What if there was a year 7–10 outdoor education curriculum in Victoria, Australia?

There has been significant and sustained advocacy for a Year 7–10 Outdoor Education curriculum in Victoria and Australia for over forty years. Beginning in 2018, this prompted the formation of the Outdoor Education in the Victorian Curriculum (OEVC) project team, involving representatives from state-based professional associations: Outdoors Victoria, the Victorian branch of ACHPER (Australian Council for Health, Physical Education and Recreation), the Residential Outdoor Schools Association (ROSA), and Victorian universities with interests in Outdoor Education. The OEVC project has been formalised in recent years to focus on this vital work, consulting with teachers, administrators and academics in the drafting of a specific Year 7–10 Outdoor Education curriculum. To ascertain the perceived impact and appropriateness of a Year 7–10 Outdoor Education curriculum, teachers’ insights were solicited via an online survey, administered via statewide conferences of OE teachers convened separately by Outdoors Victoria, ACHPER Victoria, and ROSA. In this paper, we share the process surrounding the drafting of this Outdoor Education curriculum and the findings of the teacher survey. These findings suggest a Year 7–10 Outdoor Education curriculum in Victoria be seriously considered because it would support teachers and students who are already studying in this area in Years 7–10. Further, we suggest a possible solution might be to offer it as an option within the Health and Physical Education learning area in the Victorian Curriculum.

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