Outdoor lessons growing: more and more primary schools embed nature in education

Research DUO-Onderwijs commissioned by IVN shows advance and challenges.

Outdoor learning has long since ceased to be an occasional outing. In ten years, the number of outdoor lessons in primary schools has risen sharply. Language and maths lessons, for instance, increasingly take place outdoors. More and more schools are also structurally implementing nature education. This is evident from research commissioned by IVN Natuureducatie and carried out by DUO-Onderwijs to mark 10 years of National Outdoor Education Day.

The survey shows that schools still face barriers when it comes to outdoor teaching: from the lack of suitable outdoor space to the lack of help or policies. And that calls for action.

An “outdoor learning day” is a day when schools take their students outside for class, instead of staying inside the classroom. The aim is for students to enjoy the benefits of outdoor education, such as more exercise, a fresh environment, and a different learning experience.

In 2016, IVN launched the National Outdoor Learning Day together with Jantje Beton. The aim of this annual day is to get children to learn and play outside more. Since then, support for outdoor learning has increased. But what is the real situation in 2025? Which subjects are taught outside? How often does it happen? And what are the preconditions?

DUO-Onderwijs surveyed primary school teachers in 2016, 2018, 2021 and now again in 2025. The results provide insights into the growth, but also the bottlenecks that hinder structural nature education.

• The percentage of teachers teaching outside has increased: from 65% in 2016 to 74% in 2025.
• Teachers who teach outside do so more often: from an average of 14 times a year (2016) to an average of 20 times (2025).
• A number of subjects are taught outside more often
  • Language: 14% in 2016 to 65% in 2025.
  • Arithmetic: 36% in 2016 to 77% in 2025.
• On balance, there is a decent increase in the percentage of outdoor lessons: in 2016, an average of 0.5% of lessons were conducted outdoors. By 2025, this will have increased to 1.2%

Yet there is still room for growth:

• 26% of teachers do not teach outdoor lessons, while 42% of this particular target group say they would like to.
• 66% of teachers receive no outside help, while 55% of them indicated a need for it.
• Schools with a stone square and without outdoor lesson policy teach significantly less outdoors.

So the barriers are not only physical (space), but also organisational (policy, support, culture). Many teachers want to, but don't know how or lack help.

The past decade has shown that outdoor teaching works and is increasingly seen as a full complement to classroom teaching. At the same time, the figures show that much potential remains untapped. This calls for support.

IVN remains committed to Nature Schools: places where outdoor lessons are not incidental, but a fixed part of the school week. With teaching materials, training courses, volunteers and green schoolyards, IVN gives hands and feet to nature education in primary education.