Outdoor Education in Primary school: Natural Science and Biology

Učenci se v naravi učijo preko realnih ter neposrednih izkušenj. V magistrskem delu smo želeli raziskati, kako poteka poučevanje v naravi na slovenskih osnovnih šolah pri rednem pouku naravoslovja v 6. in 7. razredu ter biologije v 8. in 9. razredu, saj želimo otrokom čim bolj približati naravo in se izogniti situacijam, ki jih je eden izmed učiteljev navedel v anketnem vprašalniku: ˝Otroci ne sodelujejo pri pouku naravoslovja, saj nočejo stopiti na mokro travo.« Ker menimo, da lahko učitelji v sklopu rednega pouka naravoslovja in/ali biologije spodbudijo uveljavljanje poučevanja v naravnem okolju, smo jih vključili kot ciljno skupino naše raziskave. Na podlagi podatkov anketnega vprašalnika, ki ga je izpolnilo 108 učiteljev naravoslovja in/ali biologije, smo pridobili vpogled v trenutno stanje izvajanja poučevanja v naravi. Večina anketiranih učiteljev poučuje v naravi manj kot 40 % vseh učnih ur, po učnem načrtu predpisanih za izvajanje aktivnih metod. Učence vodijo večinoma na enodnevne naravoslovne ekskurzije ali teren (1‒2 uri) izven šolskega okoliša, čeprav imajo že okoli šole ustrezne naravne pogoje za izvajanje pouka. V sklopu raziskave smo pridobili vpogled, s katerimi ovirami se anketirani učitelji srečujejo. Ugotovili smo, da anketirane učitelje najbolj omejujejo pomanjkanje časa, pomanjkanje kadra za spremstvo, preobsežen kurikulum in preveliko število učencev v oddelkih. Kljub navedenim oviram se pri poučevanju v naravi počutijo suverene in na tem področju ne zaznavajo nizke stopnje usposobljenostipredpostavljamo, da imajo na voljo dovolj priložnosti za izpopolnjevanje oziroma nadgradnjo znanja in veščin na tem področju. Poučevanje v naravi je uspešno samo, če učitelj razume razlog obiska naravne lokacije in verjame v smiselnost poučevanja na prostem, zato smo raziskali tudi njihov odnos do tovrstnega poučevanja. Anketirani učitelji naravoslovja in/ali biologije so motivirani in si želijo dodatnega izpopolnjevanja na tem področju. Poučevanje v naravi se jim zdi učinkovito, pomembno in koristno za učence. Ker verjamemo, da ima poučevanje v naravi potencial sodobnega šolanja, smo predlagali zapolnitev vrzeli na različnih ravneh, na katere smo naleteli v sklopu naše raziskave.Students learn in nature through real and direct experiences. In the Master\u27s thesis, we want to investigate how teaching in nature takes place in Slovenian primary schools during regular classes of Natural Science in the 6th and 7th grades and Biology in the 8th and 9th grades, because we want to bring the pupils as close as possible to the nature and avoid situations like one of the teachers stated in the survey questionnaire: "Children do not participate in science lessons because they do not want to step on wet grass". Because we believe that teachers, as part of regular Natural Science and/or Biology lessons, can encourage the implementation of teaching in the natural environment, we included them as the target group of our research. Based on the data of the questionnaire filled out by 108 Natural Science and/or Biology teachers, we gained insight into the current state of teaching in nature. The majority of surveyed teachers teach in nature less than 40% of all teaching hours prescribed for the implementation of active methods according to the curriculum. Pupils are mostly taken on one-day science excursions or field trips (1-2 hours) outside the school environment, even though they already have suitable natural conditions around the school. As part of the research, we gained a view of obstacles that teachers face during teaching in the nature. We found that surveyed teachers are most limited by lack of time, lack of support staff, too extensive curriculum and too many students in the class. Despite the mentioned obstacles, they feel sovereign when teaching in nature and do not know a low level of competence in this area, as we assume that they have enough opportunities for improvement or upgrading their knowledge and skills. Teaching in nature is only successful if the teacher understands the reason for visiting a natural location and the meaning of teaching outdoors, so we also investigated their attitude to this kind of teaching. The surveyed teachers are motivated and want additional fulfillment in this field. They find teaching in nature effective, important and useful for students. Because we believe that teaching in nature has the potential of modern schooling, we proposed to fill the gaps at various levels that we encountered as part of our research