The Benefits of Residential Fieldwork for School Science: Insights from a five-year initiative for inner-city students in the UK

Abstract

Amos, R. and Reiss, M. (2012). The benefits of residential fieldwork for school science:Insights from a five-year initiative for inner-city students in the UK. International Journal of Science Education, 34(4), 485-511. AbstractThere is considerable international interest in the value of residential fieldwork for school students. In the UK, pressures on curriculum time, rising costs and heightened concern over students' safety are curtailing residential experiences. Collaboration between several key providers across the UK created an extensive programme of residential courses for 11-14 year olds in London schools from [2004][2005][2006][2007][2008]. Some 33,000 students from 849 schools took part. This paper draws on the evaluation of the programme that gathered questionnaire, interview and observational data from 2706 participating students, 70 teachers and 869 parents / carers from 46 schools mainly in deprived areas of the city. Our findings revealed that students' collaborative skills improved and interpersonal relationships were strengthened and taken back to school. Gains were strongest in social and affective domains; behavioural improvements occurred for some students. Individual cognitive gains were revealed more convincingly during face-to-face interviews than through survey items. Students from socially deprived backgrounds benefitted from exposure to learning environments which promoted authentic practical inquiry. Over the five year programme, combined physical adventure and real-world experiences proved to be popular with students and their teachers.Opportunities for learning and doing science in ways not often accessible in urban school environments were opened up. Further programmes, which build upon the provision of mixed curriculum-adventure course design, have been implemented across the UK as a result of the London experience. The popularity and apparent success of these combination courses suggest that providers need to consider the value of developing similar programmes in the future.

The Case for Natural History

“…On studying the effects of learning outside the classroom, researchers (Amos & Reiss 2012;Dillon & Dickie, 2012;Davies et al, 2015) have pointed to gains in the affective, social/interpersonal, and physical/behavioural domains. Frøyland, Remmen and Sørvik (2016) observe that authentic geological observation had positive, long-term effects on students' scientific understanding.…”

Teachers’ intentions with outdoor teaching in school forests: Skills and knowledge teachers want students to develop

“…The results correspond with previous international research concerning the distinctions of objectives in four learning domains (Rickinson et al, 2004). Also, the students' need of positive influences in the affective and social domain in order to succeed in acquiring knowledge (Amos & Reiss, 2010) and the importance of interaction between in-and outdoors to achieve deeper understanding and renewed motivation towards learning (Braund & Reiss, 2006: Frøyland 2010 are confirmed. Furthermore, this study reveals that teachers' educational objectives differ even though they often use similar outdoor activities.…”

“…The effect of objectives in the affective and social domains is reported in an evaluation study of an out-of-school programme in London, UK, where data from 2700 students are reported (Amos & Reiss 2010). The evaluation revealed that students gained self-confidence, a greater sense of independence, and improved relationships both between students and students as well as students and teachers.…”

“…The evaluation revealed that students gained self-confidence, a greater sense of independence, and improved relationships both between students and students as well as students and teachers. Amos and Reiss (2010) consider that a positive impact in the affective and social domains seems to be a prerequisite to gain impact in the cognitive domain. The same holds true for Maria and Sverker who stress activities to gain procedural knowledge in order to make the students feel satisfied with something they managed to create.…”

‘Did you enjoy your holiday?’ Can residential outdoor learning benefit mainstream schooling?

“…Ideally this should be through similar designs (for example, Amos and Reiss, 2011) and in different educational contexts as the widespread use of mixed methods offers the best chance of improving the quality of the evidence base. This message builds on needs identified by others such as Johnson and Onwuegbuzie (2004) who believe that 'mixed methods research will be successful as more investigators study and help advance its concepts as they regularly practice it ' (p.14).…”