The Fundamentals of Outdoor & Environmental Education Evaluation

Abstract Information: While many schools had outdoor and environmental education programs before the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a notable increase in interest in these opportunities in the past few years. These programs are often rooted in the unique local culture of the school’s community and leverage natural assets near the school, such as rivers, streams, trails, or beaches. For many outdoor education programs, their local context is integral to engaging students, especially by connecting their learning with sense of community and commitment to environmental stewardship and sustainability. This place-based approach to learning has important implications for evaluators, who need to understand the unique local context inherent in these program’s theories of change, while also being disciplined enough to ensure that they are evaluating the programs fairly and accurately. This presentation will provide an overview of the fundamentals of outdoor education evaluation, including how to approach data collection, analysis, and reporting to reflect the goals of the programs and amplify the voices of the students who participate in them.