COVID may give outdoor education a boost

In 2005 Richard Louv wrote Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children From Natural Deficit Disorder. The book kicked off a passionate discussion about the importance of outdoor education as a restorative force in a world teeming with screens and sedentary activities. When I read the book it made me want to grab my then two year-old and run for the forest. It made me gasp for the scent of pine, when all around me were rank, imitation air fresheners.

One way to remediate all the sitting and screens of school is to hold class outside. Outdoor schools, or forest schools, have proven themselves to be fantastic alternatives to the staid classroom, offering both health and educational benefits, as proven by a growing body of research. Now, forest schools may get a further boost due to COVID. According to the Guardian, Scotland is eyeing outdoor school as a way to keep kids at a safe distance. Infection control is much easier outside, where kids can be given ample room to spread out, which gels with the latest COVID medical pronouncements on the relative safety of getting outside.

“This might be the way that outdoor learning gets pushed forward, but it’s about so much more than infection control. Teachers do need support to do this: there are not many things you can’t teach outdoors, you just have to think creatively,” Cameron Sprague, an outdoor educator, told the Guardian.

Indeed, COVID is the crack that may let the sunlight get in. It’s often difficult to get cumbersome school boards to trial new and seemingly unorthodox ways of educating. But COVID has shown us that our schools are very much capable of massive pivots. While outdoor schools exist in Canada, they’re inaccessible to most. Perhaps a more widespread approach to outdoor education will open the doors to more.

And if you think Canada’s too cold for outdoor schools, there’s a wonderful Scandinavian expression that puts the lie to that: There’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad dressing. Anecdotal evidence tells me this is true, as well. My son spends full days outside in -20 weather at his weekend outdoor school, and comes home with rosey cheeks and no complaints. 

Might getting outside a bit more both help us fight COVID and explore healthier ways of schooling our children? Let’s find out!

Be sure to follow our social channels for more daily tips & resources on how you can bring down carbon emissions. 

Instagram: @fairpathforward
Facebook: Fair Path Forward