The Phenomenological Study of the Nature School and its Implications for Children's Emotional and Social Development

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to identify the emotional and social consequences of the Nature School. This was a qualitative research and the method was phenomenology. Participants in this study included the parents of the students of the School of nature in Mashhad who were selected by purposive sampling method. Data acquisition tool in this research was a qualitative interview, specifically, semi-structured interview with open and standardized questions. Data were analyzed and classified according to Strauss and Glaser's grounded theory. The findings indicated a positive outcome of the educational experience in the school of nature with two dimensions: emotional and social. The emotional dimension consisted of four categories:how to inculcate and control emotions (fear and anger), emotional recognition (emotional self-consciousness, attention to others' feelings), interest and value for self (self-confidence, self-esteem and independence), and interest and value for nature. In the social dimension, three categories were indentified: interactions with others, solving social problems (accountability, legitimacy) and playing and reacting (reducing the tendency toward television and computer games, playing in the nature, variety in the games). Results showed the effect of the Nature School on children's emotional and social development and can be used as an effective educational strategy to facilitate emotional and social development.

Keywords

• nature school
• emotional development
• social development
• children