Learning science outdoors can enhance the understanding of theoretical scientific content taught in the classroom. However, learners are rarely afforded the opportunity to go outdoors to learn chemistry. This study investigates how problem-based learning outdoors can facilitate the understanding of basic chemistry in teacher education. A teaching unit was designed according to which student teachers at two Norwegian universities were asked to examine and identify corroded metals in the nearby outdoor environment and propose solutions to avoid this corrosion. Video data from this task were collected by using chest-mounted cameras for four groups of student teachers ( N = 17). A thematic analysis of the videos yielded four themes related to the student teachers’ use of content knowledge and experimental competence. Based on these findings, three learning opportunities were deduced for how the nearby outdoor environment allows learners to use everyday phenomena for learning basic chemistry. First, the availability of different corrosion incidents allowed the student teachers to choose and solve one of interest to them. Second, the proximity of the outdoor location to the classroom enabled the seamless continuity of discussions when switching between the learning arenas, and allowed for different approaches to solve the task. Third, being asked to conduct analyses outside customary laboratory routines led to an unexpected awareness of health and safety issues among the student teachers, indicating that outdoor chemistry is an overlooked opportunity for teaching these.

This survey investigated how teachers in the northernmost parts of Norway use outdoor science teaching, and what they consider to be the most important challenges. Most teachers report that they do outdoor science activities a couple of times a year, more often in primary school than secondary school. The topics covered are largely related to biology during autumn and spring. Factors that inhibit use of outdoor teaching are related to the length of classes and time to prepare, together with lack of competence and weather challenges. Both expectation from parents and encouragement from management had little influence on the use of outdoor teaching, while the teacher own interest of outdoor life and the fact that students enjoyed such teaching were important elements. Moreover, experienced teachers considered the student group’s characteristics to be of importance for how much outdoor teaching was used compared to teachers who had worked for less than five years. Our study also confirmed that the teacher’s perception of species knowledge was closely linked to their own interest in nature.

In this case study, we describe an inquiry-based approach to enhancing tuition in chemistry by taking student teachers out of the lab and into nature. We used video observation and interviews to gain insight into student teachers’ expectations and experiences of such fieldwork. Through thematic analysis, we found that the participants perceived the approach as individually relevant and worthy of integrating as a teaching method in future practice. Further, we discussed challenges presented by outdoor chemistry and ways to overcome these. Overall, we show that fieldwork in chemistry contributed to a better understanding of chemistry as an integral part of nature.

Research has called for greater emphasis on outdoor science activities in preservice teacher education. Therefore, in this study, preservice teachers reflect on an outdoor chemistry unit that aimed to model outdoor science activities to be conducted in local settings within short time frames. Data from the preservice teachers’ reflections were collected through videotaping discussions conducted in 10 small groups following their participation in the outdoor chemistry unit. The data analysis identified nine themes in the preservice teachers’discussions, which were categorized according to the concepts of essential aspects of out-door science activities and alternative methods of action for outdoor science activities in future teaching practice. The following essential aspects of outdoor science activities were identified: cognitive challenge, prior knowledge, purpose, structures that support learning, and contextual factors. The methods of action were mostly strategies aimed at supporting and managing the students’ learning outdoors. Discrepancies between the preservice teachers’ discussions of the outdoor chemistry unit, the essential features modeled through the unit, and the literature are discussed, demonstrating the importance of having preservice teachers reflect on a specific outdoor science unit modeled during their teacher education. An implication of this study is the need to support preservice teachers in comparing their previous experiences of outdoor science activities with those modeled most recently.