Research, reports and guidance on education outside the classroom and outdoor education, with a plain-English summary of each and a link to the original. New items are added every week.
The library began with Education Outside the Classroom: Applied Research Readings 2010–2017(McNatty & Boyes, University of Otago, 2017). Later items were found, summarised and checked with AI assistance using the same method: every reference is checked against the publisher's record, every summary against the published abstract, and only items rated high confidence by two independent relevance checks are published. Summaries are a guide: read the original before citing it.
125 items
Where children were given opportunities for risky play at school, schools recorded very positive outcomes.
A case study found one primary pupil's agency varied between classroom, garden and farm, so varied contexts matter.
A study explores the successes, challenges, surprises and pedagogical risks for students and a professor in a student-directed experiential education course.
The study supports school-based experiential outdoor education as a way to engage students in meaningful, memorable and motivating learning.
The paper looks at safety behaviour beyond outdoor leaders' decision making, to better understand its complexity.
A nationwide survey reports accidents and near-accidents in Norwegian upper secondary outdoor activities from 2010 to 2013.
The authors argue that a focus on risk and danger limits the teaching potential of adventure, and propose an approach based on the learner's everyday life.
The study analyses sea kayaking incidents in Norway, focusing on wind conditions, to draw implications for preventing future incidents.
A study of four-to-five-year-olds suggests including natural features in outdoor preschools supports a wider range of cognitive play.
A national survey of 3160 parents found time pressure was a bigger barrier to children playing in nearby nature than accessibility, safety or landscape quality.
The article argues for blending place, space and sustainability in primary geography and outdoor learning.
The research suggests outdoor educators have pedagogical skills that mainstream educators could use to teach outdoors or be more environmentally focused.
The article draws together evidence linking service learning to the goals of education, including personal, social and academic achievement.
The paper argues outdoor education's distinctiveness in the school curriculum lies in neither content nor process but in ways of being.
The article examines how New Zealand primary teachers teach, programme and understand outdoor education.
Interviews with eight NZ secondary outdoor education teachers show adventure and learning discourses sit side by side in how they talk.
The research stresses supporting students through the transition home after a long outdoor programme, including assessing learning through project work.
Observations show time outdoors helps young children's physical and social development, including confidence in the face of risk.
The study looks at what predicts positive change in body image for females in an outdoor programme who started with a negative body image.
The study looks at how teaching a class outside one day a week influenced pupils' social relationships.
The article uses 'curious play' to understand children's free play in nature, seeing children as active explorers who build knowledge.
The book outlines the key elements of a pedagogy of adventurous learning that educators can adapt to their own contexts.
The report summarises research on how social and economic factors shape children's access to the natural environment and what policy could change.
The authors analyse safety cultures in small boat fishing, sea kayaking and kite surfing and argue for a broad managerial approach at many levels.