Dr Anne Hunt from the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom considers the Government’s plans for a broader curriculum and enrichment entitlement that aim to make ex-situ education more accessible for all.
The recent Government White Paper, Every Child Achieving and Thriving, sets out an ambitious and much-needed vision for education. At its heart are three fundamental shifts: from narrow to broad, sidelined to included, and withdrawn to engaged. These shifts recognise that for children and young people to truly succeed, education must extend towards viewing learning more holistically.
Learning Outside the Classroom (LOtC) is the practice of choosing places and spaces for learning that take students beyond the classroom. It is well-evidenced to support all three of the intended shifts set out in the White Paper.
Expanding the curriculum
A key ambition of the White Paper is to move beyond a tight focus on subject towards a broader, deeper curriculum that helps make learning feel relevant, and includes an entitlement to enrichment for all.
By taking learning beyond the classroom, it extends learning into real-world contexts, whether that is through immersion in different cultures, experiencing the workplace, or building connections to places and communities near and far. It enables pupils to understand how theory and concepts are applied in real-world contexts; it deepens their understanding and fosters critical thinking and creativity (rather than simply recall).
So, as well as strengthening and applying subject knowledge, LOtC develops many other essential skills for life and work. It is proven to develop teamwork, communication, resilience, problem-solving, leadership, and risk management. These are not abstract competencies; they are lived and practised through shared challenges and new environments, and they are essential to students thriving and achieving in life. They are what the National Foundation for Education Research call employer essential skills.
Removing barriers to participation
The White Paper emphasises inclusion and equity. Currently, learning beyond the classroom opportunities are treated as optional, and hence are accessible only to some. So, an entitlement to enrichment, and planning it with intent for all learners, should help remove the financial and social barriers that can limit participation. Gold LOtC Mark school Walsall Academy is a fantastic example of what is possible when LOtC is adopted into school policy and practice and being purposeful about where and how best to teach.
“Our young people might start their development on Cannock Chase or at Aberdovey on the beach but then go on to reach the heights of Everest. LOtC is not a bolt on or an extra, it is intrinsic to what we do with young people from one of Britain’s most disadvantaged areas through a very diverse range of LOtC.”
Jon Clarke, shadow headteacher, Walsall Academy
Evidence is clear that pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) are among the least likely to access enrichment opportunities, yet evidence also shows that groups of students who are least likely to access these experiences show the greatest uplift in outcomes. Again, it is the diversity of environments, teaching approaches, and sensory experiences offered by LOtC that create pathways to success and engagement with learning.
Building belonging and motivation
Engagement with learning, belonging, attendance, and wellbeing are all central concerns in the current educational landscape. The shift from withdrawn to engaged recognises that students must feel connected to their learning, to each other, to school, and to community.
Shared experiences in difference places whether through a theatre workshop in the school hall, on a visit to local businesses, or a residential stay away, build relationships and connections. Being outside the classroom changes the dynamic. It develops new and different bonds between students, between the students and teaching staff, and between students and the places and people they visit near and far.
Engagement increases when learning feels relevant and purposeful, and learning becomes more memorable when it happens beyond the classroom, transforming what can feel like abstract concepts into practical application.
LOtC offers a multitude of opportunities for schools to strengthen links with families and communities. A culture of learning beyond the classroom whether through educational visits, clubs, or events, encourages everyone to participate.
A central role in educational reform
The ambitions set out in Every Child Achieving and Thriving cannot be realised through classroom-based approaches alone. Learning outside the classroom is at the core of delivering an inclusive, engaging and successful education system.
By designing and delivering high-quality, inclusive LOtC that supports school curriculum delivery, schools can demonstrate they are enabling every child and young person to feel that they belong, and to be actively engaged in their learning. Thoughtfully planned experiences are well evidenced to extend learning, widen horizons, and strengthen the whole school community. The shifts set out in the White Paper signal that LOtC should move from being an opportunity for some to an essential entitlement for all.
You can find downloads for the ‘Every Child Achieving and Thriving’ Government White Paper in various formats via this link:
For more information about the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom, go to lotc.org.uk
