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

This brief integrative review summarizes recent advances and the current state of human 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. 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.