March 19, 2024

Outdoor Learning: Leaving the Classroom Behind (new white paper)

Over my career, I’ve enjoyed the great opportunity to work with many of my education heroes and sheroes. During Educon 2009, I met school architect and designer Prakash Nair. I was so impressed by his passion, insight, and deep understanding of how learning occurs that I whisked him away to dinner. It is rare to find a non-educator who “gets it” like Prakash. For my money, he is the best school designer in the world.

Over the past decade or so, I’ve been proud to be his colleague and have collaborated on fantastic school design projects. Prakash does not suffer from what Dr. King called the “tranquilizing drug of gradualism.” There have been times when I’m the conservative when working with him, but Prakash shares my drive to make the world a better place for kids.

In a desire to help schools navigate the chaos of COVID-19 and beyond, Prakash Nair authored a white paper, Outdoor Learning: Leaving the Classroom Behind. It may be purchased from Amazon.com. Since readers to my blog know that I am all about the love, you may download your very own copy here, free of charge. I’m pleased to share this important work with you and proud to have played a small role in its creation.

With COVID-19 seemingly here to stay, there is now a serious move to take learning outside to maximize school capacity. Social distancing is easier outside than within the confines of a classroom. It is likely that outdoor learning, until very recently a novelty, will soon become quite widespread. This white paper is the most comprehensive treatise on the subject of Outdoor Learning presented from the perspective of educators, architects, neurologists and environmental scientists.

Anyone interested in school design or architecture should read these books by Prakash Nair. They are the gold standard.

Back cover of new white paper