Effects of sail training on engagement with learning and education

![CDATA[Youth disengaged with learning are at risk of not fulfilling their potential and it is often difficult to provide them with the social support necessary to remain active contributors to society. Similarly, disengaged youth who do return to study are more likely to fail and drop out again, further reducing the prospect of creating productive members of society (Henry, Knight & Thornberry, 2012; Kirjansson, 2007). There is, therefore, a need to identify strategies to promote engagement with learning and education and one such strategy is the use of experiential education. In particular, among many experiential learning proposals, sail training is one potential avenue to provide disengaged students with the tools and desire to pursue further learning. A voyage aboard Australia’s national sail training ship STS Young Endeavour, for example, requires youth aged 16 to 23 to live on a 33 meter tall ship, at sea in close confines with up to 36 others they have previously never met, for 11 days. During this time they engage in a number of experiential activities including climbing a 30 meter mast and participating in teamwork activities such as sail- handling, conducting regular ship duties, steering the vessel and taking control of daily operations. In this study the sail training experiences of five young Australians who recently participated in a voyage with Young Endeavour were examined with an aim to understand how the experience impacted their engagement with learning and education upon their return. By examining the behavioural, affective and cognitive components of the participants’ engagement a better understanding of how sail training can be a potentially good strategy to reengage youth can be achieved.]]