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PUNISHMENT OR REHABILITATION?
These professionals believe we should be focusing on bringing out the good
in wayward students by taking nature hikes.Â
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The high school students were breaking rules â skipping class, talking back to teachers or using their phones when they werenât
allowed. They got detention, meaning they would sit in a classroom for a few hours after school.
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Leslie Trundy, a Maine high school counselor and avid hiker, was excited to offer students an option to hike instead. Some students
were less enthusiastic.
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âI kind of thought it would be boring,â sophomore Alexander Soto said.
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âWhy would I even want to hike?â junior Elsie Nelson-Walling recalled thinking. âI could just sit here at school and just wait it out.â
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But after their first hikes
â smelling pine trees, listening to birds chirping and discussing their lives â they realized hiking wasnât so bad. In fact, they found it actually improved their moods.
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The detention hikes on trails near Morse High School in Bath, Maine, started in October 2024 and have continued this fall.
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âPeople seem really different in a good way at the end,â Trundy told The Washington Post. âKids have even expressed it to me. Theyâve said, like, âThat was really awesome, thank you.â ⊠Even if theyâre not as vocal about it, I can tell that theyâre in a better place.â
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Amy McDonnell, a postdoctoral research fellow in cognitive neuroscience at the University of Utah, said spending time outdoors improves mental and physical health, decreases stress and enhances focus. Plus, making in-person friendships is a predictor of strong physical and mental health...READ MOREÂ