The Use of Outdoor Environmental Education in Special Educational Needs and/or Disability Primary Schools: A Comparative Case Study Approach

The following research describes the effects an environmental education programme had on pupils
with Special Educational Needs and/or Disability. The programme took place through outdoor
activities in two Primary Schools. The research focuses on stances and opinions of 10 pupils,
diagnosed with mild to moderate intellectual disability, towards Environmental Education and
prognoses barriers that may occur in the learning process. Using descriptive statistical analysis to
compare the two groups of pupils, this research suggests the further practice of Outdoor
Environmental Education in Special Education. The data were collected using semi-structured
interviews. The main conclusions of the research were that students who participated in their school’s
environmental educational program seem to be more familiarized with a range of concepts related to
the environment and possess skills linked directly to Environmental Education in relation to their peers
that did not engage in the project. Pupils who participated in the “School Garden”, unlike their peers,
perceived outdoor activities of their school as part of the learning process, in formal education. This
study proposes further research to take place in the area of Outdoor Environmental Education as a
tool for inclusion.