Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey! My name is Kaitlyn McLay and this survey is a key component to the completion of my master’s thesis and my Master of Arts in International Studies (MAIS) degree at Simon Fraser University (SFU). It should only take between 5-10 minutes to complete.
This survey explores whether childhood forest school education influences environmental attitudes and behaviours later in life.
To participate, you should be an adult (18+) who has attended forest school for at least 3 months at some point between the ages of 2-18.
For the purposes of this study, the term “forest school” refers to any school that has the following attributes:
1. Regular and repeated classes (e.g., daily or weekly attendance) in a predominantly outdoor setting.
2. Encourages students to learn through interactions with Nature for a portion of their experiences.
Your forest school(s) might have been called something different, such as “forest kindergarten,” “Earth school,” “Nature schools,” "outdoor school," or “green school.” So, even if your program is not called a “forest school,” this survey is still for you as long as your program aligns with the above attributes. When answering the following survey questions, feel free to imagine replacing the term “forest school” with the proper name of the outdoor learning centre(s) that you attended.
This survey was created to inform my master’s thesis on the long-term effects, if any, of childhood forest school education on environmental motivation in adulthood. By taking this survey, you are helping to fill an important research gap regarding what motivates environmental commitments. Specifically, it will help us understand if forest school education plays a role in environmental commitments in adulthood, and if so, in which ways it influences these commitments.
Your participation in this study is entirely voluntary. You may refuse to participate, withdraw from the study at any time, or decline to answer any question for any reason. All responses will be securely stored and accessed only by the researcher for research purposes. No information that could identify you will be included in any reports or publications.
By completing and submitting this survey, you acknowledge that you have read and understood the study’s purpose, that your participation is voluntary, and that your responses will be kept confidential. Completing this survey indicates your consent to participate in this study. Please contact me at kaitlyn_mclay@sfu.ca if you have any questions, comments, or requests.
You will now be directed to a consent form followed by the survey itself. Thank you again for taking this survey and supporting master's thesis environmental research!
