Out-of-school primary experiences of elementary school students with an aquatic ecosystem and the influence on their conceptions

Out-of-school learning has a special relevance for biology education. One ecosystem that has not yet been considered as a learning place in biology education research for elementary school education is the Wadden Sea. This study examines how a mudflat hiking tour impacts on elementary school students’ conceptions of this ecosystem. Students drew their conceptions before and after a mudflat hiking tour. The drawings (n = 578) were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. The results show that they primarily connect animals, such as crabs, lugworms, and mussels, with the Wadden Sea. In addition, this is described as a brown-grey landscape and the relevance of water and sand is emphasized. In the post-test, students show significantly different conceptions, as evidenced by a Wilcoxon test. Many explanations of ways of life of the animals as well as plants can be found on the drawings of the post-test. The potential of out-of-school learning in the Wadden Sea is empirically confirmed for elementary school students.