Outdoor Community Learning: Understanding Early Educators’ Perceptions and Potential of the Outdoors as Learning Environments

Conference: The European Conference on Education (ECE2022)
Title: Outdoor Community Learning: Understanding Early Educators’ Perceptions and Potential of the Outdoors as Learning Environments
Stream: Learning Experiences, Student Learning & Learner Diversity
Presentation Type: Live-Stream Presentation
Authors:
Siew Chin Ng, University of Melbourne, Australia
Nicola Yelland, University of Melbourne, Australia
Jeanne Marie Iorio, University of Melbourne, Australia

Abstract:

Differing opportunities for outdoor teaching and learning for educators and young children exist globally as urbanised countries do not have accessibility to extensive natural spaces and resources. A rich resource which urbanised landscapes might consider are the community facilities and settings which Chaudhury et al. (2015) described as public open spaces including parks, green spaces, sidewalks, plazas, playgrounds, shopping malls and community centres. These spaces are easily accessible to the public and allow for varied uses for individuals and groups, and can support the engagement with community in neighbourhoods. It also supports social connectedness between community members (Lachowycz & Jones, 2013). With a focus on exploring urbanized landscapes, this qualitative study reports findings based on pedagogical conversations with six early educators of children in six Kindergarten (five- to six-year-olds) classrooms across four preschools in Singapore. Preliminary analyses reveal that educators consider the holistic learning of young children important for developing appreciation, awareness and interaction with people and the environment. Taking into account the importance of comprehending educators’ own experiences, content analysis is being conducted to identify aspects which influence educators’ appreciation of the outdoors as well as their own learning experiences in outdoor-related professional programs. The findings represent initial understandings of educators’ current perceptions about the potential of learning experiences outdoors. This can inform future planning of professional learning opportunities relating to the use of outdoor community settings for young children’s learning.

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