The Effect the Outdoor Environment Has on Childrens Knowledge and Understanding of the World - Literature review Example

Review of Related Literature: The Effect the Outdoor Environment Has on Children’s Knowledge and Understanding of the World Children are at the best stage and age in their life for learning. In general, they absorb information quickly and openly. Their early years are filled with developmental and learning milestones which allow them to acquire new knowledge and to progress through other stages of learning. Most of the learning is carried out in classrooms with teachers and books. However, considerations on outdoor learning have also pervaded children’s education and learning. This chapter shall discuss related studies discussing the effect of the outdoor environment on children’s knowledge and understanding of the world. It will focus on three themes: understanding the world, learning outside the classroom, and outdoors promoting understanding of the world. Understanding the world The Fairfield Children’s Centre (2011) discuss that children are already capable learners from the time they are born. As they grow and develop, they also start to understand the world, using their senses to explore and assess their environment. Physical movement usually drives their exploration, starting with what they can reach with their hands and feet as infants, and later what they can actually touch, hold, smell, feel, and taste (Bilton, 2010). Children learn fast and effectively by doing, by using their hands and their senses to explore and understand their environment (Bilton, 2010). Their progress and development in the future is based on innovation and creativeness. It is therefore crucial for children to be armed with significant and lifelong learning tools, as well as attitudes (Ouvry, 2003). In continuing to understand the world, it is important for children to be encouraged in their curiosity, to be assisted as they explore their ideas, and to be encouraged to try things out even if they may not work out well. The Fairfield Children’s Centre (2011) further discusses that as children experience more, they also develop a wider knowledge of the world. The knowledge and understanding of the world is based on various elements. One of these elements relate to exploration and investigation (Fairfield Children’s Centre, 2011). According to Ouvry (2003) exploring involves children trying to investigate objects and materials including its qualities and properties. Through exploration, they also understand how change comes about. They also learn to understand patterns, similarities, as well as differences and how things work the way they do (Ouvry, 2003). In understanding the world, designing and making are essential elements. By designing and making, they learn the construction process and tools involved, including the techniques which are needed in order to build or assemble something (Bilton, 2010). Understanding the world also includes the use of computer technology, learning how to use such technologies including the programmable toys which can support their learning process (Fairfield Children’s Centre, 2011). In relation to time, it is a unit of measurement which helps children understand the world, their past, their present, and their future. Place is also an aspect of their understanding of the world as children become more aware of the natural world and their localities, their communities, and what they may like or dislike about their environment (Fairfield Children’s Centre, 2011). Through their communities, children get a larger understanding of the world, especially as they find out about their culture, and the culture of others. Through their interactions with communities, they also learn to understand the similarities and differences in culture, beliefs, traditions, as well as practices. These elements all contribute to the children’s understanding of the world. According to Ouvry (2003) children learn to understand the world as they start to explore it, and such explorations are often best left to the children, allowing them to make their own discoveries and develop their personal understanding of phenomena and how these unfold and affect them. Learning outside the classroom Based on the Learning outside the classroom manifesto, individuals must experience the world outside their classrooms, accepting that these are part of their learning and personal development (Department of Education, 2006). Under these conditions, it is important for learners to be engaged with the outside world and contextualize their learning on environmental applications. According to the Department for Children, Schools, and Families (2008), young people thrive well when they get to participate in real-life experiences, especially when instead of just talking about something, they get to see it, touch, smell, and explore it in their actual environment. As such, it is important for them to discover how their classroom learning relates to the outside world. Classrooms do not always have the right tools and resources for children to discover the environmental context of all the things they learn (Department for Children, Schools, and Families, 2008). Allowing the children to learn outside their classroom provides them with the tools and resources they can use in order to learn faster and relate better to their classroom lessons. Learning outside the classroom seeks to ensure that children and young people are active and engaged with each other and with their surroundings. Tovey (2007) declares that their experiences outside the classroom can be seen in the school grounds, in the local communities or in other communities during day visits. In other words, with these outdoor activities, the learners can be motivated to participate and to engage in the learning process. As they are more engaged in their learning, poor behaviour can be minimized and the risk for truancy is reduced (Department for Children, Schools, and Families, 2008). Learning outside the classroom, according to Malone (2008) also includes the process of experiential learning. Experiential learning involves the process of securing knowledge, skills, and attitudes based on one’s conscious thoughts about an experience (Malone, 2008). It therefore includes direct and personal experiences integrated with reflection and feedback. Learning outside the classroom makes the learning process personal, as it often affects one’s feelings and emotions, as well as improves one’s knowledge and skills application. Based on a study by the California Department of Education, the knowledge test of six graders improved by 27% after these students took part in an outdoor education program (2005). The study also claims that students felt that in taking part in outdoor activities, they felt changed and felt a shift in their learning. They felt that they learned more and they liked their subjects more than usual because they found the outdoor setting an enjoyable learning experience (California Department of Education, 2005). They were also more likely to remember the things they learned outdoors as compared to what they learned in the classroom. As children also learn outside the classroom, they also carry out more engaging activities with each other, often integrating wider elements of play into their learning. Through play, children can understand the importance of self-regulation communication with other children (Malone, 2008). As they extent their classroom to encompass their greater physical as well as their social environment, they also learn to interact well with other children and adults. According to the Ogundare (2010), it is important for children to relate with nature because part of self-discovery is based on the fact that one is not outside the frame of nature, but a part of nature. The amount of time spent outdoors for children is usually decreased over time as they progress through their learning. Being able to connect with nature allows the development of critical skills which cannot be taught in the classroom setting (Ogundare, 2010). Outdoor education activities help children understand that they are smart in a level which is not the same as being classroom smart (Ogundare, 2010). These conditions highlight the importance of outdoor learning which allows students to participate outside the classroom and therefore improve their learning process. The outdoors promoting understanding of the world According to Parsons (2011), play is a critical aspect of children’s lives. Specifically, outdoor play allows children to be creative, imaginative, and to be sociable; moreover, it also gives them the opportunity to gain learned behaviours. The outdoor setting may be natural or constructed and both landscapes provide sensory stimulation and environmental diversity which is important in enriching children’s experiences (Parsons, 2011). The constructed setting also allows for a manipulation of the landscape, allowing for other learning elements to be added to the natural construction of the outdoors. Greening is often an elemental aspect of the outdoors and it helps provide children with the chance to develop their environmental identity. Where they interact with the landscape, Parsons (2011, p. 2) also points out that a positive effect is seen on “children’s social development, motor skill development, attention, and activity level. In other words, the outdoors is a dynamic and diverse environment which engenders communication as well as movement among children. For children, this form of learning is tactile and in the end has a longer lasting impact on their memory and on their knowledge retention. Ubi-learning was carried out by Rogers and colleagues in their 2005 study where they sought to integrate the outdoor learning experience with digital technology and augmentation. Their study was able to highlight the importance of outdoor learning for children. They were also able to establish that learning experiences can be expanded and correlations can be made to facilitate the understanding and reflections of children in the real world as well as their classrooms. Through their study, they were able to establish that ubi-learning can be connected to mobile devices and wireless networks thereby allowing children to evaluate information they retrieve outdoors (Rogers, et.al., 2005). The information they gather can also be sent to other classmates who can comment on the data gathered. This setting can therefore support creative and collaborative actions among students. Malone and Tranter (2003) also discuss various essential elements in children learning. In understanding the world, play is an important element which can be used as it is a natural part of children’s lives. Therefore, by improving their coordination, strength, agility and endurance via outdoor play, these children are also able to engage better with their environment. Malone and Tranter (2003) further point out that the outdoors allow the children to understand the world, including the need for social and environmental interaction, including playing with others, sharing, cooperating, expressing their feelings, and respecting other children’s views and practices. Through such interactions, the child comes to understand not just the world, but himself as well. In the end, he is also able to find the identity which he feels would fit him. The above literature indicates the relationship between the outside world and the children’s learning. The studies highlight the importance of allowing children to interact with the outdoors as it helps them acquire skills, knowledge, behaviour, and attitudes which can they can use in better understanding the world. Through outdoor plays and environmental interactions, they are able to gain a better understanding of their classroom instructions, applying theoretical concepts to the real world and on real time. What results is an engaged, dynamic, and diverse learning atmosphere for children who are able to understand and appreciate the world outside their classrooms. References Bilton, H., 2010. Outdoor learning in the early years: Management and innovation. London: Taylor & Francis. California Department of Education, 2005. Effects of outdoor education programs for children in California. American Institutes for Research [online]. Available at: http://www.sierraclub.org/youth/downloads/outdoorschool_finalreport.pdf [Accessed 01 February 2013]. Department for Children, Schools, and Families, 2008. Learning outside the classroom [online]. Available at: http://www.rspb.org.uk/Images/LOTC%20brochure_tcm9-200855.pdf [Accessed 01 February 2013]. Department of Education, 2006. Learning outside the Classroom Manifesto [online]. Available at: https://www.education.gov.uk/publications/standard/publicationdetail/page1/DFES-04232-2006 [Accessed 02 February 2013]. Fairfield Children’s Centre, 2011. Developing children’s knowledge and understanding of the world [online]. Available at: http://www.fairfieldchildrenscentre.org.uk/attachments/Knowledge_and_Understanding_of_the_World_Mar_10.pdf [Accessed 01 February 2013]. Malone, K., 2008. An evidence based research report on the role of learning outside the classroom for children’s whole development from birth to eighteen years [online]. Available at: http://www.oric.org.au/Conferences_ORIC/ORIC_Conference_2008/Presentations/Karen_Malone.pdf [Accessed 01 February 2013]. Malone, K. and Tranter, P., 2003. Childrens environmental learning and the use, design and management of schoolgrounds. Children, Youth and Environments, 13(2), pp. 1-51 Ogundare, O., 2010. Taking learning outside the classroom [online]. Available at: http://edtheory.blogspot.com/2010/11/taking-learning-outside-classroom.html [Accessed 02 February 2013]. Ouvry, M., 2003. Exercising muscles and minds: Outdoor play and the early years curriculum. London: National Children’s Bureau. Parsons, A., 2011. Young children and nature: Outdoor play and development, experiences fostering environmental consciousness, and the implications on playground design. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University [online]. Available at: http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-05062011114155/unrestricted/Parsons_AE_T_2011.pdf [Accessed 01 February 2013]. Rogers, Y., Price, S., Randell, C., Fraser, D., et.al., 2005. Ubi-learning integrates indoor and outdoor experiences. Communications of the ACM, 48(1), pp. 55-59. Tovey, H., 2007. Playing outdoors: Spaces and places, risks and challenge. UK: McGraw-Hill International. Read More