Dr Carla Valerio

To deepen the understanding of effective teaching and learning practices in outdoor education, research has been conducted around strategies based on socio-constructivist principles and student-centred learning that place the teacher in a facilitator role. This move aligns closely with the theoretical framework of Social Learning Strategies (Wenger, 1998). In Health and Physical Education (HPE) literature, considerable attention is paid to identifying the effectiveness of social learning strategies as a successful process for teacher learning, revealing the need to deepen the understanding of this learning process, particularly in contexts that promote socioconstructivism. This study aimed to explore if the context of HPE Outdoor Learning can promote specific conditions for successful teacher professional learning through the development of social learning strategies. The aim was to analyse the HPE outdoor learning practices in an innovative programme, comprehend the use of social learning strategies both in the teacher staff and with the visiting teachers, and understand how these are transferable to school-based settings. This project was contextualised in an Outdoor and Environmental Learning programme based on the HPE Australian Curriculum developed through student-centred pedagogies. This study followed a longitudinal follow-up data collection and analysis throughout three distinct moments of the participant's interactions within the programme over one year to explore the progress before, during and after interaction with the programme (pre-programme, during programme activities, and post-programme). Data was gathered through the semi-structured interviews pre and post-engagement in the programme, participant-observations and informal conversations during the activities development, teacher-staff meetings, and the researchers's field diary, reflexive log. Data analysis was grounded in a multiphase approach of inductive and deductive analysis to challenge new interpretations and provide meaningful and practical application of the findings. The analysis resulted in an understanding of the main strategies developed to promote teachers' professional learning and experience sharing throughout their participation in the programme that promotes social learning strategies. Accordingly, findings explore the development of professional learning strategies in different levels of social interaction. Namely, how the teacher staff from the programme is cultivating a community of practice based on trust and value attribution. Also, the knowledge transfer based on a brokering system occurring between the internal community of practice and the visiting teachers promotes transformation and disruption of teaching and learning practice. Finally, how were these insights embedded in the visiting teachers' practices in a school-based setting after participating in the programme.