Adventure outcomes can be categorised as either formal (skill development, the achievement of recognised adventure qualifications, as contributory factors in achieving outcomes elsewhere, such as school examinations) or informal (gaining greater personal awareness, learning to work with others, developing leadership or team skills). The longer a programme or the more a person participates, the more sustainable are the outcomes. Very often, adventure learning programmes focus on either the formal or the informal aspect of learning but in reality, both occur simultaneously. The nature of adventurous activities is such that participants naturally will develop skills in the activity itself and it is but a short step to build accreditation into a programme or relate the skills to other fields. Equally, participants in adventurous activities have no choice but to work with others and make decisions, so informal learning is embedded in any programme. The skill of the instructor is to provide the supporting platform that helps people realise the learning and transfer it to other aspects of their life or to a wider programme.
Another way of looking at adventure learning outcomes is that they are tangible or intangible. Tangible outcomes are the formal accreditations and qualifications gained by the participants, whether this is in the form of adventure national governing body awards or in school (or other) certification. Intangible outcomes are the confidence, self-esteem, self-awareness, tolerance and social learning that come from engagement and achievement. The concept of tangible and intangible outcomes take us back to the notion of a product or a process curriculum, explored earlier. A product curriculum provides the ‘hard’ outcomes that are easily measured in terms of examination results and the recitation of facts or figures to a pre-determined standard and in a prescribed manner. A process curriculum provides the ‘soft’ outcomes that are unique to each individual and therefore difficult to measure or evidence; often these developmental changes can appear as the maturing of the individual and are not apparent for weeks, months or even years. However, both are critical for human development and learning.
Both formal and informal learning are necessary in life, as people need a common body of core skills and knowledge but also people need to learn from one another for society to evolve. In this way, people can become motivated and aware adults who can and will contribute positively to society and support thriving communities. Formal learning provides the knowledge and basis of qualifications and accreditations, the product outcomes on which tiers of professional life and community functioning rely. Not everyone can achieve the highest levels, and not all would want to, so therefore, by natural selection, society maintains a balance of individuals to make its every aspect function. Informal learning provides the process that enables people to learn about themselves and how to exist, how to live and work alongside others, to be motivated to contribute to society and their community. An objective of adventure learning and an outcome of informal learning is that people have a greater awareness of themselves, and people who understand themselves more fully, relate to others more effectively and have a greater propensity to foster such understanding in others.