SL-CN: Science of Nature-based Learning Collaborative Research Network

这个学习科学合作研究网络项目是明尼苏达大学、儿童与自然网络、北美环境教育协会和伊利诺伊大学厄巴纳-香槟分校之间的伙伴关系。该网络由来自全国各地的研究人员以及非营利组织、专业协会、公共教育和博物馆部门的实践者领导组成，他们对加快研究步伐感兴趣，以了解自然接触是否以及如何影响儿童的学习、认知发展和学习成绩。该网络有三个功能：1)制定关于自然与学习的长期跨学科研究议程；2)开展探索性研究，了解在自然中度过的时间如何影响儿童课堂学习和行为的可能机制；3)综合和传播关于自然与学习的现有知识以及网络的研究成果。加强我们对自然-学习联系机制的理解，特别是对什么有效、对谁有效、如何有效以及在什么情况下有效的问题的理解，将为教育者、教育管理者、政策制定者、规划师和设计师等人的实践提供信息。我们增进对这一复杂现象的理解的最佳机会是加速基于自然的学习科学的研究进展。基于自然科学的学习协作研究网络旨在提供结构和资源，以允许这种加速。越来越多的证据表明，在大自然中度过的时间对发展有很多好处，包括提高学习和学业成绩。自然和学习之间的关系背后的机制是什么？这是资助网络和探索性研究的核心科学问题。这个学习科学合作研究网络项目是明尼苏达大学、儿童与自然网络、北美环境教育协会和伊利诺伊大学厄巴纳-香槟分校之间的伙伴关系。该网络由来自全国各地的研究人员以及非营利组织、专业协会、公共教育和博物馆部门的实践者领导组成，他们对加快研究步伐感兴趣，以了解自然接触是否以及如何影响儿童的学习、认知发展和学习成绩。该网络有三个功能：1)制定适合持续合作研究的长期跨学科议程；2)开展协作性的探索性研究，为未来对自然对学习的影响及其解释机制的严谨研究奠定基础，特别是对弱势学生；3)综合和传播有关自然和学习的现有知识以及网络的研究成果。在这个项目中嵌入的探索性研究旨在开始阐明为什么自然暴露会提高学习的机制。此外，基于其他人关于基于经济劣势的自然对学习的差异影响的初步发现，本研究将社会经济地位作为一个独立变量来考察，并试图阐明这种影响的可能解释。三种机制-压力失调，注意力疲劳和行为中断-被假设为自然暴露与学习之间关系的中介。在每种情况下，都有理由解释为什么经济条件差的学生比条件好的学生更容易经历中介效应。

This Science of Learning Collaborative Research Network project is a partnership among the University of Minnesota, the Children and Nature Network, the North American Association of Environmental Education and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The network is composed of researchers from across the country, as well as practitioner leaders in the non-profit, professional society, public education and museum sectors, who have an interest in accelerating the pace of research to understand if, and how, nature exposure influences children's learning, cognitive development and academic performance. The network serves three functions 1) to develop a long-term interdisciplinary research agenda about nature and learning, 2) to conduct exploratory research to understand possible mechanisms explaining how time spent in nature influences children's classroom learning and behavior, and 3) to synthesize and disseminate existing knowledge about nature and learning as well as the network's research findings. Enhancing our understanding of the mechanisms of the nature-learning connection, and particularly the questions of what works, for whom, how, and under what circumstances, will inform the practice of educators, educational administrators, policy makers, planners and designers, among others. Our best chances of enhancing our understanding of this complex phenomenon is to accelerate research progress on the science of nature-based learning. The Science of Nature-based Learning Collaborative Research Network aims to provide the structure and resources to permit such acceleration.There is increasing evidence that time spent in nature produces a host of developmental benefits, including enhanced learning and academic achievement. What are the mechanisms that underlie the relationship between nature and learning? This is the focal scientific question grounding the funded network and exploratory research. This Science of Learning Collaborative Research Network project is a partnership among the University of Minnesota, the Children and Nature Network, the North American Association of Environmental Education and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The network is composed of researchers from across the country, as well as practitioner leaders in the non-profit, professional society, public education and museum sectors, who have an interest in accelerating the pace of research to understand if, and how, nature exposure influences children's learning, cognitive development and academic performance. The network serves three functions 1) to develop a long-term interdisciplinary agenda appropriate for sustained collaborative research, 2) to conduct collaborative, exploratory research to ground future rigorous studies of the impact of nature on learning and of the explanatory mechanisms of this effect, particularly for disadvantaged students, and 3) to synthesize and disseminate existing knowledge about nature and learning as well as the network's research findings. The exploratory research study embedded in within this project is intended to begin to elucidate the mechanisms that explain why nature exposure enhances learning. In addition, building on others' preliminary findings of differential impact of nature on learning based on economic disadvantage, this study examines socioeconomic status as an independent variable and attempts to elucidate possible explanations for this effect. Three mechanisms - stress dysregulation, attention fatigue, and behavioral disruption - are hypothesized as mediators of the relationship between nature exposure and learning. In each case, there is a rationale for why economically disadvantaged students might experience the mediating effect to a greater degree than more advantaged students.