Educator Resources
WHERE ADVENTURE BECOMES EDUCATION
The most memorable lessons are often learned through experience. In the rainforests, mountains, coastlines, and communities of Costa Rica, students are challenged to step beyond the familiar, work together, and discover what they’re capable of achieving.
Outward Bound Costa Rica combines our extraordinary environment with decades of expertise in experiential education to create transformative learning experiences for students, educators, and educational groups from around the world.
The OBCR Advantage
Our Educational Model is based on years of teaching through experiential learning. The pedagogical foundation is one that demands personal reflection, group communication, cultural sensitivity, mental expansion, and physical commitment. Students learn to rely on themselves and each other as they push through long hikes, difficult climbs or whitewater rapids. Service projects and community connection are opportunities to maximize their development as they gain compassion and cultural competency. The absence of computers and cell phones contributes to meaningful interaction and active participation.
We see students coming away from our courses with stronger leadership skills, a greater understanding of the world around them, and having discovered that they are capable of more than they ever thought possible.
Independent Student Travel
Individual Teen Expeditions for ages 14-18 range from 7-14 days and can even be combined, so that students can fully explore Costa Rica and Panama and engage in everything from hiking, surfing and scuba diving, to sea turtle conservation, cultural immersion, and community service projects. Our Individual Adult Expeditions for ages 18+ include the best activities and highlights from our teen courses in a shortened one-week expedition—or a longer one-month reset—tailored specifically for adults.
Our 50 and 65-day Gap Year & Semester expeditions are designed for ages 18-25 and are held each fall and spring. These courses focus on leadership, outdoor education skills, and international outdoor industry certifications. Courses take place in Costa Rica and Panama. Through our partnership with Hurricane Island Outward Bound School, students interested in Academic Credit are eligible through Outward Bound’s relationship with Western State Colorado University.
Group Trips
We partner with several schools, universities, and groups to design Custom Programs, specifically tailored for their students. These courses can be First Year programs, alternative Spring Break courses, in conjunction with a course curriculum, Service Learning trips, and more. Some schools have even integrated an Outward Bound Costa Rica expedition as a part of their curriculum, which students take part in every year!
Our Custom Programs can include outdoor certifications, adventure activities, service projects, and/or a focus on a specific topic, based on students’ interests and educational needs (i.e., Environmental Sciences, Spanish language, Marine Biology, etc.).
For more information, please contact our Custom Programs & Partnerships Manager: [email protected]