20.500.12556/DKUM-96935 Outdoor natural science and biology education in lower secondary schools teachers' practices and perceived obstacles Outdoor education (OE) represents an established approach to connecting learning with real-world contexts and supporting sustainability-related competencies. The aim of this study was to examine how Slovenian lower secondary natural science and biology teachers perceive and implement OE, as well as which factors influence its use in school practice. In Slovenia, natural science is taught as an integrated subject in grades 6-7, while biology is taught as a separate subject from grade 8 onwards; this study therefore included teachers from both instructional contexts. Data were collected using an online questionnaire completed by 108 teachers and analysed using descriptive statistics, correlations analyses, and Principal Component Analysis (PCA). The results indicate that teachers generally perceive OE as highly beneficial for students, particularly regarding engagement, experiential learning, and environmental awareness, but report obstacles such as limited time, curriculum overload, and large class sizes. These findings provide empirical insight into the gap between curricular intension and classroom practice and may inform policy measures and teacher education programmes aimed at strengthening the systematic integration of OE in Slovenian science teaching. biology education lower secondary school outdoor education science teachers sustainability education pouk biologije osnovne šole izobraževanje na prostem učitelji naravoslovja trajnostni razvoj true false true MDPI Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik Znanstveno delo 2026-02-03 13:00:07 2026-02-03 13:00:08 2026-02-04 03:11:25 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2026 0 0 28 str. št. 2, št. članka 232 Letn. 16 2026 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 0000-00-00 2026-01-27 2026-02-03 37.091.3:57/59 267148035 10.3390/educsci16020232 2227-7102 RAZ_Spernjak_Andreja_2026.pdf RAZ_Spernjak_Andreja_2026.pdf 1 8B3C08F38B04D7B2C09B6C444ADFE207 8c2386822d96152546a3319c8ceb2f471821d44299962bc140f7f9501b315b69 45fd2ec4-00f8-11f1-bf34-00155d581219 https://dk.um.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=203022 https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16020232 1 e2b9c307-00f7-11f1-bf34-00155d581219 https://dk.um.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=203021 Fakulteta za naravoslovje in matematiko 0 0 0