NatureScot Research Report 1313 - Teaching, learning and play in the outdoors: a survey of provision in Scotland in 2022

Year of publication: 2023

Authors: Mannion, G., Ramjan, C., McNicol, S., Sowerby, M. and Lambert, P. (University of Stirling) 

Cite as: Mannion, G., Ramjan, C., McNicol, S., Sowerby, M. and Lambert, P. (2023) Teaching, Learning and Play in the Outdoors: a survey of provision in 2022. NatureScot Research Report 1313.

Keywords

Outdoor; learning; outdoor play; education; school; pre-school; early years; Curriculum for Excellence; Learning for Sustainability; professional learning

Background

The provision of outdoor educational and play-based experiences are entitlements in Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence for children aged 3-18 (Scottish Executive, 2004; Learning and Teaching Scotland, 2010; Scottish Government, 2016a). Outdoor learning is also embedded across the Professional Standards for teachers by the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS 2021). Within the curriculum, outdoor learning can be an approach in any subject and in interdisciplinary learning. Alongside ‘global citizenship’ and ‘sustainable development education’, outdoor learning is a core component of ‘Learning for Sustainability’ (Scottish Government, 2012). Outdoor learning and play are keystone elements of Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence. They contribute to a wider set of policy imperatives dedicated to improving young people’s health, wellbeing, and educational outcomes, achieving the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, and Scotland’s target to become a Nature positive, Net Zero country.

This survey of outdoor learning builds on two previous surveys funded by NatureScot and partners, which assist us in understanding the duration, focus and locations of provision. Conducted in 2022 as the pandemic eased, the findings are timely allowing us an opportunity to reflect on changes in provision, supports for practice, and targets set by government in the Action Plan for Learning for Sustainability (Scottish Government, 2016).

This report provides an in-depth picture on teaching, learning and play provisions in early years and in primary schools, replicating an approach taken in both 2006 and 2014. We report here on circa 200 outdoor learning events provided by staff working in 19 early years centres and 25 primary schools randomly sampled across diverse catchment areas. This cross-sectional survey allows for comparison over time. Secondary school participation in the survey was too limited to include here. The low response rate from secondary schools most likely reflects a sustained period of pressure and stress in this sector as they returned to examinations after Covid.

Findings indicate sustained uplift in outdoor provision in early years settings but considerable decline to an average of 7 minutes per week in the primary school sector when comparisons are made with previous surveys. In addition, in 2022, we asked participants to self-report on professional learning experiences and confidence levels with respect to outdoor learning and play and Learning for Sustainability. Findings show low and inconsistent levels of professional learning and confidence across both sectors. Taken together, our analysis provides a critical starting point: further action is needed to improve outdoor learning provision and Learning for Sustainability, particularly through policy change and enhanced support for pre- and in-service professional learning opportunities in these areas. 

Main findings

Early Years’ provision outdoors has increased compared to 2014 survey findings. As in 2006 and 2014, this 2022 survey of outdoor provision occurred over a two-week period within May and June. We had 19 randomly sampled settings participating. The survey showed that on average 39% of the time at the centre was spent outdoors. This figure has risen from 23% in the 2006 survey, and from 36% in 2014. Early years provision continues to focus strongly on ‘play’ (as in 2014). 2022 data show a small increase in ‘off-site’ provision in woodland locations. 

Primary Schools’ outdoor provision has decreased compared to 2014. As in previous surveys, we captured durations of all outdoor learning events (not Physical Education) for an eight-week period in May-June. The 25 randomly sampled schools provided considerably less time outdoors compared to 2014. In 2014, the duration ‘per pupil per week’ was 30 minutes. In 2022, this was 7 minutes. Covid restrictions meant residentials were very uncommon, but this only accounts for part of the decline.

Primary Outdoor Provision Location and Focus. Use of grounds, visits to locations beyond the grounds, and beyond the local area were all down in 2022. Proportionally, by distance, 87% of the time outdoor was spent in school grounds or up to 1km from the school. By location, visits to woodlands accounted for 18% of the time spent outdoor and visits to local greenspaces (parks and gardens) accounted for 12%. Health and wellbeing, science and mathematics are the top curricular areas. ‘Practical activities’, ‘teamwork’, ‘nature’ and ‘play’ were the main foci. Less than 30% of outdoor events addressed Learning for Sustainability.

Secondary Schools. Only two secondary schools took part in the survey. These data are not reported upon as a result. Difficulty in recruitment was likely due to on-going pressure on the sector, pupil and staff absences, Covid restrictions, and the return to examinations at the time of the survey. 

Practitioner Confidence. Considerable numbers of staff across primary and early years lack confidence in facilitating outdoor learning and Learning for Sustainability. Early years practitioners reported higher confidence levels than school staff with respect to both outdoor learning and Learning for Sustainability. Primary teachers had higher confidence in outdoor learning (62.9%) than in Learning for Sustainability (40.3%). 

Professional Learning. Staff in receipt of lower levels of training also report lower confidence in outdoor learning and Learning for Sustainability. Provision of between 6 and 10 training sessions (where each ‘session’ considered to be approx. a half day event) was associated with increased confidence in outdoor learning and Learning for Sustainability. Participants who reported higher confidence worked in settings that had greater provision.

Perception of Provision Post-Covid. A little over half of all practitioners surveyed felt that provision had increased compared to pre-Covid. Just less than a third of respondents felt that provision has decreased. 

School Size and Outdoor Provision. There is a notable variation in provision. Schools providing more outdoor learning time tended also to be smaller in roll. All schools offering more than 10 minutes per week of outdoor provision had a roll of less than 100 pupils.

Outdoor learning continues to be experienced by teachers as curriculum-enhancing. Teachers’ reports overwhelmingly indicate outdoor learning enhances engagement and active learning, and was seen to render lessons more enjoyable and relevant. Our survey shows greenspace use for outdoor learning meets the need to provide for a wide variety of subject areas and for Learning for Sustainability, and that there is also improved engagement compared to indoor lessons.

Summary Recommendations

1. Across all sectors of education, the provision of outdoor learning and play needs to be expanded to provide for the experiences and outcomes outlined in Curriculum for Excellence.
2. Evidence suggests that an essential support for the expansion of outdoor provision will be the opportunity to engage in high quality professional learning. Linking professional learning for outdoor provision and Learning for Sustainability will be necessary to increase teacher confidence and expertise in both areas.
3. In early years, greater support for off-site visits and use of local areas will further expand provision.
4. In primary schools, there is a need to increase all types of outdoor provision: in school grounds, off-site, in local areas, and through day-long, and residential trips. Larger schools, schools in urban areas, and schools in areas of deprivation will need targeted support.
5. Increased use of natural greenspaces and ‘local nature’ by all sectors will further enhance provision especially learner engagement, challenge and enjoyment.
6. Further research is required to understand the links among quality outdoor provision, curriculum policy enactment, and wider policy priorities, including young people’s participation and rights, biodiversity loss, and climate change.
7. Further surveys are needed to understand outdoor provision in secondary schools and in special school settings.

Acknowledgements

The research was generously funded by a consortium of government-funded agencies. The main funder was NatureScot, with further support from Scottish Forestry, Historic Environment Scotland, Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park Authority and the Cairngorms National Park Authority. Staff from each funder formed an advisory group which informed the work.

This research would not have been possible without the generous support of the teachers and early years practitioners who gave their time and efforts to provide the information presented here.

Thanks are due also to the 18 local authority staff for supporting and promoting the research to all the schools and early years establishments in their local authority areas.

We are grateful for responses to our requests for inputs of relevance from across the research community networks in OL and Learning for Sustainability in Scotland. 

Abbreviations

Additional Support Needs: ASN

Curriculum for Excellence: CfE

General Teaching Council for Scotland: GTCS

Higher Education Institutions: HEI

His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education: HMIE

Information and Communications Technology:  ICT

Initial Teacher Education: ITE

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development: OECD

Physical Education: PE

Social Index of Multiple Deprivation: SIMD

Learning for Sustainability: LfS, capitalisation used throughout to denote the policy context specific to Scotland.

Outdoor learning:  Herein, the term includes all kinds of provision for learning and play outdoors: outdoor learning, education in outdoor settings, outdoor education including residential-based outdoor provision, outdoor play. It did not include breaktime activity or timetabled outdoor physical education for schools in the survey.

Introduction

Context

In this section, for the period since the last national survey (published in 2015), we refer to some of the outputs and practices of relevance to outdoor learning and Learning for Sustainability. We refer to some relevant policy initiatives, research outputs (from researchers based in Scotland), and developments in professional learning and teacher education. Our contextualising summary is of course partial.

Policy

Following critical commentary from an OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) report published in 2021, the Scottish education system has been under review. Pre-Covid, ongoing review and change has characterised the curriculum implementation process in Scotland with policy initiatives such as the National Improvement Framework (NIF) (Scottish Government, 2023), the Scottish Attainment Challenge (SAC) (Scottish Government, 2021a) and Scotland's Race Equality Framework (Scottish Government, 2016b). December 2022 saw the completion of the ‘National Discussion on Education’ led by independent facilitators. Commentators agree there has been increased bureaucratic demand on teachers taking time away from quality teaching and learning, including outdoor provision. In the ‘refreshed narrative’ of Curriculum for Excellence, Learning for Sustainability is an entitlement, whilst using the outdoors and our built and cultural heritage are positioned as key to supporting learning.

In the period between our surveys of outdoor learning, we have also seen increased emphasis on school-based core curricular areas and in improving outcomes for the less advantaged. The Scottish Attainment Challenge set out to address the poverty related attainment gap in Scottish schools. This policy was introduced in 2015 and is described as: “Prioritising improvements in literacy, numeracy and health and wellbeing of those children adversely affected by socio-economic disadvantage” (Scottish Government, 2021a). In a minority of cases, funding helped with the development of ‘outdoor learning, Green Gyms, and community gardens’ (Scottish Government, 2021a) as measures contributing to improving health and wellbeing of pupils. The majority of initiatives focused on literacy and numeracy interventions and approaches to improving health and wellbeing.

Since the last survey in 2014, Curriculum for Excellence through Outdoor Learning (2010) and Learning for Sustainability (Scottish Government, 2012) have been part of the Scottish policy landscape. In early years, the Scottish Care Inspectorate – the regulatory body – have provided guidance in ‘My World Outdoors’ which identifies it as an expectation that children have “daily opportunities to spend time outdoors” and “explore the natural environment” (Care Inspectorate, 2016, pg. 11). Outdoor experiences are also built into curriculum guidance ‘Realising the Ambition’ (Scottish Government, 2020):

“Take me outdoors frequently to help me learn about my wider world.  Experiencing fresh-air and being outdoors in different weathers and natural environments develops my understanding of life and benefits my wellbeing.”

Alongside policy, civic organisations and charities have continued to press for outdoor learning and play to be made a priority. In 2018, for example over 50 education, healthcare, governmental and environment groups created Scotland’s National Outdoor Play and Learning Position Statement (Inspiring Scotland, 2022). The revised GTCS standards continue to position outdoor learning, sustainable development education, and citizenship education as an ‘entitlement’ for all pupils (GTCS, 2021). In Scotland, there is currently a cross-party Bill in progress aiming to ensure that young people have opportunity to experience residential outdoor education to an approved educational standard, raising a debate about how best to support increased quality and duration of provision across all location types. Our current study sets out to inform on-going discussion about outdoor learning as a core feature of education in the Scottish curriculum, the degree of progress being made towards the entitlement to outdoor learning and Learning for Sustainability, and the degree of readiness of staff to enable this to happen in their local contexts.

Research Outputs on Outdoor Learning (Scotland)

In research, there has been considerable growth in activity, with many notable Scotland-based research contributions in the period 2015- 2022. In this introduction, we cannot comprehensively include all of the research outputs and activity. It bodes well that there are many active early career and experienced researchers now inquiring into aspects of outdoor learning, outdoor play, and Learning for Sustainability.

As part of the refresh of the Learning for Sustainability (2030) Action Plan, the Scottish Government commissioned a team based at the University of Dundee to investigate understandings and experiences of Learning for Sustainability from the perspective of practitioners and young people. The report (Scottish Government, 2023a) suggests that:

“young people believe they should have far greater opportunities for outdoor learning and that this will support the synergy of practice and theory allowing them to relate LfS to the outdoors in their school and community settings”

The report identifies a need to:

“enhance opportunities for outdoor learning so they are more frequent and broader in scope”

This important research highlights the opportunities that outdoor provision can offer in helping young people to access their entitlement to Learning for Sustainability. Taking a connected approach to outdoor provision in relation to Learning for Sustainability has the potential to impact on practice across all learning sectors.

In the summary volume, Scottish Education there are now chapters on Learning for Sustainability and outdoor learning (see Higgins and Christie, 2018; Higgins and Nicol, 2018) reflecting the now widely accepted mainstream position of these topics for practitioners and academics alike. In 2020, the Educational outcomes of Learning for Sustainability: literature review (Christie and Higgins 2020) provided us with valuable summaries of the evidence-informed outcomes of Learning for Sustainability provision. Learning for Sustainability pedagogies which include outdoor elements, are seen, for example, to contribute to learners’ overall development (knowing themselves and the world around them), their understanding of citizenship, their academic learning (through for example reducing stress, improving wellbeing), and their skills for life and work (for example critical thinking). Christie and Higgins (2020) suggest that while there is not currently any academic literature to suggest that Learning for Sustainability has a direct impact on the poverty related attainment gap, they indicate how Learning for Sustainability can raise “awareness of the relationship between a sustainable future and a more equal society” (Christie and Higgins, 2020, pg. vii). There is still scope for a discrete review of the outcomes of outdoor learning akin to this review.

In relation to outdoor learning provisions, a few research outputs are worthy of note. On the topic of staff development, Christie et al.’s (2019) article showed that Learning for Sustainability is misunderstood by many staff in schools in line with evidence from this study. Other research contributions from staff working in the Scottish Higher Education context include Barrable’s (2022) volume on nature-based learning via greenspace use. We note Dunkley and Smith (2019) research contribution on young people’s experiences of national parks visits and Dunkley’s (2022) paper on role of citizen science in education for sustainability. Gray’s (2022) paper highlights the contribution of garden-based learning to wellbeing and sustainability. Gray and Colucci-Gray (2019) attended to the role of outdoor experience in student teachers’ development whilst Mannion (2020) and Lynch and Mannion (2021) identify the features of a more place-responsive research and pedagogy needed for educators in outdoor learning. Scrutton’s many outputs included research that investigates the personal and social benefits of adventure education, residential adventure education, which more especially accrued to learners from deprived areas (Scrutton, 2015). With authorship from Scotland, the international PLaTO (Play Learn and Teach Outdoors) initiative gathered 22 researchers to provide an original ‘harmonised taxonomy’ of terms for outdoor learning and play. In early years, outdoor play and learning have gained attention in both research and in advice for practice (MacQuarrie et al, 2015, Robertson, 2014, 2017).

Reflecting on the position of outdoor provision in the school inspection context, Beames and Polack (2019) looked at Her Majesty’s Chief Inspectors’ reports (for 2011 – 2018) for mentions of outdoor learning across over 800 schools. They reported that only about one third of secondary school inspection reports mentioned outdoor learning in ‘grounds, local green space or local community during school hours’ while nearly ¾ of primary schools’ reports had such a mention. These data support the view that there is a need to address how inspections are conducted on outdoor and Learning for Sustainability provision. Their evidence suggests substantial numbers of schools may not be providing much in these curricular areas in line with our findings herein.

There are various networks of practitioners, policy actors, school-linked providers, and researchers in outdoor learning in Scotland. These include the National Network for Outdoor Learning, the Scottish Government Outdoor Learning Group, and the Outdoor Learning Research Network. Through doctoral training and research, Scotland also has a valuable and enviable pipeline in the form of expertise amongst early career outdoor learning-focused researchers. Many outdoor learning-related doctorates have been completed or are in-train across HEIs with some in receipt of funding. These include, for example, Masters’ (ongoing) study of the eco-social, health-related and population-wide outcomes of the work of environmental organisations (such as the John Muir Trust and Keep Scotland Beautiful), Mackie’s current study on the role of natural heritage in supporting learning for sustainability (Magnus Magnusson scholarship funded), Ramjan’s (ESRC-funded) study of ecological citizenship and the role of citizen science in schools (2023), Arts’ (2022) study of the interactions of people, technology and nature, Fenwick’s (2021) study of the intricate relationship of outdoor learning with the curriculum, Baker’s (2015) study on policy development of outdoor learning in Scotland, and Mattu’s (2016) study of primary school visits to farms. This growing body of research evidence provides a wide range of findings that can be drawn on to inform ongoing policy and practice in Scotland.

Young People’s Research

Young people’s own research about outdoor provision and Learning for Sustainability are increasing in scope and criticality especially in relation to the climate and nature emergencies. Teach The Future – an amalgam of young people’s environmental groups with support from the National Union of Students and active academic researchers – reviewed policy in Scotland. They seek fulfilment of the commitments to outdoor learning made in the Vision 2030+ action plan and call on the Scottish Government to ensure education in the outdoors is linked to ‘connection to nature’ and learning about the ‘climate emergency and ecological crisis’ (Teach the Future, 2020). In 2022, Scottish Government supported young people themselves in researching Learning for Sustainability via a Children’s Parliament inquiry (Children’s Parliament, 2022). 132 children aged 2-13 investigated provision and summarized young people’s views about the Learning for Sustainability curriculum with a focus on outdoor learning. Adopting a rights-based approach, these young researchers also focus on response-making to climate change, reminding civic bodies that young people have a right to an education that helps them develop respect for the natural environment and have a right to express a view about and help shape the curriculum they experience. Two of the Children’s Parliament’s ‘Calls to Action’ state:

1. All children should have the chance to learn outdoors throughout the school year.

• Children should be able to regularly learn about climate change and sustainability outside in nature.
• Being able to learn outdoors should not depend on where your school is based: every school in Scotland should have outdoor spaces to learn and play in.
• All children should have the opportunity to go to an annual outdoors school camp.

2. Outdoor learning should be part of every school subject.

• Teachers should plan outdoor learning into all their subjects at the start of each term.

(Children’s Parliament, 2022, pg. 18)

Professional Learning for Schools and Practitioners

In Initial Teacher Education (ITE), there are signs that outdoor learning is gaining recognition as part of pre-service provision. We note the appointments of ITE staff in some HEIs with considerable or complete attention being paid to outdoor learning in their role specification. Across ITEs, we see the use of outdoor spaces in, or near the campus of universities – such as greenspaces, woodlands, urban locations, zoological gardens, parks etc. – being used for teacher education experiences. On some campuses, discrete locations are developed or set aside for pre-service ITE outdoors that include greenspaces and bluespaces with specialist staff leading developments. Queen Margaret University exemplify this trend, having worked in partnership with Architecture and Design Scotland (A&DS) and NatureScot to develop dedicated outdoor learning spaces on campus, including the creation and use of a Wee Forest (a tennis court sized, densely planted native woodland, part of the ‘Tiny Forest Global Family’). Approaches to outdoor woodland education forms part of teacher education in some contexts. We note that pre-service education will feed around 3,000 new staff into the school sectors annually out of a staff of some 50,000 Scotland-wide. Thus, changing the school staff capabilities at scale even in the medium term, will require substantial attention to in-service education and professional learning.

In-service Supports and Professional Learning

A growing number of bodies support in-service professional learning in Scotland. These include social enterprise organisations, charities and private companies. NatureScot have directly supported over 100 schools is disadvantaged communities to access local greenspace through their ‘Learning in Local Greenspace’ project (NatureScot, 2022). Other organisations have received funding from NatureScot to enhance or enable outdoor provision, such as Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Eòlas Outdoor learning, Under the Trees, and Urban Roots. As one of the main providers, Learning through Landscapes (LtL) continue to provide considerable in-service provision both in-person and online for schools wanting to develop grounds and / or their local outdoor provision. The wide range of training opportunities ensures schools have many go-to organisations for high quality provision and whole-school development. Some, such as LtL, have a strong history of developing programmes based on research evidence. This has led to long term courses, and some are accredited by General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS), as well as shorter in-service days focused more tightly on specific areas of curriculum.

Many local authorities, with support from the Scottish Advisory Panel for Outdoor Education (SAPOE), have developed materials and programmes to support staff in provision. This has included online learning, and in-person training. We are aware of a number of authorities with training or support programmes (for example, Fife, East Ayrshire, Dundee, Dumfries and Galloway, Falkirk and Edinburgh). SAPOE’s (revised in 2021) ‘Going Out There’ guide to safe practice for off-site visits continues to provide user-friendly framework for schools in terms of risk assessment and planning.

Many grassroots and independent providers offer support for in-service staff. This is especially noticeable in the early years sector and in woodland learning and forest school type training. There is a thriving ‘Outdoor Woodland Learning’ (OWL) network with groups across the country providing training and support especially in the area of Forest Kindergarten provision. Of note too is Juliet Robertson’s world-renowned provision of support for outdoor learning for all sectors via Creative Star whose website is now in receipt of over 1 million visits; thousands of educators have benefited over the years from her workshops and training. The HEI sector offers a number of master’s level programmes for in-service staff where outdoor learning can be an optional focus. Many opportunities exist for targeted professional learning for early years practitioners via private and statutory bodies. For example, in some Further Education colleges and in University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) students may avail of an award in Forest Kindergarten.

Educational Self-Evaluation and Inspectors’ Review,

Through the Scottish ‘self-evaluation’ framework How Good Is Our School, establishments are pressed to internally and transparently demonstrate developments towards outdoor learning and Learning for Sustainability across the life of the school or establishment. In 2022, the inspectorate of schools and early years settings carried out a thematic review of ‘Successful Approaches to Outdoor Learning’ (HMIE, 2022). Using 35 case studies selected to exemplify effective practice, the HMIE review usefully identified features and approaches that were supportive. The document identified some key inputs and supports including leadership, professional learning and partnership working with practice often focusing on wellbeing. The report encourages outdoor curriculum-making through dialogue with learners and active engagement with pupil views. Further, HMIE suggested that the Covid pandemic had ‘accelerated the breadth and depth of outdoor learning’ (pg. 4). In our survey of randomly selected establishments, 58% of early year and 61% of primaries also believed that provision had increased compared to pre-pandemic levels. However, our survey of provision indicates that for our randomly sampled primary schools, provision had very considerably decreased compared to 2014 levels.

Summary

The policy environment has had mixed effects on outdoor provision over time, sometimes with the effect of decreasing its importance. All core educational policy initiatives, such as the Attainment Challenge, need to explicitly encourage outdoor provision enhancement. The growth of an outdoor learning research community in Scotland bodes well, but the ever-present challenge to link research and policy with practice remains. Young people’s own research sets out a clear call for more regular outdoor provision that connects with nature and addresses the climate emergency. Evidence in our survey on school and early years pre-service and in-service education shows there is scope for a more comprehensive offer to support staff confidence and expertise. Whilst closer working arrangements between in-service professional learning providers have arisen through the Covid period (especially via online), the challenge of structures, routines and funding for a system-wide approach to teacher professional learning on outdoor provision and Learning for Sustainability remains. Post-Covid, the factors that hinder or support provision include, leadership at school and local authority level, access to usable outdoor spaces, timetabling constraints, and the prioritisation of health and wellbeing, amongst others. Contemporary policy and research suggests that further alignments between Learning for Sustainability and outdoor provision are possible and probable. For these links to be made in practice, at this time of climate crisis and nature emergency will require a range of measures and supports. The evidence from this survey on, inter alia, outdoor provision, levels of staff confidence, and staff competence provides some direction for the prioritisation of these measures and supports.  

Methodology

Research design

The survey set out to provide an understanding of the changing nature of the scope and range of formal outdoor experiences arranged by schools and pre-school centres. ‘One-off’ surveys of teacher beliefs or judgement of levels of provision would clearly provide inadequate data sets that would not be reliable or comparable between schools or between subsequent survey waves.  Instead, our cross-sectional survey approach, replicated in 2006, 2014 and 2022, on outdoor provision is internationally distinctive in that it requires schools and pre-school centres to provide weekly updated records for each individual outdoor learning event both on and off school or pre-school centre sites with a record of its location, duration, focus, curriculum area, amongst other aspects. The design of the research is based on the view that teachers themselves are well placed to self-report on formal outdoor provisions. With data now available for 2006, 2014, and 2022, we have opportunity to look at changes across a range of measures including, for example, cost, location, and curricular focus. For further information on other elements of the research design, see also Mannion et al. (2015).

For the purposes of the survey, we took outdoor learning provisions to mean formally delivered educational experiences that took place outside the school building, capturing activity in the school grounds, in local areas and further afield, and residentiallywhether delivered by teachers or other staff. It should be noted that in 2022, residential trips and trips away in buses were rare or non-existent due to Covid restrictions. In early years settings, outdoor provisions captured time spent in the outdoors of the nursery as well as organised trips into the nursery grounds or offsite. The survey approach seeks to capture all outdoor educational activity across all subjects and interdisciplinary themes inclusive of play time in early years but not breaktime or PE in schools.

Survey instrument

The 2022 survey was developed through a sequence of pilots for validity, accuracy, user-friendliness and use in the digital platform. The survey went online for the first time in 2022 to make reporting easier including with the use of mobile devices. The instrument was piloted by research staff, individual teachers and selected settings ahead of time. For schools, the survey was time-limited, as in 2006 and 2014, and was conducted over an eight-week period in May and June ensuring comparability. In early years settings, as in 2014, we took a two-week window for data capture due to the nature of provision where there is often an easy flow of children indoors and outdoors over the period of the pre-school session.

Otherwise, in 2022, we re-used the same core elements of survey instruments used in 2006 and 2014 (see previous survey in 2014 for details here). This allowed us to make comparisons with past provision on the durations, types and locations of outdoor provisions, their associated purposes and foci, and how areas of deprivation were impacted. We also asked about the leadership of events, how costs were met, distance travelled from school, and the respondents’ views on engagement and enhancement of learning. As in past surveys, we did not survey for Physical Education or for activity at break times at school level. Schools were asked not to record track and field games or sports except for adventure sports (such as mountain biking or skiing). We included beach and seaside environments as a new option in the approach to location. We separately surveyed for ‘challenge’ and enjoyment’ where in the past these had been co-joined.  

In 2022, we additionally asked respondents a number of new questions, asking them to self-report on the nature and extent of their professional learning and training in outdoor learning and Learning for Sustainability and about their confidence levels in this provision. We also asked about respondents’ appraisal of whether provision had changed due to Covid.

Data collection process

After gaining local authority agreement, schools and early years centres were approached and asked to voluntarily participate as in 2014. Head teachers and individually responding teachers and early years practitioners were provided with survey information and gave consent via the online documentation. We assured participating establishments of anonymity in reporting. Uptake was lower for survey participation in 2022 than in 2014. 18 participating local authorities consented for us to approach schools and early learning and childcare settings, of these, returns were provided by settings across 16 local authority areas. 19 pre-schools and 34 primary schools consented to take part in the outdoor provision survey and provided returns. Just over 100 early years practitioners and school staff provided returns on their experience of professional learning. For secondary schools and ASN settings, participation was too low to report. It is worth noting that the sampling approach required voluntary participation. This means that interested establishments taking part possibly offered more outdoor provision than a non-voluntary sample. Indeed, in the evaluation of our survey, see Annex 3, five out of seven establishments suggested that their outdoor provision was likely greater than other similar settings that they were aware of.

Detailed advice on ‘what to survey’ was given to schools at the outset. Schools were provided with supportive live online and recorded workshops and some in-person advice.  Schools were reminded regularly about the submission of returns online and were given support in this. Returns were captured directly onto digital databases via the online survey tool. We evaluated the process again in 2022 asking respondents about how confident they felt they had been in reporting. Most (71%) suggesting they were somewhat or extremely confident that all or nearly all outdoor activities had been captured in the survey, and that most (86%) found the digital survey easy to use.

Summary of Participants

Returns on the topic of professional learning were made from 108 teachers, from 58 schools and early years settings. See breakdown in table 1 below: 

Of those who responded, 18.5% were early career practitioners (probationer-5 years), 50% were mid-career (6-17 years), and 31.5% were late-career (18-38 years).  

Participating establishments were located in urban and rural areas. Primary schools were located predominantly in rural (50%) and small town (15%) locations, while urban early years settings represented just over half (58%) of our sample. There were no settings found in large urban areas. A geographic spread was also evident, with participants from the central belt, southern and northern Scotland involved.

For early years settings, the number of establishments contributing has increased since 2014. The number of on-site activities recorded has reduced (243 in 2014 to 71 in 2022) and the number of off-site activities recorded has increase marginally. This is likely to be due to the online recording approach taken in 2022. For primary schools, while the number of schools contributing remained similar, the number of both on-site and off-site activities recorded were markedly reduced. The number of secondary schools contributing was reduced to 2, and there was 1 ASN setting contributing. Due to the small number of returns from secondary and ASN settings, only early years and primary school findings will be reported upon hereafter. 

Settings in all SIMD quintiles were represented in our sample. For primary schools, in 2022 there were fewer participating schools from the lowest quintiles with 7.69% in the lowest and 19.23% in SIMD 2 compared with 19.23% and 23.08% in 2014. The majority of primary schools were in SIMD 4 (46.15%).

Findings

Section 1: Outdoor Learning Provisions

Duration of outdoor provision: Early Years

Early years practitioners were asked to record the number of children and the duration outdoors in their settings over two (non-consecutive) weeks during May and June 2022.

The overall time outdoors has increased for early years children since 2014. 39% of the day was spent outdoors for children in 2022 versus 36% in 2014 and 23% in 2006. 

Duration of outdoor provision: Primary School

Primary school participants were asked to record the number of children and the duration of time outdoors for an eight-week period during May and June 2022.

For primary schools, time spend outdoors was lower in 2022 than in both previous surveys. Our measure across all surveys for duration has been ‘per pupil, per week’. This was 7 minutes in 2022 for primary schools down from 30 minutes in 2014. Certainly, some of this reduction will be due to reduced residential visits (rendered impossible due to Covid). However, the non-residential figure for 2014 was 24 minutes. Hence, even after stripping out the time for residential provision, this represents a notable two thirds reduction in outdoor duration for pupils in 2022 compared to 2014.  We select other aspects of the analysis below to explain some of this further reduction.

Practitioner confidence and outdoor provision

Outdoor learning duration is associated with practitioner confidence in our analysis – we report on this link in Section 2 (below).

Range of Duration Per Week and School Size

School roll size is also associated with outdoor learning duration. We noticed, as in previous years that a small number of schools provided a lot of outdoor events and that these high providers were generally smaller schools.

The range of time spent outdoors varied considerably across the settings in this survey. The shortest amount of time was 0.15minutes per pupil per week, with the longest 132 minutes per pupil per week. This is similar to the range found in 2014 (0.83 minutes per pupil per week – 142 minutes per pupil per week).

School Size. The mean roll in 2014 was 216 (rounded) with a median of 201, in 2022 this was a mean of 142 (rounded) with a median of 98. This suggests that the school size in the 2022 sample is notably smaller than that of 2014 sample.

The following scatter graph (figure 1) allows us to show an association between the size of the school and outdoor duration (average roll as per Scottish Government School Level Summary Statistics, 2021b).

In this survey, pupils spent less than 10 minutes outdoors (per pupil, per week) in schools with an average school roll of 202. However, for those who spent more than 10 minutes per week outdoors, the average school roll was 32. All children who spent more than 10 minutes outdoors had a school roll of less than 100. This indicates that, similar to the findings in 2014, smaller schools tend to provide more outdoor learning events. 

Early Years Settings 

Primary Schools