Learning Outside The Classroom (LOTC)

Learning Outside The Classroom

“Launched in 2006, the LOTC Manifesto is a shared vision to raise achievement through an organised and powerful approach to learning in which direct experience is of prime importance.”

 http://www.lotc.org.uk/about/manifesto/

LOTC is now part of the Welsh curriculum for all children between the ages of three and nineteen. There is a wide range of activities that can be completed with pupils both within the school grounds and also off school grounds. The idea is for the children to experience the world beyond the classroom.

 

 

“The survey also found examples of the positive effects of learning outside the classroom on young people who had not been stimulated or motivated sufficiently by mainstream education.”
Ofsted, Learning Outside the Classroom Report, Oct 2008

Activities that can take place within the school can include exploration of the world around you, forest school, incorporating maths, English and science to the outside world in various ways and also collecting materials to make collages or models back in the classroom. These activities can give the child an opportunity to learn about the environment around them and gain a sense of place in their school and local community. These activities allow the children to use available resources including digital cameras and data loggers.

 

"If materials are brought into the classroom, while the children may learn about some of their features through direct experience, they do not also learn where they occur in the world. Experiences outside the classroom may therefore seem more 'authentic' and grounded in 'reality' and certainly some of the children in our own research (Waite 2011) have talked of knowing that something is 'real' in the sense of believable through first-hand experience rather than just being told. Perhaps then reference to 'reality' and 'authenticity' is understood in the relation to life beyond the Educational setting." (Waite, 2011)

Excursions that could take pupils out of the school grounds include trips to museums, historical venues, factories, cities and much more.

 

The Council for LOTC demonstrate learning outside the classroom options very clearly in the diagram on the following link:

 http://www.lotc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/GTarget-diagram_v4.pdf

 

LOTC really can benefit each child, you will often find that a child will come out of their shell more when in the outdoor environment. These outdoor lessons can also improve the relationship between pupils and teachers with better understanding of each other which often makes an impact when returning to the classroom.

 There is a scheme in place called the quality badge this is awarded to educational establishments that meet the learning and safety requirements for schools visits.

Local schools are known to make regular visits to many quality badge holders venues in South Wales, but one in particular is Techniquest.

 

 

Techniquest is located in Cardiff Bay and provides educational programmes for pupils from the foundation phase right through to post 16. Their aim is to educate children about science, technology, engineering and mathematics through discovery during their tour. Specifically for The Foundation Phase and Key Stage 2 there is a planetarium which encourages children to investigate the night sky. 

 All of the programmes available at Techniquest are linked to The National Curriculum so the trip can be used for further tasks back in the classroom.

For more information please visit:
http://www.techniquest.org/2012030113/education/education-programmes.html

 

 

I can definitely agree that LOTC is a great benefit to pupils and students of all ages. I remember being taken outside of the school by teachers and this always felt rewarding and made our learning interesting. LOTC can also benefit children with behavioural problems, there is a certain sense of freedom when working outside the classroom, this can give the pupil time to explore and ask questions.

 

References:

 http://www.lotc.org.uk/about/manifesto/

Ofsted, Learning Outside the Classroom Report, Oct 2008

Waite.S, (2011) Children learning outside the classroom from birth to eleven, Sage

http://www.lotc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/GTarget-diagram_v4.pdf