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.
36 items
Teachers saw modest gains in students' social and emotional learning during a three-year adventure-based programme, but a few students' behaviour could affect the whole class.
In a New Zealand positive youth development outdoor programme run in schools, all 5 Cs and a sixth C, contribution, were seen. Young people and adults valued different outcomes.
A week-long trip built a sense of community for most participants, but one participant experienced it very differently. Leaders need to respect individual needs within group-focused goals.
In three Welsh primary schools, regular curriculum-based outdoor learning was seen to improve pupils' engagement, concentration, behaviour and wellbeing. Curriculum and testing pressures held it back.
This conceptual article uses self-determination theory to link Forest School practices to children's needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness, and suggests need-supportive teaching approaches.
A trip to a Great Barrier Reef island led to a grounded theory of five dimensions of giving (to self, others, communities, environment and the whole), offered as a beginning framework for teaching with meaning and social concern.
Drawing on anxiety, school refusal and homesickness research, this article sets out a case-based approach for supporting Australian students who are reluctant to attend school camp or refuse to go.
A close look at one bush walk shows how an early childhood teacher and four-year-olds worked together on outdoor features in ways that encouraged risk-taking and resilience.
Results suggest two adventure-based PE programmes both benefited middle school students' self-conceptions over seven months, with each working best for different aspects of self-concept.
Weekly Forest School and outdoor sessions over three years were linked to better attendance and academic attainment for disadvantaged young children. The authors also link emotional learning and wellbeing developed outdoors with academic development.
School camps in Victoria, Australia were linked to gains in some areas of adolescent wellbeing and connectedness, with no change in others.
Students in one-semester outdoor education programmes showed gains in self-authorship, which they linked to their instructor and to the outdoor experiences.