Outdoor Environments for Children and Youth
The course is largely based on independent work, with some group work, in combination with online teaching (via Zoom). The modules contain lectures, literature seminars and three assignments including field work and presentations.
Information from the course leader
The role of outdoor environments in children and youth's everyday lives is the focus of this course. The course introduces perspectives, concepts and methods applied in the interdisciplinary study of children and youth's interactions in and with outdoor spaces. You will learn about strategies to investigate their relationship with place and scrutinize how they use different outdoor environments to meet their needs. This is knowledge that can be used to improve the quality of outdoor settings to benefit their play, learning, social life and well-being. We will also investigate how we can meet their needs in practice (planning, design and management) and the role of children and youth's participation in this process. In focus for assignments are the particular qualities children and youth seek in outdoor spaces, the testing of methods to study children's and youth's use of outdoor spaces, and a closer look at a specific problem children/youth face where you live with regards their use of and access to outdoor enviroments.
The course starts in autumn 2022 and is offered online via digital resources (Zoom and Canvas). Note that most of the online lessons will be compulsory. In addition to the online sessions there can be occasions offered to meet up on campus as well as a study visit during the first module.
Module dates (start 2022)
7 sept - 9 sept
26 okt - 28 okt
23 nov - 25 nov
11 jan - 12 jan
Course evaluation
The course evaluation is now closed
MP0006-10015 - Course evaluation report
Once the evaluation is closed, the course coordinator and student representative have 1 month to draft their comments. The comments will be published in the evaluation report.
Additional course evaluations for MP0006
Academic year 2024/2025
Outdoor Environments for Children and Youth (MP0006-10011)
2024-09-02 - 2025-01-19
Academic year 2023/2024
Outdoor Environments for Children and Youth (MP0006-10218)
2023-08-28 - 2024-01-14
Academic year 2021/2022
Outdoor Environments for Children and Youth (MP0006-10292)
2021-08-30 - 2022-01-16
Syllabus and other information
Syllabus
MP0006 Outdoor Environments for Children and Youth, 15.0 Credits
Utomhusmiljöer för barn och ungdomSubjects
Environmental Psychology Landscape ArchitectureEducation cycle
Master’s levelModules
| Title | Credits | Code |
|---|---|---|
| The child | 5.0 | 0202 |
| The microsystem | 5.0 | 0203 |
| The macrosystem | 5.0 | 0204 |
Advanced study in the main field
Second cycle, has only first-cycle course/s as entry requirementsMaster’s level (A1N)
Grading scale
The grade requirements within the course grading system are set out in specific criteria. These criteria must be available by the course start at the latest.
Language
EnglishPrior knowledge
The equivalent of 120 credits and English 6Objectives
The overall aim of the course is to give insights about the role of outdoor environments for children and youth in their everyday life, and how these spaces can be located, developed and maintained to support their health and social life, with benefits for their play, learning and development.
After completion of the course, the student will be able to:
• Describe characteristics of outdoor environment important for children’s social life including opportunities for play, learning and development
• Apply relevant strategies to investigate children’s experiences of and perspectives on place
• Analyse what a specific setting implies for children concerning its location, content, design and management
• Suggest general principles for planning and designing an outdoor environment for and with children and youth
• Discuss the interaction between physical and social planning on issues related to children and youth
• List documents regulating the planning and design of children’s outdoor environments
Content
The course is about outdoor environments for children and youth and the different strategies used to investigate their relationship with place and developing its benefits. The knowledge can be used to improve planning, design and management for and with children to make outdoor settings adventurous, safe and health-promoting. The first section of the course elaborates on the role of outdoor environments for children’s social life with benefits for their play, learning, and development. The second section of the course deals with planning, design and management of both formal and informal outdoor spaces in cities, neighbourhoods and the natural surroundings. The third section deals with planning practices related to children and youth as part of social and physical planning at national and international level. Special attention is paid to the role of natural environment and its variation related to season, geographic location and the role of specific elements, as edible plants, animals and water.
The course comprises lectures, literature seminars, study visits, project work, exercises and a written exam. Besides a project work, a written exam and examined assignments the course requires the student to carry out assignments and exercises during study visits and seminars.
The course combines mandatory Campus meetings with tasks carried out independently.
Grading form
The grade requirements within the course grading system are set out in specific criteria. These criteria must be available by the course start at the latest.Formats and requirements for examination
Successful completion of assignments and exercises as part of lectures, seminars, study visits and a written exam.
If a student has failed an examination, the examiner has the right to issue supplementary assignments. This applies if it is possible and there are grounds to do so.
The examiner can provide an adapted assessment to students entitled to study support for students with disabilities following a decision by the university. Examiners may also issue an adapted examination or provide an alternative way for the students to take the exam.
If this syllabus is withdrawn, SLU may introduce transitional provisions for examining students admitted based on this syllabus and who have not yet passed the course.
For the assessment of an independent project (degree project), the examiner may also allow a student to add supplemental information after the deadline for submission. Read more in the Education Planning and Administration Handbook.
Other information
The right to participate in teaching and/or supervision only applies for the course instance the student was admitted to and registered on.
If there are special reasons, students are entitled to participate in components with compulsory attendance when the course is given again. Read more in the Education Planning and Administration Handbook.
Additional information
The course is given as a distance course, with mandatory Campus meetings, at 50% speed.Responsible department
Department of People and Society
Further information
Litterature list
Below you will find the literature for each module (I-III) that is mandatory reading. The literature will be discussed in groups during mandatory self-organised literature seminars (see separate instructions on Canvas). All of the texts below should be accessible using SLU’s VPN service: Access to databases and e-journals requires VPN | Studentwebben (slu.se).
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you are having difficulty accessing any of the texts.
Module I: the child/adolescent (7th-9th September, 2022)
Badland, H., Kearns, R., Carroll, P., Oliver, M., Mavoa, S., Donovan, P., ... & Witten, K. (2016). Development of a systems model to visualise the complexity of children's independent mobility. Children's Geographies, 14(1), 91-100.
Chawla, L. (2015). Benefits of nature contact for children. Journal of planning literature, 30(4), 433-452
Jarvis, I., Sbihi, H., Davis, Z., Brauer, M., Czekajlo, A., Davies, H.W., Gergel, S.E., Guhn, M., Jerrett, M., Koehoorn, M. and Nesbitt, L., 2022. The influence of early-life residential exposure to different vegetation types and paved surfaces on early childhood development: A population-based birth cohort study. Environment International, 163, p.107196.
Loebach, J., & Gilliland, J. (2016). Neighbourhood play on the endangered list: examining patterns in children's local activity and mobility using GPS monitoring and qualitative GIS. Children's geographies, 14(5), 573-589.
Wales, M., Mårtensson, F., Hoff, E., and Jansson, M. (2022). Elevating the Role of the Outdoor Environment for Adolescent Wellbeing in Everyday Life. Frontiers in Psychology 13. Doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.774592.
Wells, N. M., Jimenez, F. E., & Mårtensson, F. (2016). Children and nature. Citizen Science. Public Participation in Environmental Research, 201-213.
Module II: the microsystem (26th-28th October, 2022)
Aminpour, F., Bishop, K. and Corkery, L., 2020. The hidden value of in-between spaces for children’s self directed play within outdoor school environments. Landscape and urban planning, 194, p.103683.
Bishop, K. & Corkery, L. (2017). Designing Cities with Children and Young People. Beyond Playgrounds and Skate Parks, Routledge London and New York (Chapter 11). AVAILABLE AS E-BOOK ON CANVAS UNDER COURSE BOOKS.
Jansson, M., Herbert, E., Zalar, A., & Johansson, M. (2022). Child-Friendly Environments—What, How and by Whom?. Sustainability, 14(8), 4852.
Johansson, M., Mårtensson, F., Jansson, M., & Sternudd, C. (2020). Urban space for children on the move. In *Transport and Children's Wellbeing *(pp. 217-235). Elsevier.
Snow, D., Bundy, A., Tranter, P., Wyver, S., Naughton, G., Ragen, J., & Engelen, L. (2019). Girls’ perspectives on the ideal school playground experience: An exploratory study of four Australian primary schools. Children's geographies, 17(2), 148-161.
Wales, M., Mårtensson, F., & Jansson, M. (2021). ‘You can be outside a lot': independent mobility and agency among children in a suburban community in Sweden. Children's Geographies, 19(2), 184-196.
Module III: the macrosystem (23rd-25th November, 2022)
Bishop, K. & Corkery, L. (2017). Designing Cities with Children and Young People. Beyond Playgrounds and Skate Parks, Routledge London and New York (Chapter 3 and 5). AVAILABLE AS E-BOOK ON CANVAS UNDER COURSE BOOKS.
Cele, S., & van Der Burgt, D. (2015). Participation, consultation, confusion: professionals' understandings of children's participation in physical planning. Children's Geographies, 13(1), 14-29.
Derr, V., Chawla, L., & Mintzer, M. (2018). Placemaking with children and youth: Participatory practices for planning sustainable communities. New Village Press (Chapter 1). AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD ON CANVAS UNDER COURSE BOOKS.
Jansson, M., & Lerstrup, I. (2020). Children's perspectives on green space management in Sweden and Denmark. In Place, Pedagogy and Play. Taylor & Francis.
Woolley, H. (2013). Now being social: The barrier of designing outdoor play spaces for disabled children. Children & Society, 27(6), 448-458.