HISTORY OF FOREST SCHOOLS - create your adventure today

Forest Schools in the UK may seem a fairly new movement. In reality it is based on a rich heritage of outdoor learning going back at least to the 19th century. Philosophers, naturalists and educators in Europe and the UK such as Wordsworth, Ruskin, Baden Powell, Leslie Paul (who founded the Woodcraft Folk in 1925), Kurt Hahn (who founded Gordonstone and was the inspiration for our first outdoor education centres), Susan Isaacs and the Macmillan sisters all laid the foundations for what is known as Forest School today. During the 1970s and 80s our education system moved toward a more teacher/outcome-centred approach in an attempt to improve numeracy and literacy, in particular, and we had the introduction of the national curriculum. Somewhat in response to this, there was a growth of ‘alternative’ educational models in the 1990s and it is in this context that Forest School emerged
.In 1993 a group of nursery nurses at Bridgwater College, Somerset, visited Denmark to look at the pre-school system. The open air culture ('frulitsliv') is seen as a way of life in Scandinavia and permeates early years education. The Bridgewater nursery nurses returned enthused by the largely outdoor, child-centred/play-based pedagogy employed by the Danish pre-school pedagogues. They started their own 'Forest School' with children attending the college creche. They observed children, watching their own creativity blossom and ‘scaffolded’ skills and ideas. Their entire practise was impacted as a result. In 1995 the college developed a BTech in Forest School and started to offer it to early years practitioners in particular. Many involved in outdoor learning saw this as something that built on the UK’s outdoor learning heritage and soon Forest School was being offered around the UK. From 2000 Wales and various local authorities in England took up Forest School – notably Oxfordshire and Worcestershire, both of which worked with local colleges to deliver the training. Other authorities soon followed suit including Shropshire, Norfolk and Warwickshire. At the same time, other training providers emerged and in Wales a group of trainers from England and Wales, with the support of the Forestry Commission in Wales, developed the Open College Network (OCN) qualification, which began in 2003. In 2002 a network of practitioners held the first national conference at which a UK definition of Forest School was formulated: 'An inspirational process that offers children, young people and adults regular opportunities to achieve, develop confidence and self esteem through hands-on learning experiences in a local woodland environment.' Along with this, the network also identified some of the key features of Forest School:
It is run by qualified level 3 practitioners.
It is a long term process with regular contact with a local wooded environment (preferably over the seasons).
It follows a child-centred pedagogy where children learn about and manage risk.
It has a high adult:child ratio.
Observations of the learners are key to enabling scaffolding of the learning.
Care for the natural world is integrated.
In 2011, the definition, principles and criteria were reviewed and built upon during the consultation for the establishment of the FSA. On 7th July 2012 the Forest School Association (FSA) was launched at Elvaston Castle in Derbyshire as the new professional association for Forest School and the governing body for training.
by John Cree and Mel McCree
http://www.forestschoolassociation.org/history-of-forest-school/