Outdoor Connections bulletin: Issue 1, November 2005

Contents

• Newsletter
• Outdoor Connections Development Programme 
• Development Officer Outdoor Education
• Scottish Advisory Panel for Outdoor Education
• Integrated Curriculum Outdoors
• Research
• Safety
• Events
• Contact

Newsletter

This newsletter aims to meet the needs of a very broad audience. As such the format is short tasters with web links to other sources for more information. There is something new and relevant for everyone; however, many will also be familiar with some of the contents. That has been the challenge of making connections and connecting people through this newsletter. Please forward to colleagues. Browse away . . .

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Outdoor Connections Development Programme

In late 2004 the Minister for Education and Young People, Peter Peacock, requested that a development programme on outdoor education should be taken forward. SEED invited LT Scotland to undertake this task.

The development programme, Outdoor Connections, is designed to make outdoor connections across a range of current and emerging education priorities and policies, such as A Curriculum for Excellence, Health Promoting Schools, Active Schools, Determined to Succeed, Education for Citizenship and Education for Sustainable Development. In addition to making connections between policy, programmes and people, year 1 will develop research into the current state of outdoor education in Scotland and year 2 will develop and disseminate resources.

The aim is to continue to improve the quality of learning experiences through various and diverse outdoor programmes and approaches and to secure a sustainable status for outdoor education as part of overall education and lifelong learning provision.

The two-year programme is sponsored by the Scottish Executive Education Department (SEED). It will be implemented by a Development Officer based at and managed by Learning and Teaching Scotland and supported by a Management Group of SEED, LT Scotland and HMIE and a Programme Advisory Group. The Advisory Group represents a range of interests from local authority, voluntary and commercial outdoor education providers, teachers, education directorate, higher education institutions, the Scottish Advisory Panel for Outdoor Education and the Institute for Outdoor Learning.

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Development Officer Outdoor Education

In September 2005, Willie White was seconded by LT Scotland to the Development Officer post for 23 months. He was the Physical Activity Development Officer in East Ayrshire Council Education Department, having previously worked in its Outdoor Education Service and a number of Strathclyde Outdoor Education Centres.

Willie White
Development Officer Outdoor Education
Learning and Teaching Scotland
tel: 0141 337 5167
mobile: 07790 485 443
e-mail: w.white@LTScotland.org.uk

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Scottish Advisory Panel for Outdoor Education

There will be close collaboration and partnership working throughout the project’s life, in particular with the Scottish Advisory Panel for Outdoor Education (SAPOE).

SAPOE members are nominated by the Director of Education of each local authority. A list of members is available on the SAPOE website:

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Integrated Curriculum Outdoors

A Curriculum for Excellence

This sets out the Scottish Executive's vision for transforming Scottish education. It seeks to establish the values, purposes and principles of education in Scotland for children between the ages of 3 and 18.

Values – 'Wisdom, justice, compassion and integrity: the words which are inscribed on the mace in the Scottish Parliament have helped to define values for our democracy.'

Purposes of the curriculum 3–18 – 'Our aspiration for all children and for every young person is that they should be successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors to society and at work.'

Use the Starter Kit to examine the extent to which your outdoor learning provider’s present practices and policies match the values, purposes and principles of ‘A Curriculum for Excellence’.

Citizenship / Sustainable Development / Numeracy

Biodiversity gets a boost from Eco Schools Scotland
Pupils from Inveraray Primary School showed Rhona Brankin, the Deputy Minister for Environment and Rural Development, that learning outdoors can be fun as she took part in a game using birds, worms and insects to teach maths. The Deputy Minister visited the school in September to launch the new Eco Schools Scotland Biodiversity Module, which encourages schools to get outdoors and investigate the diversity of life on the planet at both a local and global level.

Inclusion / Literacy / Curriculum Flexibility

'Life and Limb', the inspiring story of Jamie Andrew
Jamie will be spending 25 days at Perth High School, where he will not only be working with its Outdoor Education team but will also be involved in a project with the English department.

Robin Illsley, Depute Rector at Perth High School, explains: 'The pupils responded so well to Jamie when he came in to give a series of introductory talks that we decided to use his book as a way to get the fifth years – particularly the boys – more interested in reading. I've read 'Life and Limb' three times already and it's not only a good story, it makes you reflect on life. I've even quoted bits from it in school assemblies.'

'What kids respond well to is seeing someone from the outside world who is making a go of it and can come in and show them that there's more to life than four walls and the exams they're swotting for – or not swotting for. It's good for kids to know that there is a world out there that is full of potential. And it doesn’t matter if their talents are in academia or in sport or art. It doesn’t matter because there are always opportunities for anyone who has a passion.' Jamie Andrew.

Enterprise in Education

Does your outdoor learning provide an environment and opportunity for children to:

• assess their strengths and weaknesses
  
• use their own learning style
  
• source information and advice
  
• have fun and be motivated
  
• make decisions
  
• solve problems
  
• negotiate successfully
  
• interact with people in authority
  
• resolve conflict
  
• communicate well?

'Determined to Succeed', the Scottish Executive’s strategy for enterprise in education, lists these and more to encourage enterprising values in children. 'A "can do, will do" attitude in our young people is not just about producing the business people and entrepreneurs of tomorrow. It is the route to a more enterprising Scotland populated by people who understand the contribution they can make as citizens, both to our society and economy.'

Use the simple 'Tool for Teachers Developing an Enterprising Culture in the Classroom through Self Evaluation' to see how enterprising your outdoor classroom culture is.

Early Years / Creativity / Expressive Arts / Health

Early Years Bear Hunting through Grass, Mud, River, Forest and Cave. Did the children find any?
Gael Force Winds, a wind trio from the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, came to Sanday School, Orkney, to work with the children on a short musical production based on the children's story 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt'. The nursery children were asked to create artwork based on some of the themes described in the book. They set off on a bear hunt, which lasted four weeks (no tents – they did go home in between!). The children took video and stills cameras to record what they found on their bear hunt. Finally, the whole project culminated in a display and presentation.

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Research

'86% of Primary Schools and 99% of Secondary Schools in England and Wales offer their pupils at least one residential opportunity during their time at school. 66% of pupils take up this opportunity. The bulk of visits are outdoor education trips.'
Taken from 'Research into residential opportunities available for young people through schools', funded by the Department for Education and Skills, managed by the Scout Association and the Duke of Edinburgh's Award.

'Schools, local authorities and outdoor providers need to optimise the extent to which work out-of-school is integrated with work in school before they try to increase the amount of time spent in the outdoor classroom.'
One of the priorities for action recommended to the Westminster Government’s proposed Manifesto for Education Outside the Classroom by the National Foundation for Education Research in 'Engaging and Learning with the Outdoors – The Final Report of the Outdoor Classroom in a Rural Context Action Research Project'.

Insight 22: Study Support and Out of School Hours Learning in Scottish Schools
'We know from some additional comments provided in the questionnaires that schools' residential activities utilised outdoor work. Comments provided as additional text in questionnaire responses and information gathered from the nine case studies indicated that there has been an increase in the diversity of SSP activities to address a number of National Priorities and that this has included the use of outdoor activities linked to the curriculum and residential activities.

Lead officers and headteachers believed that outdoor activities provided locally or residentially were particularly appropriate and effective to address the needs of more disaffected pupils. Such provision appears to have promoted greater inter-agency work with schools drawing on the support of specialists from agencies and services specialising in working with disadvantaged young people or those such as outdoor education advisers, who can provide specialist skills in outdoor activities.' Kevin Lowden, Senior Researcher, The SCRE Centre, Faculty of Education, University of Glasgow.

Scottish education research planned for 2006
Increasingly, the importance of research is recognised as providing a sound evidence base to inform decisions and directions in education. A number of research initiatives related to outdoor learning in 2006 will be helpful in this process. Your involvement in these projects will be invaluable.

Teachers' approaches and attitudes to engaging with the natural heritage through the curriculum – Scottish Natural Heritage

• Local authority practice and policy for promoting and supporting the natural heritage in the formal sector – Scottish Natural Heritage
  
• Physical activity and movement in the early years – LT Scotland
  
• How young people's achievements are recognised for the outcomes gained through outdoor education – Outdoor Connections
  
• Young people's views and opinions of outdoor education – Outdoor Connections
  
• Current state of outdoor education in Scotland – Outdoor Connections

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Safety

Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Risk in Education Debate
The Prime Minister said that something is 'seriously awry' when teachers feel unable to take children on school trips for fear of being sued.

This is your chance to have your say about risk in education.

• How should we strike the balance between letting children experience risk and protecting them?
  
• How do we ensure school trips are well planned, but avoid reams of paperwork?
  
• How can we support teachers and other staff to manage risks so that they can be confident they will be not be blamed if something does go wrong?

Sensible health and safety
A 10 year old drowned while ‘plunge pooling’ during a school trip to Cumbria in May 2002. Like most accidents, this tragedy could have been avoided if the risks had been properly managed. This is a website about learning lessons. It is aimed at anyone connected with educational visits, particularly those involving adventure activities.

Safety self-assesment
Need help with overhauling your adventure activity safety management? Whether you’re an Adventure Activities Licensing Authority (AALA) licence holder or a school doing its own thing, the Self Assessment Tool downloadable from the AALA website will give you something to think about. Use bits at staff meetings or to get anonymous feedback from staff to make sure that what you think happens actually happens.

Aberdeenshire Council website
An example of how one local authority has used ICT and the internet to communicate its outdoor learning safety policy with users in an accessible, easy-to-navigate format.

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Events

Scotland's Forest Education Initiative National Networking Day – 24 November 2005, Chatelherault Country Park
The event is run in collaboration with the Forest School network in Scotland. There will be updates and presentations on the curriculum review, FEI and Forest School, and practical hands-on workshops.

IOL Scotland Conference: The Future of Outdoor Education in Scotland – 26 November 2005, Battleby
This event offers a unique opportunity for people and organisations to meet and share their views on the future of outdoor learning in Scotland.

Outdoor Connections Launch Conference – early in the new year
This event is for policy makers and local authority Directorate to consider the potential of outdoor learning within the context of A Curriculum for Excellence and debate the issues in light of recent research.

'Feelin' Groovy', Fast Forward Positive Lifestyles – 24 January 2006, Edinburgh
Training course that aims to assist practitioners working with young people to understand what self-esteem actually is and how it may be constructed, developed and impacted upon, particularly through the transitional years.

Wee Green Fingers (Gardening for biodiversity with pre-school children), Scottish Natural Heritage – 7 February 2006, Battleby
A workshop looking at the theory and practice of gardening for biodiversity, which is specifically designed for all those working with pre-school children, including nursery teachers, playgroup leaders and childminders.

Leading Edge Workshop, Scottish Natural Heritage – 2 March 2006, Battleby
A recent SNH study on public awareness and attitudes to the natural heritage identified that we need to concentrate our efforts on increasing people’s understanding of the human impact on biodiversity, sustainability, landscape, marine environments and protected areas. This year’s workshop for environmental education practitioners will be an opportunity to uncover inspirational key messages that people can relate to.

Outdoor Connections National 'Over the doorstep' Event 2007
Watch this space!

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Contact

Willie White
Development Officer Outdoor Education
Learning and Teaching Scotland
74 Victoria Crescent Road
Glasgow
G12 9JN
0141 337 5167
e-mail: w.white@LTScotland.org.uk

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