Efficacy comparison of instruction inside and outside the classroom

A case study on climate change.

Teaching activities outside the classroom are usually considered as beneficial learning situations. However, the effectiveness of these has been insufficiently investigated. In order to discuss the question of whether there is always an added value of learning processes taking place in nature, two aspects needed to be taken into account. Firstly, the value of the experience in nature in general, and secondly the learning effectiveness of a school-​based intervention.

To address this, an intervention study with 5th and 6th graders in Swiss elementary schools was performed, focusing on climate change issues. The teaching units were developed according to the Education of Sustainable Development (ESD) framework. Applying a pre-​post-follow-up-design two experimental groups (in- and outdoor) and one control group (to avoid testing effects) were studied concerning their environmental knowledge, environmental attitude and environmental action competence. Moreover, existing instruments for measuring environmental attitude and action competence have been applied and validated. A new measure for environmental knowledge has been developed. The relevant intervening variables wellbeing and learning motivation have been measured.

Researcher Dr. Andreas Imhof