Why outdoor learning offers the breath of fresh air all Scottish schools need

They say that sometimes the simplest solutions are the best ones, and so it may be for Scottish education.

After all, there has been no shortage of negativity in the discourse relating to the nation’s schools in recent years.

Education has been disrupted by Covid and industrial action. Then there are the cuts to teacher numbers in some areas, an explosion in the number of pupils with often-complex additional support needs, an associated rise in levels of aggression, violence, anxiety and absenteeism, not to mention the widening of the poverty-related attainment gap, and declining scores in international tests.

Merchiston Castle

Research carried out for the Scottish Government last year confirmed an overall increase in “disengagement” among youngsters in school, with problematic use of mobile phones highlighted for secondary pupils in particular.

While Covid-19 has been blamed for exacerbating many of these trends, there is increasing evidence the pandemic may also have unleashed an antidote, of sorts.

The coronavirus lockdowns, when indoor meetings with people from other households were banned, provided evidence of what many teachers already knew - that going outside boosts learning, engagement and wellbeing.

Now, following a huge rise in the number of forest nurseries in recent years, the benefits of outdoor learning are being instilled in the next generation of Scottish teachers through teacher training courses, and they are being cemented in the curriculum of schools like Merchiston Castle, as detailed in The Scotsman today.

Conservative MSP Liz Smith has also recently introduced a Bill at Holyrood calling for all pupils in Scotland's secondary schools to receive a residential week of outdoor education.

In this financial climate, one stumbling block could be the cost to the Scottish Government of funding such a scheme.

More generally, money is also likely to be an issue for schools, particularly in the state sector, which do not have large outdoor areas in their grounds, and may require additional staff or transport spending to take groups of pupils further afield.

If the move to outdoor learning is going to fully deliver the kind of benefits its enthusiasts envisage - and help reverse some of the negative trends of recent years - then it is vital that schools in more disadvantaged and urban areas are afforded the same opportunities as those on 100-acre estates.