Memorandum submitted by the Royal Geographical
Society
OVERVIEW
1. Fieldwork and outdoor education is not
just an add-on, it is absolutely core for geography and for young
people's learning in general. Learning outside the classroom provides
a unique and important perspective to a young person's education
in that it builds upon and engages young people's experiences,
it challenges them in settings they are not accustomed to, it
encourages team building skills and confidence building, and it
helps to show the relevance and applicability of what they study
in the classroom.
2. The Society believes that there has been
a profound decline in the opportunities for fieldwork and outdoor
educationin recent years. The issues that we believe most need
to be addressed are: a fully trained EVC in every school; increased
initial teacher training and continuing CPD for teachers in fieldwork
knowledge, skills and safety issues; more time and resources dedicated
to such specialist training and for the outdoor experiences themselves,
both within geography and more widely in the curriculum; the perceptions
of risk by teachers, media and parents and a willingness to seek
to address risk positively as part of the educational process.
3. We further recommend that: the effect
of the workforce agreement is carefully monitored in terms of
potential negative effects for outdoor education; that good practice
in managing fieldwork and outdoor education as part of the whole
school OCL experience, and within school structures, is shared
between schools.
ABOUT US
4. The Royal Geographical Society (with
The Institute of British Geographers) is the learned society representing
geography and geographers. It was founded in 1830 for the advancement
of geographical science and has been among the most active of
the learned societies ever since. The Society currently offers
the following specific areas of support for fieldwork and Out-of-Classroom
Learning (OCL):
— Training courses for anyone organising
an off-site visit either in the UK or abroad, aimed at teachers,
Educational Visits Co-ordinators (EVCs) and youth leaders. This
year over 500 teachers and youth leaders received training from
us. We also have courses and manuals covering different aspects
of fieldwork methodologies such as Geographic Information Sciences,
project design and implementation of people-oriented research
and biological conservation projects.
— The Society provides funding for
a range of desk and fieldwork based activities. In 2003, our Grants
Programme supported projects which collectively involve more than
436 individuals, who will be visiting 47 countries worldwide.
We also support a grants programme of new innovations for teachers
that includes fieldwork projects.
— Provides advice through the Society's
Expedition Advisory Centre, a world-leader in the provision of
guidance and training for teachers and students planning fieldwork
and expeditions with a learning purpose.
— The Society maintains a database
of over 300 field centres anywhere in the world that offer education,
training and research opportunities for individuals and teams.
This is particularly useful for those teachers looking for a safe
location to undertake field studies in both rural and urban environments
in other countries.
— The Society provides professional
accreditation, including a strand for teachers, in the form of
Chartered Geographer, a key element of which is commitment to
continuing professional development.
5. This response is based on consultations
with our Education Committee (predominantly geography teachers),
Expedition and Fieldwork Committee, the Society's Expedition Advisory
Centre and other stakeholders.
COST AND
FUNDING OF
OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES
6. We do not believe that the costs of outdoor
activities need be a serious barrier to access to experiences
out of the classroom. Geography field visits, for example, do
not have to be located in inaccessible locations that require
substantial time and costs. Visits can benefit pupils, teachers
and even the local community when conducted near the school, especially
at the lower key stages. For example, a Qualifications and Curriculum
Authority (QCA) focus group found that the teachers frequently
used the local area as a focus for fieldwork at key stage 3 in
most schools (Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, 2004).
However, the teachers we have consulted believe that young people
benefit substantially from out-of-classroom learning experiences
in environments and socio-cultural areas different from where
they live and that these should be an entitlement for all young
people studying geography between the ages of 14 and 18.
7. There have been reports, however, that
costs have become a barrier to poorer schools, which could result
in children from lower socio-economic groups missing out on outdoor
learning. There is also a very real concern that the National
Agreement on Workforce Reform will in the future be a barrier
to poorer schools as it will mean that schools will have to provide
bought in cover for teachers absent on fieldwork rather than cover
being provided by teaching colleagues.
8. There are also anecdotal reports that
the costs of residential activities have become prohibitive and
the majority of students are unable to take part in residential
activities (Ofsted, 2004). According to OFSTED, the extra-curricular
nature of the activity, its cost or limits on the numbers that
can be taken, lead to a "first come, first served" basis
for selection. This is regrettable, as some of the strongest and
longest lasting positive educational and personal benefits occur
with activities that are residential (National Foundation for
Educational Research, 2004).
THE PLACE
OF OUTDOOR
LEARNING IN
THE CURRICULUM
9. Education outside the classroom is absolutely
core for geography and for young people's learning in general.
Geography is fortunate in that there is substantial official recognition
of the importance of fieldwork. Geography is the only subject
that has statutory reference to the provision of fieldwork in
school, and indeed the importance of fieldwork is also fully recognised
in the benchmarking of geography in Higher Education (Quality
Assurance Agency, 2000). Fieldwork has been fully recognised in
the programmes of study for the National Curriculum, key stages
1, 2 and 3. For example, at key stage 3, students must `carry
out fieldwork investigations outside the classroom' (DfEE and
QCA, 1999). The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA)
subject criteria for geography GCSE and A levels also make fieldwork
one of the "subject-specific essentials" (QCA, 2003).
It is essential that fieldwork retains its status throughout the
teaching of geography.
10. Outdoor education also has the potential
to benefit other subjects in the curriculum or other Government
initiatives. This is recognised in the DfES Growing Schools project,
which has been designed to support teachers in using the "outdoor
classroom" as a resource across the curriculum for pupils
of all ages. We strongly endorse the Growing Schools project as
a valuable resource for all schools.
11. OCL is also important for learning beyond
the Curriculum. We fully endorse the statements made in the recently
launched DfES Five Year Strategy on the benefits of education
outside the classroom and recommend more initiatives to take forward
this commitment. For instance:
"There is also not enough variety and
choice within the curriculum or in opportunities outside the school
day—for example, clubs and societies, trips, visitors or
visits—to make sure that every young person is excited by
school and builds the confidence and skills they need."
(Department for Education and Skills, 2004)
EXTERNAL ASSESSMENT
OF PROVISION
12. The current system of safety checks,
guidance and other external measures seems, for the most part,
satisfactory. We believe that the key to safe, successful school
trips is increased training and advice of teachers and others
that deliver the outside education experience based on standards
of good practice. Many schools across England already have staff
trained as Educational Visits Co-ordinators (EVCs), who liaise
with the outdoor education adviser in the local education authority,
and help teachers to assess and manage the risks of a visit. We
recommend that the EVC system is given extra support and that
all schools, regardless of status, have a Co-ordinator. There
should be a regular programme of CPD for EVCs and Group Leaders
linked to professional accreditation either subject based or generic.
We are concerned that the role of the LEA outdoor education advisor
seems to be diminishing and that governors, particularly of independent
and foundation schools, need to be made more aware of their responsibilities
for setting school policy and training standards.
ORGANISATION AND
INTEGRATION WITHIN
EXISTING SCHOOL
STRUCTURES
QUALIFICATION AND
MOTIVATION OF
TEACHERS AND
THE EFFECT
ON TEACHER
WORKLOAD
13. These two items in the terms of reference
are strongly related so we have responded to both of them together.
The pressures of a busy curriculum mean that many teachers are
reporting less interest in, and time for, outdoor education. However,
some schools continue to build in substantial and effective OCL.
It is important in our view to enable schools to understand and
share the ways in which they cater for substantial out of class
experiences. Furthermore, there needs to be increased time and
resources dedicated to the specialist training and qualifications
to ensure that teachers have the confidence and competence to
lead or support school visits.
14. The current curriculum puts great pressures
on the time necessary for training, preparation and provision
of outdoor education. The curriculum flexibility introduced in
September 2004 is a small but welcome step as it means that the
number of compulsory subjects from the ages 14 to 16 has been
reduced. The introduction of four statutory "entitlements":
modern foreign languages, design and technology and the arts and
humanities (which includes geography) could offer some opportunities
for more outdoor education. The humanities entitlement requests
that students develop a "range of skills in many different
contexts, inside and outside the classroom. Courses should provide
opportunities within and beyond school for first-hand experiences
of places, environments, events and activities" (DfES, 2003).
Schools are obliged to make these entitlements available. Pupils
will not, however, be obliged to study these entitlements or experience
education outside of the classroom after the age of 14, when geography
ceases to be compulsory.
15. The National Agreement on Workforce
Reform may also mean that teachers are less able to find support
and cover while they conduct these outdoor activities. The current
phase recommends a maximum of 38 hours a year that teachers can
be expected to cover lessons for absent colleagues. This comes
into effect now and teachers and heads have reported to us that
this might limit outdoor learning, either through manpower reductions
or the costs of providing teaching cover.
16. We also have concerns regarding the
qualifications, training and experiences of students working for
their PGCE in geography, Initial Teacher Training and the Newly
Qualified Teachers. There is insufficient training in fieldwork
at these early stages and we recommend that it is strengthened.
This is often compounded by a lack of learning resources relating
to fieldwork which the Society is keen to address. The current
circumstances could undermine the provision of fieldwork for their
future students. It is not just the pupils who will lose out;
many geography teachers enjoy their fieldwork and list it as an
important reason for taking up geography teaching in the first
place.
THE FEAR
OF ACCIDENTS
AND THE
POSSIBILITY OF
LITIGATION
17. The perception of heightened risk and
the consequences of accidents are a major barrier to OCL. Teachers
express this as the perception of what might happen to them—such
as losing their job. The National Association of Schoolmasters
Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT) advice to its members against
participating in school trips in February 2004 was another contributor
to the decline in the willingness to participate in and to value
fieldwork among some teachers.
18. Accidents are, however, rare. According
to the Adventure Activities Licensing Authority there were 57
deaths on school trips, 19 of which occurred during adventure
activities, between 1985 and 2004. Accidents and claims are not
increasing but the perception and fear of litigation remains a
serious concern for teachers. Addressing the perceptions of teachers,
and indeed of the media, is a much-needed action. Schools take
increased care in the planning and risk assessment for all school
visits; children are safer and more closely supervised on a school
trip than ever before. According to the Better Regulation Task
Force schools, rather than canceling trips and activities as the
media would have us believe, have become much better at assessing
and managing risks in recent years (Better Regulation Task Force,
2004).
19. Risk can never be completely avoided,
however, and one of the benefits of outdoor education is that
it offers a positive opportunity for students to examine and evaluate
risk and thus to learn about risk management as a life skill.
Schools already directly address issues of risk, choice and the
implications of behaviour within established areas of the curriculum
eg sex education/relationships and also drugs education. Why not
therefore address risk positively in the case of outdoor education?
20. Fear of accidents and litigation must
be ameliorated by further information and training. We have seen
at first hand how the training run by the Society, such as the
OCR-accredited Certificate in Off-site Safety Management course
boosts confidence and a greater understanding of risk, as well
as competence.
HOW PROVISION
IN THE
UK COMPARES WITH
THAT OF
OTHER COUNTRIES
No comment.
REFERENCES
Better Regulation Task Force (2004) Better
Routes to Redress.
Department for Education and Employment/Qualifications
and Curriculum Authority (1999) Geography; National Curriculum
for England.
Department for Education and Skills (2004) Five
Year Strategy for Children and Learners.
Department for Education and Skills (2003) 14-19:
Opportunity and Excellence.
National Foundation for Educational Research
(2004) A Review of Research on Outdoor Learning.
Office for Standards in Education (2004) The
Outdoor Education, Aspects of Good Practice.
Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (2004)
Geography 2002-03 annual report on curriculum and assessment.
Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (2004)
Subject criteria for geography GCSE.
Quality Assurance Agency, 2000 Benchmark
Statement for Geography in Higher Education.
October 2004
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