The meaning of seasonal changes, nature, and animals for adolescent girls’ wellbeing in northern Finland: A qualitative descriptive study

Wiens, Varpu; Kyngäs, Helvi; Pölkki, Tarja

doi:10.3402/qhw.v11.30160

Cited by 31 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 66 publications

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“…The stress-reducing effects of nature have been documented in adults in a large body of controlled experiments (see Kuo, 2015; Supplementary Material for review) and the available evidence points to a similar effect in children. Nature has been related to lower levels of both self-reported and physiological measures of stress in children (Bell and Dyment, 2008; Chawla, 2015; Wiens et al, 2016). Recently, an experimental study showed that a window view of vegetation from a high school classroom yields systematic decreases in heart rate and self-reported stress, whereas built views do not (Li and Sullivan, 2016).…”

Section: Nature May Boost Learning Via Direct Effects On Learnersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Experiences With Nature Promote Learning? Converging Evidence of a Cause-and-Effect Relationship

2019

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Do experiences with nature – from wilderness backpacking to plants in a preschool, to a wetland lesson on frogs—promote learning? Until recently, claims outstripped evidence on this question. But the field has matured, not only substantiating previously unwarranted claims but deepening our understanding of the cause-and-effect relationship between nature and learning. Hundreds of studies now bear on this question, and converging evidence strongly suggests that experiences of nature boost academic learning, personal development, and environmental stewardship. This brief integrative review summarizes recent advances and the current state of our understanding. The research on personal development and environmental stewardship is compelling although not quantitative. Report after report – from independent observers as well as participants themselves – indicate shifts in perseverance, problem solving, critical thinking, leadership, teamwork, and resilience. Similarly, over fifty studies point to nature playing a key role in the development of pro-environmental behavior, particularly by fostering an emotional connection to nature. In academic contexts, nature-based instruction outperforms traditional instruction. The evidence here is particularly strong, including experimental evidence; evidence across a wide range of samples and instructional approaches; outcomes such as standardized test scores and graduation rates; and evidence for specific explanatory mechanisms and active ingredients. Nature may promote learning by improving learners’ attention, levels of stress, self-discipline, interest and enjoyment in learning, and physical activity and fitness. Nature also appears to provide a calmer, quieter, safer context for learning; a warmer, more cooperative context for learning; and a combination of “loose parts” and autonomy that fosters developmentally beneficial forms of play. It is time to take nature seriously as a resource for learning – particularly for students not effectively reached by traditional instruction.

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Section: Nature May Boost Learning Via Direct Effects On Learnersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Experiences With Nature Promote Learning? Converging Evidence of a Cause-and-Effect Relationship

2019

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“…Experimental work in adults with physiological indicators shows that contact with nature offers quick and powerful reductions in stress biomarkers (e.g., Park et al, 2010 ; for review, see Kuo, 2015 ; Supplementary Materials), and this effect appears to extend to children as well. Contact with nature has been tied to lower levels of both self-reported and physiological measures of stress in multiple studies with children (Bell and Dyment, 2008 ; Chawla, 2015 ; Wiens et al, 2016 ). Recently an experimental study involving high school students showed that even a mere window view of vegetation from a classroom yields systematic decreases in both heart rate and self-reported stress, whereas a classroom without windows does not (Li and Sullivan, 2016 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Lessons in Nature Boost Subsequent Classroom Engagement? Refueling Students in Flight

2018

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Teachers wishing to offer lessons in nature may hold back for fear of leaving students keyed up and unable to concentrate in subsequent, indoor lessons. This study tested the hypothesis that lessons in nature have positive—not negative—aftereffects on subsequent classroom engagement. Using carefully matched pairs of lessons (one in a relatively natural outdoor setting and one indoors), we observed subsequent classroom engagement during an indoor instructional period, replicating these comparisons over 10 different topics and weeks in the school year, in each of two third grade classrooms. Pairs were roughly balanced in how often the outdoor lesson preceded or followed the classroom lesson. Classroom engagement was significantly better after lessons in nature than after their matched counterparts for four of the five measures developed for this study: teacher ratings; third-party tallies of “redirects” (the number of times the teacher stopped instruction to direct student attention back onto the task at hand); independent, photo-based ratings made blind to condition; and a composite index each showed a nature advantage; student ratings did not. This nature advantage held across different teachers and held equally over the initial and final 5 weeks of lessons. And the magnitude of the advantage was large. In 48 out of 100 paired comparisons, the nature lesson was a full standard deviation better than its classroom counterpart; in 20 of the 48, the nature lesson was over two standard deviations better. The rate of “redirects” was cut almost in half after a lesson in nature, allowing teachers to teach for longer periods uninterrupted. Because the pairs of lessons were matched on teacher, class (students and classroom), topic, teaching style, week of the semester, and time of day, the advantage of the nature-based lessons could not be attributed to any of these factors. It appears that, far from leaving students too keyed up to concentrate afterward, lessons in nature may actually leave students more able to engage in the next lesson, even as students are also learning the material at hand. Such “refueling in flight” argues for including more lessons in nature in formal education.

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“…A 15-min springtime walk in an urban park led to lower sympathetic nervous activity and an improved mood state in young Japanese males (mean age 21.2 years) [ 33 ]. In adolescent girls from Finland, nature evoked mainly positive feelings [ 34 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reloading Pupils’ Batteries: Impact of Green Spaces on Cognition and Wellbeing

Wallner

Kundi

Arnberger

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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Cognitive functioning and academic performance of pupils depend on regular breaks from classroom work. However, it is unclear which settings during such breaks provide the best environment to restore cognitive performance and promote wellbeing of adolescent pupils. Therefore, we investigated the effects of staying in different urban green spaces during breaks. Sixty-four pupils (16–18 years old) participated in a cross-over experiment. They were placed into one of three settings (small park, larger park, forest) for one hour during a lunch break. Wellbeing was assessed four times (Nitsch scale), and a cognitive test (d2-R Test of Attention) was applied in the classrooms before and after the break. Wellbeing was almost always highest after the stay in the green spaces. However, a sustained effect was only found for the forest. Concentration performance values of the d2-R test were significantly higher after the pupils’ stay in green spaces for all sites. The highest increase of performance was found for the larger park type. In conclusion, this pilot study showed that study breaks in green spaces improved wellbeing and cognitive performance of adolescents. It also found that larger green spaces, either parks or forests, have stronger positive impacts on wellbeing and cognitive performance than small parks.

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The meaning of seasonal changes, nature, and animals for adolescent girls’ wellbeing in northern Finland: A qualitative descriptive study

Cited by 31 publications

References 66 publications

Do Experiences With Nature Promote Learning? Converging Evidence of a Cause-and-Effect Relationship

Do Experiences With Nature Promote Learning? Converging Evidence of a Cause-and-Effect Relationship

Do Lessons in Nature Boost Subsequent Classroom Engagement? Refueling Students in Flight

Reloading Pupils’ Batteries: Impact of Green Spaces on Cognition and Wellbeing

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