Browsing by Subject "ympäristövastuullisuus"

The aim of this qualitative study is to produce descriptive information about children's connections to nature and the possibilities of primary school teaching to support that relation. The subject is viewed through the perceptions of the professionals in environmental education (EE). Relationship with nature is a multiplex phenomenon that builds up by factors of physical and sociocultural environment. According to researchers the most determinative causes are authentic connections to natural environments and the role model given by adults. It is also stated that the relationship with nature also deals with wellbeing of human and environment, which serves as a basis for this study. The first part of the study discusses children's relation to nature on a general level and the second part is examined from the viewpoint of environmental education in primary school. The data was collected through the interviews of four experts of environmental education in December 2014. A semi-structured interview was used as the method of collecting data, which consists of 4,5 hours of recorded material. The analysis was accomplished by adapted qualitative content analysis: the analysis was connected to the collected material and also to the theoretical framework. The interviewees' perceptions were considered to indicate a wider professional view on the phenomenon over the ideas of an individual. The professionals of EE thought that for supporting children's relation to nature it is crucial to secure their authentic experiences of nature. An important factor associated with it was the importance of benefiting the nature nearby. Parents were considered an important role model when building up a connection to nature. However, there seems to be a great variance in the nature education that families give to children: some get a lot of experiences and guidance while others lack the support to engage with nature. Primary school was also considered as an important agent in supporting children's relation to nature, although its possibilities were seen as limited. According to the interviewees the pedagogical approach to help children engage with nature is based on authentic experiences in natural environments and the active role of a student in the learning process. Outdoor learning was considered as the most efficient way to set EE in practice in primary schools.