Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan), in partnership with the Lawson Foundation and Waltons Trust, has launched a new pan-Canadian initiative to strengthen early childhood education through outdoor and land-based teaching and learning.
The new Outdoor & Land-Based ECE initiative is supported by a combined $5-million investment from the Lawson Foundation and Waltons Trust.
By mobilizing the expertise and deep community connections - including with Indigenous communities - of Canada's public colleges and institutes, the initiative will integrate outdoor land-based and Indigenous-informed approaches into existing early childhood education (ECE) programs. This will equip ECE educators to deliver more holistic, inclusive, and responsive learning experiences, and strengthen connections between children, families, and communities - ultimately contributing to healthier, more resilient communities across Canada.
Twenty-nine colleges, institutes, CEGEPs, polytechnics, and Indigenous Institutes of Education will be engaged through communities of practice, funded institutional projects, and targeted supports for faculty and leadership. The initiative will also foster cross-regional collaboration and support the development of bilingual open educational resources to extend its impact nationwide.
Young children in Canada face a different set of challenges than previous generations - including spending less time outdoors, which carries long-term impacts for their health, development, and readiness to learn. This initiative will ensure that approaches to teaching and learning ECE evolve, are designed for modern challenges, and ready to meet unique modern needs.
Building on More Than a New Course: A Framework for Embedding Outdoor and Land-Based Pedagogies in Post-Secondary Early Childhood Education Programs, the initiative will support a coordinated, sector-led shift across Canada.
It also responds to the need to better reflect Indigenous perspectives in ECE programs, supporting respectful engagement with Indigenous knowledge-keepers and advancing land-based approaches to learning and reconciliation in a meaningful, tangible ways.
Quotes:
"At the Lawson Foundation, we are committed to advancing the professional learning of early childhood educators and ensuring they are equipped to support meaningful outdoor and land-based play and learning experiences. By supporting faculty and administrators to address the complexities of institutional change, this initiative directly benefits both the healthy development of young children and ultimately the quality of programs in the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) initiative."
Cathy Taylor, President & CEO, Lawson Foundation
Colleges and institutes are where the next generation of early childhood educators are trained, which makes them the natural place to drive lasting change. This initiative supports them to embed outdoor learning as a core expectation in ECE programs so it becomes the norm, not the exception. We're proud to invest in that shift, and in the educators and children who will benefit."
Christy Moorhead, Executive Director, Waltons Trust
"Canada's colleges and institutes are leaders in applied learning and community engagement. This initiative builds on that strength by supporting institutions to embed outdoor and land-based pedagogies in their programs - equipping future educators to support children's well-being, development, and connection to land, and helping build the strong, inclusive communities that will shape Canada's future."
Pari Johnston, President and CEO, Colleges and Institutes Canada
For more information
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