СТАВОВИ УЧЕНИКА ОСНОВНЕ ШКОЛЕ ПРЕМА БОРАВКУ У ПРИРОДИ
THE ATTITUDES OF ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENTS TOWARDS STAYING OUTDOORS

Summary/Abstract: Although the innovative approach to education emphasizes numerous advantages of out-of-classroom outdoor teaching, in Serbia there are relatively few researches that analyze the effects of such activities to students’ attitudes towards staying outdoors. The objective of our research is to examine the students’ previous attitudes towards outdoor activities, as well as the possible correlation between these attitudes and the duration of out-of-classroom outdoor teaching. The sample is appropriate and comprises 752 fourth-grade elementary school students from Belgrade and 32 schoolteachers who teach those students. In the research, АТОP scales is applied consisting of 12 items from two domains referring to statements regarding positive and negative sides of staying outdoors. The results show that the girls, as opposed to boys, show a higher rate of agreement with statements describing positive sides of outdoor activities, but also with the statements that describe potentially negative sides of staying outdoors. The implementation of out-of-classroom outdoor teaching by the teachers bears no connection with the differences in their students’ stated opinions on advantages and fears regarding independent staying outdoors. The teachers should be motivated and supported to perform out-of-classroom outdoor teaching more frequently and for longer periods of time. They need to be provided with additional professional support in the form of ideas, curricula and professional development courses in order to be better prepared for more classes in the natural environment.

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