Course Objectives

The aim of this course is to further develop and expand students’ practical and pedagogical qualifications with regard to their guiding skills within a chosen type of physical environment.

Course Description

Students must choose one of the following three specialisations: mountains/glaciers, coast – sailing and waterways. The choice may not be the same as the physical environment chosen in the course 1264 Outdoor Life and Guide Training II: Mountains/Glaciers, with Optional Specialisation.

Coast - sailing, specialisation II, skills and knowledge:

• Further knowledge with regard to sailing a boat along the coast, including the following topics. Choice of area, safety, and responsibility including consequence analysis. Weather, wind and currents. Planning trips. Being ready for the sea. The leader’s responsibility. Rescuing members of the group and first aid. Capsizing practice. Basic procedures in open square sail boats ( råriggede båter)
• Further skills in the use of open square sail boats, including rowing, sailing, loading and trimming, manoeuvring, trial sailing and trimming. Choice of harbour and mooring. Distribution of tasks, roles and basic procedures
• Navigation, also outside the skerries and night sailing using several lights and between sectors
• Precise manoeuvring in difficult harbours and navigation under difficult conditions
• Weather, wind, currents and correction for drift
• Theoretical issues and other material equivalent to licence for pleasure boats (Båtførerprøven)
• Planning trips: sailing/rowing trips in groups, safety procedures and norms for participants
• The guide’s various roles
• Sailing and rowing in small boats rigged with spritsails, tacking, reach, range and height, drift, ballast and packing of boats
• Maintenance of boats and equipment, rigging and sails, repairing hulls, rigging and sails, storage of oars, rigging and sail making
• Further knowledge of pedagogical and didactic problems in connection with guiding using traditional work boats along the coast, including didactics: trip norms, procedures, organisation and leadership.
• Training on the pre-industrial society, the qualification of guides, leaders (høvedsmenn) and formal education.
• Further knowledge of nature along the coast and coast culture.

Mountains/glaciers, specialisation I, skills and knowledge:

• Further knowledge of mountain climbing on skis and alpine expeditions, including choice of an area, safety, responsibility and consequence analysis.
• Weather, wind and avalanches
• Planning trips
• Going on trips in groups, safety procedures and trip norms
• Rescuing members of the group and first aid
• Rock-fall walking, bouldering
• Basic rock climbing in cliff areas, use of ropes, belaying points, rappelling and rock climbing techniques on cliffs
• Basic ice-climbing, ice walking, climbing on ice
• Specialisation in glacier exploration: equipment, walking in rope-teams, safety, rope-handling, movement solutions, belaying points, lowering, repelling, rescuing, climbing
• Specialisation in alpine expeditions: orienteering and route selection, walking through steep rock falls, safety in the mountains, trips on uneven terrain; trip practice and building experience.
• Further skills in alpine skiing and mountain climbing, including orientation and choice of routes, safety in the mountains and on steep snow slopes, skiing technique
• Further insight into pedagogical and didactic problems in connection with guiding in the high mountains, including glacier guiding and guide theory, didactics and methodology, trip norms, procedures, organisation, working methods, leadership
• Nature in the high mountains and cultural issues

Waterways, specialisation II, skills and knowledge:

• Further knowledge of using canoes on rivers, including choice of area, safety, responsibility and consequence analysis.
• Weather, wind and currents
• Planning trips
• Paddling trips in groups on rivers, preparing to go on a paddling trip
• The guide’s responsibility
• Rescuing oneself and other members of the group; first aid on rivers
• Using a solo canoe: paddling in calm water and in rapids
• Further skills in paddling canoes both solo and double
• Specialisation with regard to inspection and choice of routes, with the aim of guiding groups on a canoe trip on lakes and waterways
• Nature, culture and local environment activities with regard to streams, rivers and lakes
• Equipment, maintenance, and repairs
• Didactics and methodology, guiding theory, trip norms, procedures, organisation, working methods and leadership skills
• Further insight into pedagogical and didactic problems related to guiding with canoes on rivers up to level II+ and III-, including didactics and methodology, guiding theory, trip norms, procedures, organisation, working methods and leadership
• Further knowledge of culture and nature on waterways

Learning Methods

The course is mainly taught during the autumn semester with the exception of a 7-day trip, which is carried out in the spring semester for seasonal reasons.

Teaching and learning methods include independent work by students, group work, practice (10 days), individual trips, instruction and practical/problem-orientated guidance with regard to trips in the chosen physical environment. Trips, individual trips and practice are obligatory.

During their practice period, students will adopt an independent and responsible guiding role, and plan, execute and assess outdoor activities sessions at least two different practice locations. One of the practice locations will be at Telemark University College on the programme Outdoor Life, Culture & Nature Guiding I or the programme, Further Outdoor Studies, within the physical environments, forests/mountains, coast – sailing, coast – kayak or waterways. During the practice period students will be monitored by a supervisor who will provide advice and feedback.

Assessment Methods

Portfolio assessment. Students will compile a portfolio for each period in the outdoors and two practice reports which will be assessed on a pass/fail basis. In order to receive a diploma students must have participated actively in the obligatory trips, individual trips and excursions, and they should have successfully completed the practice period.

Minor adjustments may occur during the academic year, subject to the decision of the Dean