AUTUMN NEWS 2012
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LEARNING BY DOING
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Surviving the changing climate Randall Williams Former Chair of the English Outdoor Council, Randall Williams, takes a look at the challenges facing the outdoor education industry in a climate of austerity. Like many services, outdoor education is fighting for survival in an unforgiving climate. Many local authority centres have closed or are under threat of closure. This gives the private and charitable sectors an opportunity for growth in partial compensation. Yet it may have a detrimental impact on some more disadvantaged young people. Those children whose parents can afford to pay will continue to benefit from the experience of outdoor education. But the withdrawal of local authority subsidies could mean that those whose parents can’t afford it may miss out on a very powerful developmental experience. In principle, both the Department for Education (DfE) and Ofsted support outdoor education, but this doesn’t extend to practical help for schools. The DfE doesn’t issue any specific guidance on the matter and Ofsted doesn’t routinely comment on the extent of a school’s outdoor education offering. Despite this, many schools continue to offer outdoor education to all pupils and many head teachers remain enthusiastic, perhaps because they’ve been able to see the benefits for themselves. There is incontrovertible evidence for the positive effects of outdoor education and there is still substantial political
support for it. There was massive support for a 2010 Early Day Motion and the Education Select Committee is strongly in favour of an entitlement for every child, along with the accompanying financial provision. Unfortunately the current coalition government doesn’t directly support this, either financially or by providing guidance to schools. Ironically, both the current and previous governments have committed substantial resources to outdoor-based personal development, targeted at social rather than educational objectives. The Labour government launched several large programmes including Uproject. In turn, the National Citizen Service programme is one of the current administration’s flagship priorities. All these programmes have or had residential adventure-based personal development at their heart.
‘There’s no question that outdoor education is a powerful developmental tool’ There is cross-party consensus that it works. At the English Outdoor Council we believe that leaving it until age 16 is too late and that an earlier intervention would have far greater pre-emptive effect. Yet successive governments have resisted creating any form of entitlement within the curriculum in England. In contrast, Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence through Outdoor Learning provides explicit guidance on outdoor learning and, in Wales, adventurous activities are an integral part of the National Curriculum. There’s no question that outdoor education is a powerful developmental
tool but it’s not a single identifiable subject – more an approach to learning that can be applied across all areas. Perhaps this is why it hasn’t yet been embedded in the curriculum and why there isn’t yet an expectation that all pupils will benefit from the experience. As education professionals, we should challenge the government with the following questions: • Despite the evidence for its powerful developmental impact, outdoor education is still not recognised as part of the formal school curriculum and access is therefore a postcode lottery. Will the government set up a review to consider how the experience could be included in the curriculum? • How can the political enthusiasm for the use of challenging outdoor activities for 16 year olds be channelled into a similar enthusiasm for outdoor education at a younger age? • What steps are the government taking to ensure that those pupils whose parents cannot afford to pay for these activities continue to receive the necessary financial support to ensure they don’t miss out on powerful development opportunities? • How can we ensure that all newlyqualified teachers have the competence to work outside the classroom? At the English Outdoor Council we are committed to lobbying for increased support for our young people. Our aim is to see every child offered the opportunity to take part in high-quality outdoor learning. We work in partnership with the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom as well as carrying out regular campaigns to raise awareness and support. You can find out more at www.englishoutdoorcouncil.org.
A healthier future for our children Ellie Needham Kingswood is proud to support the NHS Change4Life movement. Continued on page 2
The campaign was introduced in January 2009, as part of the Government’s strategy to tackle obesity. Its aim was to promote a healthier lifestyle to parents of children aged 5-11. Since then the movement has grown to include babies, toddlers, teenagers and adults.