Here are some reports from Natural England’s latest round-up.
The impact of greenery on physical activity and mental health of adolescent and adult residents of deprived neighborhoods: a longitudinal study
Jessica S. Gubbels et al. Health & Place, Volume 40
The aim of the study is to assess the impact of perceived and objective changes in greenery on physical activity and mental health of adolescents and adults living in severely deprived neighborhoods in the Netherlands. In conclusion, changes in greenery did not yield consistent positive results among residents of severely deprived neighborhoods. However, there are some indications regarding positive effects of greenery in certain subgroups
Adventure based experiential learning and adolescents’ self-reported levels of self-regulation and positive mental health
C Barnard – Clinical Psychology Thesis
The results of this study showed significant increases in the participants’ self-reported levels of self-regulation and positive mental health after participating in an adventure programme. The most significant increases were observed in participants’ Social Well-being with the most significant decreases seen in Anxiety and Insomnia, and Social Dysfunction.
Designing Environments to Enhance Physical and Psychological Benefits of Physical Activity: A Multidisciplinary Perspective
Eric Brymer, Keith Davids. Sports Medicine, July 2016
This article is part of the Topical Collection on Designing environments to enhance physical and psychological benefits of physical activity: A multi-disciplinary perspective
Mental well-being and quality-of-life benefits of inclusion in nature for adults with disabilities and their caregivers
SL Jakubec et al – Landscape Research, 2016
Quantitative findings, while not statistically significant, show a positive trend towards improved depression markers, greater health satisfaction, improved social relationships (in particular, love and friendship), as well as satisfaction with a sense of community and experiences of helping.
Physical activity in light of affordances in outdoor environments: qualitative observation studies of 3–5 years olds in kindergarten
K Bjørgen – SpringerPlus
This article examines the characteristic of affordances of different outdoor environments, related to the influences of children’s physical activity levels. The study shows that certain characteristic of the physical outdoor environment are important for children’s opportunities and inspiration for physical active play. The findings also show that social possibilities and opportunities, human interactions, in the environment have the greatest influence on the duration and intensity of physically active play.
Effects of biodiversity and environment-related attitude on perception of urban green space
B Gunnarsson, I Knez, M Hedblom, ÅO Sang – Urban Ecosystems, 2016
Green space in cities contributes to the quality of life for city dwellers. However, perception of urban green space is influenced by multiple factors. We investigated effects of biodiversity and environment-related attitudes on visual and auditory perceptions of urban green space. Persons rating themselves as highly nature-oriented were shown to give higher scores to urban green space aesthetics and to value greenery-related sounds higher, and to attach greater importance to trees and plants in their perception of bird species in urban greenery, than less nature-oriented persons..
Making Gains: the impact of outdoor residential experiences on students’ examination grades and self-efficacy
Dr Carol Fuller, Dr Daisy Powell, Mr Simon Fox. Educational Review
The results reported here strongly suggest that the impact of outdoor residential visits has been significant in terms of students’ sense of confidence and efficacy and had a statistically significant impact on formal examination results in school.
eacher Professional Development in Outdoor and Open Learning Environments: A Research Based Model
H Salmi, A Kaasinen, L Suomela – Creative Education, 2016
The trend of utilising open learning environments and informal learning sources has a clear link to outdoor education, which bridges the gap between formal education and informal learning.
Teaching and Learning of the Natural, Social and Cultural Environment
CL Roig – Teaching and Learning, 2016
Developing and evaluating content of the curriculum using appropriate teaching resources
and promoting the acquisition of basic skills by students. Know the basic curriculum of the
social sciences. Know the curricular areas of Primary Education, the interdisciplinary …
Children’s environmental identity and the elementary science classroom
LP Tugurian, SJ Carrier – The Journal of Environmental Education, 2016
This qualitative research explores children’s environmental identity by describing how fifth grade children view their relationship with the natural world alongside their experience of elementary school science. Analyses convey that children recognize and describe their own environmental identity, but that identity is often unacknowledged in the science classroom. This lack of acknowledgment may limit connections of school science to children’s interests and emotional attachment to the natural world.
Conservation education and outreach techniques
K Marsh – Environmental Education Research – Book
The goal of Conservation Education and Outreach techniques is to present the many techniques available for creating effective education and outreach programmes for conservation
Direct Earth Contact: Barefootedness and Nature Connection
ML Harvey, JD Oskins, KN McCarter, JR Baker – Ecopsychology, 2016
What are the psychological benefits of going barefoot outside? This study sought
answers toward that question and explored people’s barefoot behaviors and beliefs.