“What’s outdoor education?” (OE) you ask. OE brings classroom content outside and provides students an opportunity to experience learning through unique hands-on experiences. Outdoor education is not a new concept. In fact, it’s been around for more than three decades and remains relevant as most OE programs have evolved to keep up with the demands of the ever-changing education system. As federal and state standards become more focused, outdoor education programs across the country have worked diligently to create partnerships with schools to aid in reinforcing those standards.
“Why outdoor programs?” These types of programs have a multitude of benefits in the education and development of students. In its simple form OE programs expose students to the world around them. OE helps students to stop and see the adventure right before their eyes. It also provides context to the academic content they are learning. If you were talking to students about energy, and they get to send their teacher screaming down the zip line in an experiment testing force and motion, the content becomes quite real to these students.
So you may be thinking, “This is a great, but what does this have to do with Tejas?” Let me be the first to introduce our latest endeavor: Tejas Discovery School. We are diligently working to launch our outdoor education program in the fall and we need you! Visit our website to see how you can play a part in preparing for our new program that will impact the lives of students all over Central Texas and beyond.