Outdoor school movement in Germany

Abstract

So far in Germany, school lessons mainly take place within classrooms at all types of schools. The Udeskole movement in Denmark shows that this does not necessarily have to be the case and that lessons can be given outdoors once a week on one school day. In Germany, a similar outdoor education movement seems to develop. More and more schools are listed as outdoor schools on the internet. Study results reveal that outdoor learning can lead to diverse positive effects – e. g. a higher motivation to learn and to more physical activity. The spectrum of realizing outdoor learning is high at schools; it ranges from largely free activities outdoors – as for example at Laboratory School Bielefeld – to activities that are based on educational curricula and are subject-centered as realized at grammar school Englisches Institut Heidelberg. If many schools – caught between specifed education plan and education theory – continue to decide for outdoor lessons as a contribution to high-quality education, the outdoor education movement in Germany will be able to become as infuential as the Udeskole movement in Denmark.