel that any part of this program hasn’t worked and I have nothing to say for that. I enjoyed every part of this program and am glad to have been apart of it and am looking forward to coming back next year.
We got to see a lot of different personalities at work during our expeditions and classes. I have found that the majority of them have been somewhat laid back. Tess and Steve Ftorek were two easy going guides that made the trips and lessons very enjoyable while we learned. Stephen Leavins was an interesting person that taught us a lot about anchoring in snow and use of crampons and ice axes. He had a sort of enthusiasm similar to Tess and Steve. Butch also had a similarity to the guides I have just mentioned. I suppose his being laid back was because he didn’t have much to worry about, we just steered the boat in one direction. Who knows if we had intentionally decided to throw us off course 90 degrees we might have seen the ugly side of butch, but otherwise he seemed almost indifferent to our presence. Butch was a likeable guy, but I don’t really remember much about Rob Gordon. Jon Tierney is an individual, kind of on the fly, a little scatterbrained but not in a manic kind of way. It’s hard to know what he is really getting at with his questioning. Kind of lead us down a dark and foggy path, not telling us where we would end up. It was difficult but may have taught us better than a traditional WFR course. He was also a great resource for climbing information. Terri Woodruff was not as laid back but was not a difficult person to get along with; we did manage to get on Terri’s bad side. I think there was a high level of professionalism in all of our guides, people got the job done and they got to where they needed to be on time or early. Most of them had a sense of humor, and for the most patience, which sort of gets at that being laid back sort of attitude. But they were all competent in each of their fields they were informative and they definitely knew their stuff. Teaching styles varied greatly, paperwork was not always practical or necessary, so we would learn kinesthetically, and hopefully visually, and verbally. Some tried all and all tried some. I can only think of Terri when I think of conflict resolution, I don’t think there was a whole lot of conflict otherwise. I think there needed to be some conflict resolution in that case, but there aren’t too many instances of problems that really stick out.
ReplyDeleteAs a student leader I think the role is something to be practiced and critiqued each time. There are always things that can be done better. I feel that planning and preparation was starting to become second nature. Cooking for groups was not new, but is still something that I need practice at. Judging portions and time for preparation were difficult. We brought a lot of equipment, which was something that I normally would not do, maybe I think more like a minimalist, but it was nice having a lantern, and a propane set of burners for easier cooking. Food was somewhat inconsistent across the groups, my groups meals were not as satiating as others, could have used more variety within each meal. The filtered water we got from Rock Lake, Mud landing, was delicious and had a sort of amber hue to it. I can’t complain, I liked it and it tasted great with Tang mix. I personally felt like I was ready for whatever during the trip, but think that I could have gotten some more water gear. Like a splash top or an extra wet suit shirt to go over the farmer johns. Navigation came in handy considering we had never been to any of the sites. A few times I remember we were able to figure out our location using the map and compass, and use a safety bearing to make sure we navigated to the right location. Group management can be a tricky thing and I feel that our group worked well with this set-up. Maybe that made the student leadership experiences a whole lot easier to do. Communication had to be clear, and needed to be heard by everyone. We needed to make sure that everyone knew what we were going to be doing and if everyone was going to be okay with that. This included the inherent risk associated with any of our decisions. Risk management was okay for the most part, but there is always room for improvement. It didn’t seem necessary to have people with throw bags through crooked pitch, but I think from a risk management standpoint wasn’t a bad idea when dealing with a somewhat inexperienced group. I don’t know if I have really developed a leadership style personally. I feel that the group should definitely be in the know, and have an input in the decisions. But I also think the whip needs to be cracked every once in a while just to keep things moving, there should be some form of motivation.
What worked and what didn’t work, well for the most part the planning of these expeditions worked pretty well. And the weather worked out fairly well for the most part, nothing epic. I think one of the things that have not worked out well with this group, is pacing. We all move at different paces but really need to consider the group as a whole and try to act accordingly. We tried different methods to accomplish the goal but always there were some that just went ahead. Maybe some us were just more fit or just more masochistic, but the more physically trying the activity the more the separation. Having grown up in western civilization and maybe just America there is more of an individual mindset. It is almost expected, but these activities that we are doing are the opposite, we need to remember that we are part of something that is stronger than any one individual. This group mindset is more common in eastern civilization, though I don’t know if they perform any better in these circumstances. I think this program introduces a wealth of technical information in a number of different disciplines. It is a good set up for teaching people to work in an industry with a multitude of facets requiring some similar and many different skills. Thankfully, I am going to be able to get some more practice at leadership this summer and get paid to do it. It’s been a great year, looking forward to the fall already.
Travis Peters
ReplyDeleteWell I just wanted to say to everyone thanks for the wonderful year I have come to think of everyone in this program part of family in a way I mean we have learn so much about one another we know each other’s likes and dislikes it’s pretty amazing on all the stuff that we have done together in the past year we had to step up and put our life’s on the line one could say because we have all had to take leadership roles one way or another we have all had to do things we didn’t really want to do some more than others we started out the year with eleven people we lost Gary more at the beginning of the year soon followed by Chanise, Rachel and Brad they were all part of the group and they each had something to give it kind of screw up the group to lose those guys we had gotten to be good friends we still talk about how we wish they were still in the group. Then we got Joe who joined the group late but was easily accepted into the group. It was all ways fun in class there wasn’t that many dull moments every day was an exciting day sea kayaking was fun and I learned so much between Tess and Steve they were great teachers they were professional with a sense of humor they kept the learning exciting and fun Tess didn’t sit us down and go over each and every stroke she got us out on the water and showed us and let us test them out it was fun. Teri had a very good teaching style as well she has worked with enough kids at the ropes course to know that we all get antsy and that we have to get out and do things. I’m sorry that I don’t have that much to say about Butch but we did get to talk all that much we were only on the boat for 46 hours and I was all ways busy doing something else I got to talk to Rob quite a bit he was pretty helpful with any questions I had but Buster was very helpful he taught us a few very interesting things in the knot lessons he was also very outgoing and was always asking if we had any questions that he could help me with. With Stephen it was pretty cool he made get our minds of the cold which was something that was pretty hard for us to do by getting us right into building anchors it was fun he put us all to the test we got to use the ice axes that we were all dying to use all weekend he had a sense of humor to he tried to keep us from thinking about the cold by making jokes especially by saying lines from the movie Supper Troopers come on meow it was very funny. With Jon it was very difficult working with him because I have never worked with someone that type of teaching style he seemed to me that he knew what he was doing and that he thought that teaching style was the only way but a lot of things had to keep getting explained a different way but all in all I think that all of the teachers did good in teaching us they were all professional and patient with us all.
I think that I preformed well as a student leader this year in our trips I was up for any challenge I have learned a lot since the beginning of the year I am now able to pack all the things that I personally need one bag I feel confident in planning a trip for myself in the future and being able to have everything that I need and have no problems. I did a good job by getting things done in a timely manner with good communication to my fellow peers. I take safety and risk management very highly I think it’s key and that its very important to the people to remain safe but at the same time have fun doing what they went there do to. I have had fun in planning meals for the group my baked tacos was a big hit everyone loved them my pasta was all rite I know now that there was a little too much meat in it for every ones liking but I get the concept now on food preparation
I think this year went very well on everything that we did I wish that there was something added to the program that if you had to miss a trip for any reason there was an alternative already in plan I know that when I missed the A.T. trip it was difficult finding an alternative for me to do but I had a problem forcing me to miss the trip which was a bummer because I wish I could have that down as an accomplishment as well as getting the experience from the trip. But besides that everything else is fine