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The COVID-19 Pandemic has seen a wider shift to a range of online learning opportunities including webinars, podcasts, presentations, virtual, and live training courses. There has been a growing interest in the inclusion of a proportion of blended learning for Outdoor First Aid training.
 

A demand report from the School Travel Sector Stakeholder Group and the report from the very recent survey by UKOutdoors of the outdoor residential provider base.  This latter survey’s findings are consistent with an earlier survey by School Travel Forum and Expedition Provider Association confirming that the challenges describe extend across all forms of residential school visits.

The surveys were sent to the DfE on December 17th.

The number of teachers being trained to educate children outdoors has gone "through the roof" because of Covid-19, Natural Resources Wales (NRW) has said.

About 450 teachers have enrolled on its outdoor learning courses in the last two months - compared to 350 for the whole of last year.

The courses recently re-started following Covid restrictions. They are delivered via Zoom and encourage teachers to use nature to help teach key subjects. Educating pupils in nature "releases stress of masks and social distancing," say teachers

The rise follows a warning by the Institute for Outdoor Learning that a lack of school trips during the pandemic has cost the outdoor education sector £500m and caused the loss of 6,000 jobs.

Read more... and see the excellent BBC video (well worth sharing)

Outdoor Education Centres must be saved from closure. Once they're gone they're gone.

Outdoor education can help restore young people's love of learning and develop their confidence, resilience and team building skills.

#outdoorlearning #saveoutdoored

Read more....