How can you talk about something that people don’t understand?
One of the biggest issues with “Outdoor Learning” is defining it.
In this series of blogs I will share what language different sectors use to define teaching outside. It’s a bit of a minefield so it is important that your school uses the same language and has the same understanding of the term.
Government interpretation:
Outdoor learning has been defined as subjects that are taught outside and an approach that can be used across all subjects and across a broad range of teaching. This is in contrast to Adventure education which cover more traditional activities such as hillwalking, kayaking which focuses on personal and social learning, which is part of the curriculum in both England and Wales. Outdoor education which encompasses elements of both Outdoor learning and Adventure education.1 Welsh government recognises outdoor education as a pedagogical approach1 with health and wellbeing benefits.
Inspection body interpretation:
In the Ofsted report Learning outside the classroom was defined as – “The use of places other than the classroom for teaching and learning”1.
Leaning outside the classroom or learning beyond the classroom has a far wider reach than outdoor learning. It includes indoor spaces away from school classroom such as museums, theatres, government buildings, gyms that provide a location for learning and can be undertaken by external agencies to the school staff.
The focus of inspections with regard to outdoor learning is not the details of what type of outdoor learning was undertaken or where, but the impact or change on pupil’s attainment, development skills. Therefore, the key to meeting the requirements of any inspection is by focusing on the impact of the range of outdoor learning or learning outside the classroom not the actual activity itself, just like we do in classroom teaching.
Outdoor learning professionals’ definitions:
In contrast to inspector’s definition outdoor professionals regard outdoor learning as an “approach” where the outdoors is a “central part of the experience” and this experience is used as a “vehicle for transforming the experience into knowledge, skill, attitude and behaviours”. Outdoor learning professionals identify outdoor learning as an experiential approach and more about the impact of the experience and not the activity itself.
In Good or Excellent reports by school inspectors with regards to outdoor learning the focus is on the range of outcomes that the rich provision provides and its quality and effectiveness in enhancing learning1. Therefore, it is not about “if” the school is undertaking outdoor learning but the way it impacts and is part of “effective schooling”. Therefore, stand-alone sessions sporadically nor building on indoor teaching will rarely impact learners as part of effective learning across the school.
In the next blog I will look at teaching staff’s understanding of these terms from feedback I have collected from teachers and school staff.
