The real impact of outdoor education

A new review, published on 11 July 2026, looked at the wellbeing effects of outdoor education over time.

Most of the studies found positive results, and some of those effects were still visible months or even years later.

The strongest patterns appeared around relationships, confidence, personal growth and a sense of achievement.

There are plenty of possible reasons for this. Outdoor education brings together nature, movement, novelty and a break from the usual routine. It often involves shared challenges, unfamiliar situations and moments when people have to depend on one another.

I have also been thinking about this through the work of psychologist Ethan Kross, who wrote Chatter.

Kross uses the word “chatter” to describe the repetitive inner voice that gets stuck on worries, mistakes and imagined problems. Most of us know that feeling well. A thought tumbles around in our mind like clothes in a washing machine, gathering momentum and starting to take up far more space than it deserves.

Natural environments seem to help turn the volume down.

Our attention moves towards what is around us: sounds, movement, weather, distance, changing light and the people nearby. This can give the mind a little much-needed breathing room and make it easier to step outside those repetitive loops.

For a young person, that breathing room could be very valuable.

Students arrive at school carrying all kinds of thoughts about friendships, family life, appearance, ability and whether they belong. In an outdoor setting, attention is pulled towards something immediate, primal and shared.

* How do we complete this task?

* Which route should we take?

* Who needs help?

* What should we try next?

For a while, there is somewhere else for the mind to go.

The natural setting may quieten some of the internal noise. The activity gives students something real to focus on. Working together creates new conversations and relationships. Completing something difficult gives them evidence of what they can do.

Those experiences can stay with people. I remember summer camps at the Sandle Manor school in Fordingbridge well (I still claim to have saved my friend’s life when we were scuba diving in a 5ft deep pool!).

A young person may come away remembering that they coped with something difficult, helped someone else or played an important role in a group. Over time, moments like these can become part of how they see themselves.

This may help explain why outdoor education appears to affect confidence, relationships and personal growth, rather than simply producing a temporary lift in mood.

From our perspective as a software and platform-design team, this raises some interesting questions.

Learning environments shape more than the delivery of information. They influence attention, behaviour, confidence and the way people relate to one another.

Digital learning cannot reproduce the experience of being outdoors, but there are still useful lessons here. We can think more carefully about whether an environment adds to the noise in a learner’s head or gives them space to focus. We can create shared goals rather than endless individual comparison. We can offer meaningful challenges and give people genuine reasons to work together.

There is probably no single active ingredient in outdoor education. Nature, movement, challenge, novelty and social connection are all likely to play a part.

The idea that natural spaces can quieten mental chatter, leaving more room for connection, confidence and growth, feels like an important part of the picture.

What do you think outdoor education changes most?

We would love to hear your thoughts through the social channels linked at the top of the page.