Presented By: Carolyn Copenheaver, Virginia Tech
Co-Authors: Nicholas Fuhrman, University of Georgia
John Peterson, Virginia Tech

In June 2023, a forestry camp intended to provide campers with job skills and increase their knowledge about forests was held for campers with special needs. What made the camp especially unique was that counselors also had special needs. The objective of this study was to examine the experiences of the camp directors and camp counselors. The camp was preceded by eight months of planning by the camp directors and a four-day training for the camp counselors to prepare them to help teach campers about forestry. The five-day forestry camp included tree identification, meeting and learning about different animals, working with plants and freshwater macroinvertebrates, visits with practicing forestry professionals, and field trips to a greenhouse, deer research facility, horticultural research facility, and Christmas tree farm. Camp counselors participated in a post-campus focus group and the camp directors reflected on the experience by journaling in response to several question prompts. The camp counselors reported that they gained confidence in their ability to be flexible with last-minute changes in the planned agenda and highly valued the experience of working as a member of a team to accomplish a large, complex task. The camp directors reported a high level of personal satisfaction with working on a team with individuals with special needs and found that the counselors were skilled at gently guiding the campers towards a successful camp experience, e.g., “She [the camp counselor] was far braver than I was at directly confronting and correcting poor behavior.” Considering the age levels of campers with special needs was found to be important when providing outdoor learning experiences with maximum impact. Overall, the forestry camp was an outstanding opportunity for a diverse team to create a successful educational experience for campers and counselors with special needs.

Presented By: Emma Steely, Pennsylvania State University
Co-Authors: Michael Mashtare, Pennsylvania State University

This study explores the impact of several community building approaches in the classroom, including (1) nameplates (featuring preferred name, pronouns, and hobbies), (2) trivia-questions generated from student icebreaker responses to segment lectures, (3) team-building exercises (e.g., games, solving puzzles), and (4) a class GroupMe. The first 2 approaches were used in 3 undergraduate courses in fall 2023: Soil and Water Management, Land Application of Waste, and Technical Communications. The third approach was used in the communications course, while the last approach was used in the Soil and Water Management course. End-of-semester anonymous surveys using a 6-point Likert scale and open-ended questions were used to assess student perceptions on classroom community and instructor approachability. Means for Likert scale responses (MR) were calculated on a scale of zero (strongly disagree) to five (strongly agree) to approximate strength of response with MR >2.5 suggesting agreement and MR < 2.5 suggesting disagreement. Responses, where applicable, are aggregated and while some variability was observed, trends were similar across all 3 courses. Of those responding about the first 2 approaches (n=88, 89% across 3 classes), students reported that the name tags helped them learn the names and interests of their classmates (86.4%, MR=3.47) while fostering community and a more collaborative environment (84.1%, MR=3.49). Students felt that the icebreaker and related trivia helped them connect and learn more about their classmates (93.3%, MR=3.91) and kept them motivated and engaged during class (95.5%, MR=4.34). Where deployed, students reported the team-building exercises was effective in helping build community (n=24, 95.8%, MR=4.38). The class GroupMe was also seen as being effective in fostering peer connections (n=37, 83.8%, MR=3.49). By understanding the impact of these approaches, instructors can strengthen classroom connections and ultimately improve the overall educational experience for students in diverse academic settings.