The Effects of Entertainment and Fun on the Visitor's Free-Choice Learning Experience

2014 ◽  
Vol 46 (5) ◽  
pp. 644-651 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine M. Van Winkle
Keyword(s):  
Free Choice ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Free Choice Learning

scholarly journals Goal-Setting among Biology Undergraduates during a Free-Choice Learning Experience at a Regional Zoo

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 610-624
Author(s):  
Ashley B. Heim ◽  
Emily A. Holt
Keyword(s):  
Goal Setting ◽  
Free Choice ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Learning Goals ◽  
Free Choice Learning ◽  
Informal Settings

Free-choice learning occurs when individuals have autonomy in what and how they learn, and often takes place in informal settings such as zoos. To describe goal-setting and -achievement of biology undergraduates at a regional zoo, we primarily asked: (1) What types of learning goals do students set for themselves for a trip to the zoo?; and (2) What activities do students intend to engage in on a zoo trip? Participating students completed the first portion of a goal-setting assessment prior to entering the zoo, which asked students to develop learning and activity goals for themselves. At the conclusion of the zoo trip, students completed the second portion of this survey, which asked whether students achieved their goals, and if not, why. We found that most students devised learning goals related to gaining knowledge and identified passive interactions with animals as activities they hoped to engage in during their trip.

Form Follows Function: Interpretive Wisdom for Environmental Educators

2006 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 47-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eve M. Turek
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Education ◽  
Free Choice ◽  
Environmental Activism ◽  
Review Of The Literature ◽  
Front Line ◽  
Education Practice ◽  
Ecological Awareness ◽  
Environmental Educators ◽  
Free Choice Learning

A review of the literature reveals that interpreters’ emphasis on individual connection to the resource offers environmental educators key strategies to promote engagement and addresses critiques of environmental education practice as too generalized, behaviorist, manipulative, or negative. Interpreters serve as the nation's front-line environmental educators, with the foremost opportunity to inspire adults to engage in the free-choice learning that may, at best, motivate deeper ecological awareness and personal environmental activism. Pairing interpreters with teachers can extend the same opportunities to students.

Free-choice learning and ecotourism

2013 ◽  
pp. 155-168 ◽  
Author(s):  
John H. Falk ◽  
Nancy L. Staus
Keyword(s):  
Free Choice ◽  
Free Choice Learning
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