Does using the outdoors during a teacher education programme impact future practice?

Macgregor, Lisa ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6613-7112 (2020) Does using the outdoors during a teacher education programme impact future practice? In: LED Showcase Conference 2020, 3rd December 2020, Online. (Unpublished) Full text not available from this repository.

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Abstract

The amount of outdoor learning varies considerably from school to
school. Teacher education programmes need to address the challenge of preparing student teachers to make the most of the learning potential of the outdoors. An outdoor classroom was designed
and developed at a university campus as a resource for teacher education programmes. The classroom primarily supports
planning and micro-teaching activity by student teachers, but is also used for visiting children and teachers. A survey of student teachers revealed their primary concerns for outdoor learning focussed
on safety and weather, but resources and planning were also identified by them as possible constraints. Practical learning activities using the outdoor classroom were valued by student teachers. In student teacher interviews, following a teaching placement in schools, the students felt that the engagement with the outdoor classroom had increased their confidence for planning and teaching in the outdoors. Teaching is a complex activity and learning to teach requires ‘enactment’ of core practices such as planning and facilitating learning (Grossman, Hammerness and McDonald, 2009). Although enactment is largely achieved through work-based learning on school placements, some level of simulated enactment, for example through micro-teaching of peers, can be a powerful learning experience for student teachers. This is particularly important in outdoor learning where student prior experiences will vary considerably, where risk is perceived to be high, and where school placements vary considerably.

Item Type:	Conference or Workshop Item (Lecture)
Departments:	Learning Education and Development (LED)
Depositing User:	Christian Stretton
Date Deposited:	04 Dec 2020 15:28
Last Modified:	13 Jan 2024 11:30
URI:	https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/5817