introduction to the 2008 nols leadership educator notebook

LEADERSHIP EDUCATION AT NOLSHISTORICAL BACKGROUNDPaul Petzoldt, founder of the National Outdoor LeadershipSchool (NOLS), recognized that the wilderness itself teaches leadership.Petzoldt saw that in the wild, people learn to master whatthings they can control, and they learn to live in rhythm with thethings they cannot.Petzoldt passionately believed that NOLS must teach leadershipusing real experiences. Upon starting the school he said, “We haveto have something that is real: like climbing mountains, like fordingwild rivers, like exploring wild country, like facing the storms, likesurviving in the wilderness.” With clear and tangible course goals,instructors create these real experiences that are the foundation ofNOLS’ leadership education.Natural ConsequencesIn the wilderness, physical feedback from decisions or actions isoften immediate, sometimes raw, and usually quite accurate. Sometimesfeedback takes the form of an uncomfortable night becausestudents didn’t look after their equipment in the rain. Sometimesit’s a feeling of uncommon unity after they work together to travelthrough thigh-deep snow.Experience alone, however, does not evoke better leadership. Petzoldtsaid, “All my life I have had to fight against the myth, the oldwives tale, that you develop judgment from experience. A personcan be in the outdoors for years and repeat the same mistakes timeafter time.”ReflectionFor raw experience to ripen into leadership growth, our studentsmust understand and learn from the consequences of their actions.It is critical that they reflect upon and discuss their experiences sothat they may determine what to repeat and what to change. Theymust practice and expand their leadership skills.Character EducationThe character of a group’s leaders and members will either aidit in, or prevent it from, accomplishing its goals. Individuals needto develop their own character by applying values, not just talkingabout them. True character is walking the walk. Plato said, “We obtainbetter knowledge of a person during one hour’s play and gamesthan by conversing with them for a whole year.” We teach characterwhen we teach Expedition Behavior. This book also addresses characterin the section “The Waterline Model”.Role of NOLS InstructorsNOLS instructors are guardians of the leadership learning processand teachers of new skills and knowledge. They create an environmentthat allows learning to happen naturally and safely. Theydon’t teach people a different way of being, they create conditionssuch that students can discover their own natural leadership.TransferenceStudents at NOLS learn to appreciate things that many peopletry to avoid but which are necessary if they are to lead: tolerance forambiguity and the unknown, tolerance for daunting challenge, tolerancefor their own and others’ anxiety, tolerance for disapproval,tolerance for hard physical work and discomfort, and tolerance fortheir shared humanity. They experience the joy of meeting a challengewell, of creating a vibrant community, of living and travelingin the wild, and of appreciating and protecting the natural worldaround them.Leadership skills learned at NOLS are life skills. The increasedself-assessment, competence, communication, expedition behavior,decision-making, judgment, initiative and tolerance for adversityand uncertainty transfer to leadership in all aspects of people’s lives.Integrated Teaching of Expeditionary LeadershipPetzoldt said, “We can only teach the things that a leader mustknow and we have to let slip by the wayside a hundred thousandthings that it would be nice for the leader to know. But by concentratingon things that the leader must know, by being sure that theleader has no dangerous blank spots in his learning, we [feel] thatthe National Outdoor Leadership School graduates are far safer andfar better qualified than all but a handful of other outdoor leaders inthe United States.” (Petzoldt, 1974, p. 146.)LectureNew NOLS instructors commonly teach leadership topics usinga traditional lecture approach. Because of students’ typical “forgettingcurve,” instructors should schedule their lectures as near in timeas possible to their pertinent applications. It is also critical that instructorsfacilitate reflection after key activities so students can seewhat actually mattered in their real life experience.Beginning staff rely heavily on this academic approach becauseit is easy. More advanced instructors develop a knack for presentinginformation spontaneously and in their own voices. Seasoned instructorscan deliver the curriculum more powerfully and authenticallysince they speak with the conviction of their own experience.Experienced NOLS instructors also personalize the tone and contentof this book’s stock outlines, and they can better use lectures atspecific points in a course to augment their students’ experiences.According to our alumni, if there is one area in the NOLS corecurriculum that “classes” are more important, it is leadership. Theleadership progression, and our classes, are commented on routinelyas being helpful in not just learning leadership, but in applying it tolife beyond NOLS (Sibthorp, 2008).Planned experienceIt is possible to use a planned experience to teach a topic. It workswell to follow the “describe, demonstrate, do, discuss” progression,telling students beforehand what they can expect to learn. For instance,the first hiking day on a Wilderness Course is an obvioustime to teach “leader of the day” (LOD) skills. Tell students thatyou are modeling specific behaviors that they will have to performwhen they are leader of the day. Use a checklist to help you fill gapsin areas that don’t naturally arise during that hiking day. A the endof the day, review and ask the students if they noticed you doingthose things. Consider a large-group discussion that includes all thehiking groups to compare notes that night. Some students mightlearn better if you have them copy down written LOD expectations.You are now ready to ask students to practice their LOD skills thenext day.2008 NOLS Leadership Educator Notebook 5Introduction