Outdoor environmental education programs frequently aim to influence participants' environmental values and behaviors. Published studies have frequently documented their success in doing so. However, few studies have examined the characteristics of programs in relation to accomplishing those goals. Using characteristics identified as important in…

With this study, the contribution of the waste management themed summer program, which includes enriched activities considering the learning needs of gifted students, has contributed to the students' environmental attitudes, creative thinking skills and critical thinking dispositions. A five-day program was applied to gifted (n = 29) fifth grade…

There has been an increasing focus on test scores and rankings in schools. However, the focus on children's standardized test scores has come at the cost of their social relations. As a reaction to this test-centric focus, new approaches claim that nature is important not only for children's social relations but also for their scholastic…

This paper draws on data collected during an outdoor education camp in regional Australia, where the researchers observed the teaching practice of a veteran outdoor educator. We first situate the study in a summary of the outdoor education literature and policy that informed our research. We then present the observed teaching strategies, detailing…

Teachers' experiences and attitudes play a critical role in outdoor education. In this study, we aim to explore how 5th-10th-grade (10-15 years-old students) teachers use the natural environment in their teaching practices, with special attention to the link to sustainable development (SD). In total, 42 in-service teachers were invited to…

This case study examined how the agency of a fifth-grade pupil appeared across different learning environments in the primary school context. In this study, agency is defined as the initiatives taken by an individual in interactive situations. The research question is: how does a pupil's agency manifest and vary through taking initiatives across…

This study uses John Dewey's theoretical concept of "aesthetic experience" in empirically exploring expressions of cognition and emotion in students' meaning-making processes. A case study was conducted in one class of Grade 6 students during a single school semester. This article reports results from five outdoor days. The empirical…

The present study explores the outcomes of teaching empathy and critical thinking to solve environmental problems. This investigation was done throughout the duration of an environmental education course within a primary school located in central Chile. A community-based research methodology was used to understand the formation of empathy and…