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Summer Camp as a Growth Experience:
On Place, Program and Passion
Amy Chapeskie & Troy Glover, University of Waterloo
(Waterloo, Canada)

The experience of children at summer camp has been largely neglected by the research community, particularly in Canada. Research studies that refer to summer camp have generally focused on camp as a setting for examining childhood socialization or the therapeutic benefits of specialized programming for children with special needs. The summer camp experience itself, however, has received little attention, despite its perception as a positive form of youth development. This presentation will report findings from the first phase of the Canadian Summer Camp Research Project, a five-year evaluation study of the benefits of camping. In the first phase of the study, the project investigators interviewed 67 camp directors about the camp experience and the perceived outcomes campers achieve as participants in summer camp programming. Using phenomenological analysis, five themes were identified from the data First, camp was described as an intentional community in which participants were involved in intense daily social interaction. Second, directors referred to camp as a place where children could try new things without fear of failure. Third, camp was characterized as a growth experience during which children gained physical, cognitive, and social skills. Fourth, directors described camp as a place campers could connect with the outdoors in a manner outside of their everyday experiences. And fifth, camp was portrayed as a distinct experience for children that centred around the concept that camp is a ‘different world’. Each of these themes will be examined in relation to the literature on place and youth development. Implications for research and practicewill also be explored.

Access to document: A12_Amy_Chapeskie.pdf