{"id":11066,"date":"2020-05-30T07:30:47","date_gmt":"2020-05-30T07:30:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/?p=11066"},"modified":"2026-04-18T19:34:31","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T19:34:31","slug":"realising-the-ambition-in-a-time-of-coronavirus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/2020\/05\/realising-the-ambition-in-a-time-of-coronavirus\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Realising the ambition’ in a time of coronavirus"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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School will soon be back.  Maybe you\u2019re a parent, wondering how your child will cope.  Maybe you\u2019re a teacher wondering how you\u2019ll<\/em> cope.  Maybe you\u2019re a policy-maker wondering how the entire education system will cope.  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or maybe you\u2019re none of the above \u2013 just a concerned, interested citizen. Whichever of these, please spare a few minutes to consider the following three What Ifs?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What if there were a way to enhance children\u2019s physical and mental health, while also developing their social skills, emotional resilience and capacity to learn?  What if \u2013 for the many children for whom lockdown has been a seriously traumatic experience \u2013 this approach has considerable therapeutic benefits? And what if it could also reduce the chances of cross-infection, while making it easier to ensure adequate social distancing? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well \u2013 mirabile dictu!<\/em> \u2013 there is<\/em> such an approach.  Outdoor education, particularly in natural environments, has been shown to offer all the advantages listed above. In the Nordic countries, where children have been back at school for a month or so, it\u2019s working a treat. And, according to this statement <\/a>from the Scottish Advisory Panel on Outdoor Education, there\u2019s no shortage of expertise and support if Scotland decides to go ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At this point, of course, it\u2019s traditional to heave a great sigh and say: \u2018Yes but.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, the bad news<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are quite a few \u2018Yes buts\u2019 to consider. Outdoor education may be universally acknowledged as a Good Thing but it\u2019s still very much an add-on in Scottish education, and usually dealt with by specialists.  Most non-specialist teachers would feel distinctly uncomfortable about exchanging the classroom for the great outdoors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s more, as schools prepare to reopen their doors, staff are busy tackling the physical logistics of indoor social distancing and infection control, not to mention the demands of a \u2018blended learning\u2019 model of education, which the Educational Institute of Scotland has described as \u2018the biggest curriculum challenge of the century\u2019<\/a>.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For teachers who\u2019ve been working throughout lockdown on creating home-learning packages and supporting students remotely (many also fielding their own children), this extra challenge will almost certainly consume any remaining time and energy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, however great the advantages of outdoor learning, it seems unlikely that schools will prioritise them just yet.     <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And now the good news<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There is, however, one sector of Scotland\u2019s educational system where the great leap into outdoor education could become a reality very soon.  It\u2019s the \u2018early level\u2019 of Curriculum for Excellence (for children aged three to six\/seven).  Indeed, in early May, the Guardian claimed that Scotland is \u2018eyeing\u2019 outdoor learning<\/a> for this age group and Maree Todd, Minister for Children and Young People, gave this quote:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are a growing number of fully and partially outdoor childcare settings in Scotland. This model could have many benefits for maintaining physical distancing and minimising risk of transmission as part of the transition from lockdown back into early learning and childcare and school. While specialist outdoor nurseries are well attuned to the needs of children spending all day outdoors, other establishments are considering how to adapt their practice to enable more time to be spent in gardens and playgrounds.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Academics in the e-magazine The Conversation<\/a> were just as enthusiastic, albeit rather less sanguine about the prospects of large-scale uptake. However, its authors are clearly unaware of an event \u2013 just before lockdown began \u2013 which has been making waves in Scotland\u2019s early years sector ever since. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Realising the Ambition<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In mid-February, Education Scotland published Realising the Ambition: Being Me<\/em><\/a>, new practice guidance for all teachers and practitioners working in \u2018early level\u2019 (three- to six\/seven-year-olds). It promotes relationship-centred, play-based pedagogy across this age group, and places great emphasis on outdoor learning. And it\u2019s been widely welcomed not only by the early years workforce but also professionals from public health, children\u2019s rights, social justice, the arts and education for sustainability. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Chair of Upstart Scotland, a grassroots organisation that\u2019s been promoting a \u2018Nordic-style kindergarten stage\u2019 for the last five years, I couldn\u2019t be more impressed with Realising the Ambition. <\/em>The pedagogical approach it describes is exactly in line with the research on which we based our campaign. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scotland has needed this change for ages but, in the current crisis, it\u2019s even more urgent. What could be more important for our young children at the moment than an emphasis on health and well-being, positive supportive relationships, genuine engagement with their families and plenty of active outdoor play? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So Upstart urges all parents, teachers, policy-makers and concerned, interested citizens to get behind Scotland\u2019s early years sector.  Please help them find ways to realise this ambition for our youngest children.  I mean, for goodness sake \u2013 if not now, when?   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Images by Alan McCredie; copyright Upstart Scotland<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What could be more important for our young children at the moment than an emphasis on health and well-being, positive supportive relationships, genuine engagement with their families and plenty of active outdoor play? <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":239,"featured_media":11079,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[125],"tags":[604,37,495,292],"class_list":["post-11066","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics","tag-covid-19","tag-scottish-education","tag-upstart-scotland","tag-wellbeing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11066","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/239"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11066"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11066\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18683,"href":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11066\/revisions\/18683"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11079"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11066"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11066"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sceptical.scot\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11066"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}