Outdoor Learning in Ontario: Toward an Ecological and Relational Education in Kindergarten
Bibliographic record
Abstract
The works of Donald (2020; 2021) emphasize the need to renew our relationships with places and to consider the Earth not merely as a physical space but as a living entity with which humans interact. This relationality redefines outdoor learning by positioning the land as an active co-teacher. The preparatory cycle and the PMJE program (Ministry of Education, 2016), with its focus on play-based learning, inquiry, and exploration, align closely with this educational vision. In such contexts, nature becomes not only a setting but an active participant in the learning process, reflecting a holistic and environmentally respectful approach (Chard, 2017; Brougère, 2005). The need to redesign pedagogical practices in Canada through ecological and cultural lenses has been highlighted by multiple scholars. Studies such as those by Chambers (1999; 2006) demonstrate that traditional curricula have long been shaped by Eurocentric or North American paradigms, often overlooking Indigenous relationships with the land. The preparatory cycle, as the initial stage of public schooling, presents a critical opportunity to introduce educational practices that honor these relationships and foster lasting environmental consciousness in young children. Keywords: outdoor learning, kindergarten, relationality, place-based connection, ecological education, early childhood teachers, reconciliation, ecological awareness. DOI: 10.7176/JEP/16-4-02 Publication date: April 30th 2025
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How this classification was reachedexpand
Full frame machine prediction
Teacher imitationNot calibrated prevalence, not ground truth. Human validation pending. The Gemma side is a direct model label for every work in the frame, read from the title-only record. The Codex side is a classifier learned from the 10,348 direct Codex labels and calibrated to design-weighted sample rates; fields without enough sample support carry no Codex call. Candidate is the union of the two sides; consensus is their intersection. These outputs are machine_predicted_unvalidated and are not human labels.
Distilled classifier scores by category (both heads)
| Category | Codex | Gemma |
|---|---|---|
| Metaresearch | 0.001 | 0.002 |
| Meta-epidemiology (narrow) | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Meta-epidemiology (broad) | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Bibliometrics | 0.001 | 0.002 |
| Science and technology studies | 0.016 | 0.007 |
| Scholarly communication | 0.006 | 0.003 |
| Open science | 0.001 | 0.006 |
| Research integrity | 0.001 | 0.002 |
| Insufficient payload (model declined to judge) | 0.005 | 0.000 |
Machine scores (provisional)
The two teacher heads of the student model, read on this work. A score orders the frame for review; it never asserts a category, and the validation status ships verbatim with every row.
Baseline scores from an immature model (maturity gate not passed, 7 training rounds). Scores rank; they never assert a category.
score_only:v0-immature-baseline · verbatim from the scoring run: score_only means the number may rank works, and no category label ships from itClassification
machine, unvalidatedMachine predicted; a candidate call from one source (direct Gemma or distilled Codex), not a consensus.
How this classification was reached, model by model and score by score, is at the end of the page under "How this classification was reached".