Values stop play? Teachers’ attitudes to the early years outdoor environment

ABSTRACT

This paper explores the views and attitudes of a small group of teachers concerning the early years outdoor teaching and learning environment. Further their responses are compared to an online survey of teachers examining their attitudes to the early years outdoor environment. This extends the current knowledge as to the drivers for teachers’ professed actions when working in the early years outdoor environment, and specifically the extent to which the teachers’ own experiences of outdoors influences their professed behaviours in their role when working outside with children. At the heart of this discussion is the concern that only those teachers who have had good experiences of outdoor play themselves may go on to provide good outdoor experiences for young children.

KEYWORDS:

• Outdoors
• values
• outdoor education
• decision making
• attitudes
• early years
• aims

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Helen Bilton is Professor of Outdoor Learning and Director for the Postgraduate Taught Programmes at the University of Reading.

ORCID

Helen Bilton http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2001-2530