The Central Role of Outdoor Learning in the Development of Character

by Mike Hargreaves

​School Outdoor Learning (SOuL)

The value of outdoor spaces

The outdoor spaces that you have at your disposal, be it small areas of tarmac or extensive grounds provide enormous potential as a context and environment for teaching and learning.
 
The importance of this cannot be underestimated when we are considering learning of what Andrew Hammond author of ‘Teaching for Character’ has termed the ‘hidden curriculum’. This being the development in children of character traits such as curiosity, resilience, motivation, empathy, independence, potential etc.

​​These traits although hidden are vital and have a direct impact on outcomes in not only the more visible school curriculum but underpin success later in life such as in marriage and friendships. In our experience they are rarely adequately addressed, nurtured, actively developed and evidenced.

SOuL’s ethos and approach to teaching and learning is based on a number of educational ‘presuppositions’ that are met when teaching outdoors and lend themselves ideally to developing the above skills in children. Robust empirical evidence over the last decade supports these and challenges the conventional view of the learning environment, the role of the teacher and learner. The outdoor environment as a context for learning provides the setting for each of the following:

• Movement boosts brain power. As a species we are designed to move as we learn. Using our body plays a significant role in fully activating our learning potential. The classroom being a relatively recent innovation does not always support our need to move while we think.
• There are multiple forms of intelligence many of which don’t display on IQ tests. The widely held notion that intelligence is a single, general capacity that can be measured has been fundamentally debased. Authors posit the existence of a number of intelligences that yield an individual profile for each of us. Over-emphasis on one type of intelligence or another will fail to capture the unique talents, traits and incalculable potential in all pupils.
• Multi sensory learning is more memorable. Our senses evolved to work together. Utilising all 5 of our senses enables us to retain information more effectively particularly when we evoke emotions. The more elaborately we encode memory during its initial moments, the stronger it will be. Sensory rich environments with which we interact therefore hold great potential for learning and remembering.

• Stressed brains do not learn as well as non-stressed brains. Emotional stress has a huge impact of children’s ability to learn in school and employees productivity at work. Evidence clearly demonstrates the mental health benefits of engaging with nature regularly as part of our normal routine.
• Learning through experience has powerful implications. We are powerful and natural explorers, we learn not by passive reaction to the environment but by engaging with it through active testing, observation, hypothesis, experiment and conclusion. Intrinsic motivation to learn and explore is a far more powerful motivator than extrinsic rewards or sanctions.
• A growth mindset is an essential feature of good teaching and learning. Much of education is focused on fixed testing and measurement and also implicitly values ‘getting things right’. This can dis-incentivise a process of do, reflect, apply. When learners engage in multi sensory and experiential learning there is scope make mistakes and learn from ones own tangible experience.​
• A child’s ability cannot be suitably captured using testing and grades. Grades can often become accepted ways of representing the entirety of a child’s ability. Yet there is much hidden under the surface of a grade, which contributes to the child’s skill set. Observation and evidence of the ‘distance travelled’ by a pupil in certain themes such as resilience, determination, resourcefulness, independent thinking is essential to more adequately understand the whole child. Not only this but these are the factors which will have the greatest impact on the success and well being of the child in their work and relationships as they move through life.

• Being outside is good for us. Children are engaging less with the outside world. Sedentary activities, anxiety around dangers and the volume of children living in cities contributes to this decline. A recent study demonstrated that on average US children spend less time outside than high security prison inmates. Evidence suggests that engaging with the outdoors has a number of health and well being benefits for teacher and pupils. When we engage in learning outside the benefits include increased enjoyment of learning, engagement, improved behaviour and academic improvement. Relationships and rapport between teachers and pupils has been shown to also benefit form this change in the learning environment.

 
If you would like to learn more about how to utilise your school grounds for teaching and learning be it to enrich academic achievement or educate for character, come and join us at:
 
The Outdoor Learning Conference – Taking Your Teaching & Learning Outdoors
The UK’s largest outdoor learning event for schools.
 
5th October 2017, The Grammar School at Leeds
 
The full cost of this event is £95pp, book by Friday the 7th July for the early bird rate of £75 (+ VAT).
 
Click the following link to reserve your tickets http://buytickets.at/schooloutdoorlearning/104273​

Click to download the full .pdf flyer