Education and indeed Forest School do heavily the rely on research. In The UK there has been a significant amount of Research completed around Forest School’s in particular it’s impact on children. Below you will find summaries of a number of research papers and their findings, click on the table to see the original article:
Overall Evaluation: The research was very positive and really supported the ethos behind the Forest School Program. However it was interesting to note the small sample size in all the research projects. It would be good to find some research that brings together a project nationally to see the impact on a much larger group of pupils.
I personally am a fan of Action Research, I believe using research to inform you practice, then monitoring it’s impact and then developing practice further is essential for any educator. This method works very well with the Forest School and acts on something we would do instinctively anyway. Looking at our sessions after and deciding how we will do them better next time.