Training and Learning

A group of Outward Bound students engage in community service, learning compassion through experience.

Why Become an Expert in Experiential Learning?

Have you ever found it difficult to accurately convey the impact of an OBCR course? Perhaps you want to impress your teachers or friends with knowledge of how experiential learning theory actually manifests itself on your OBCR course? Interested in being able to speak eloquently about your transformative experience on course, or your upcoming experience [...]

Leadership Update: March 15, 2013

The Leadership students have been working hard on their Lifeguard certification training in Playa Avellana, in the pool near our base, and now in Bocas Del Toro, Panama where they will have their final exams. Here’s a quick video to give you a glimpse of what their training entails. After finishing their Lifeguard training, the [...]

Leadership Semester Update: March 1, 2013

Technical Ropes Rescue: Operations training

Training for Rescue Professionals: The Importance of Technical Ropes Rescue

The objective of rescue training is to provide as many skills as possible to effectively perform a rescue with minimum risk and liability to those involved and in such a way that rescuers do not become victims themselves. Technical Ropes Rescue: Operations Level (TRR:OL) is just one subset of technical rescue that provides training for [...]

Outward Bound Promotes Outdoor Safety in Costa Rica

In February, Outward Bound Costa Rica instructors worked on a pro bono project to train the Costa Rican Rescue Squad, also known as park rangers. This pro bono training is in its second year and occurs once a month for three days. The training touches on the essentials of Wilderness First Responder curriculum, including mastering [...]

Spring 2013 Leadership Semester students train to attend to victims in remote wilderness settings.

Leadership Semester Update: February 22, 2013

After training how to attend to victims in the remote wilderness, Leadership Semester students headed to the Río Pejibaye to train for their Whitewater Rescue Technician (WRT) certification. Spring 2013 Leadership Semester students train to attend to victims in remote wilderness settings. The WRT certification is issued by Rescue 3 International and is a necessary [...]

Leadership Semester Update: February 15, 2013

During the first part of their Leadership Semester course, the group of ten students bonded on a trek through Piedras Blancas. They backpacked their way to two homestays- one with the Lopez family and the other with the Granados family, finally ending with a couple days for a solo. During their solos, students are traditionally [...]

Experiential Learning 101: What is it really?

Experiential learning is essentially the art of learning through first-hand, primary experience, as opposed to second hand ‘conventional learning’ often associated with classroom learning and the memorization of facts (see below). Because experiential learning technically has no borders, nor time constraints, imposing structure on experiential learning opportunities can help individuals add value to their learning. [...]

Instructor Chago is a very serious guy while on the river.

Tri-Country Update Nov 13

Tri-Country students have been busy battling rapids for the past week! They’ve been spending their time rafting three well-known rivers in Costa Rica: the Sarapiquí, the Pejibaye and the Pacuare.

Leadership Update Nov 2

The Leadership crew has been hard at work on the river. Last week they headed to the Río Pejibaye to start learning about whitewater rescue techniques from our river expert Phil Perez. After plenty of studying and practice, the group took their written and practical exams to finish up their Whitewater Rescue Technician training. After [...]

Becoming a River Guide: The Importance of Whitewater Rescue Technician Training

Whitewater Rescue Technician training is required for all individuals looking to become river professionals, such as raft guides or whitewater kayakers. This certification is essential for these outdoor professionals as it addresses all major aspects of water rescue and provides a standardization of training on topics including rescue techniques, training standards, operational policies, safety guidelines [...]

Meet the Team: Phil Perez

Many times students looking for Semester programs through outdoor leadership schools such as Outward Bound are looking for an opportunity to gain professional certifications with the hopes of working in the outdoor industry. For this reason, outdoor schools choose to employ leaders that excel in their particular area of focus to instruct and train these [...]

Wilderness First Responder, What’s It All About?

One certification that we require all of our instructors here at Outward Bound Costa Rica to have, regardless of their expertise or qualifications in other adventure activities, is the Wilderess First Responder (WFR) certification. WFR is a 72-80 hour certification course that teaches individuals how to react in emergency situations when a major medical facility [...]

Moon Frogs: A Symbol of Transformation

Here at Outward Bound Costa Rica, we like to give our Semester students something more than a cool t-shirt to go home with. We like to give them something they can have with them at all times; something that will remind them of the transformation they went through while on our course. Some students put [...]

Sixty-two year old endurance swimmer Diana Nyad Photo credit CNN.com

Inspiring Athletes

Here at Outward Bound Costa Rica we’re always excited to hear stories about people pushing their limits, inspiring others and just generally being awesome. Check out some of the people that have been catching our attention in the endurance world lately…

Scouting Out Pavones

[flickr-gallery mode="photoset" photoset="72157629934420143"] Costa Rican surfing has, at times, become a victim of its own success. Once sleepy and undeveloped towns have quickly turned into major population centers complete with every modern convenience and every modern scourge. One of the most attractive and spectacular allures of traveling to surf (especially so in Costa Rica) is the idea [...]

Dive Dive Dive! Leadership & Tropical Challenge Scuba Phase!

The Leadership and Tropical Challenge groups are back from their trip to Bocas del Toro, Panama where they were all working on their Scuba certification. Take a look at some of their pictures below! With the groups now separated again, the Tropical Challenge folks are doing some climbing and service projects, and the Leadership [...]

A little bit of training and a little bit of the holidays

This past weekend saw some intense action here on the Outward Bound Costa Rica base. As the remainder of our semester programs wrap up their time in Panama, a large portion of the staff went through training on a variety of topics ranging from conflict resolution to more advanced strategies for teaching while on course. [...]

Resume Boost: 5 Ways to Market Your Outward Bound Experience

So you’ve taken a Outward Bound Costa Rica course or something similar. Now what? A lot of students wonder how they can market themselves for future jobs and/or colleges after going through an experience that distinguishes them, both personally and professionally. The difficult part is communicating the impact of a course experience and effectively transferring [...]

WFR Scenario for Fall Leadership 2011

Practice makes perfect, and that is exactly what our fall 2011 leadership students did this past weekend. The leadership class took part in a simulated emergency scenario, where every student had to put their Wilderness First Responder skills to use. The Wilderness First Responder, or WFR, is a serious certification required of nearly every outdoor professional, [...]