Outdoor Education in Elementary Schools: Comparing Professional Practice and Self-Efficacy Among Outdoor and Classroom-Based Teachers

This study examined differences in professional practice, teaching motivations, and self-efficacy beliefs between outdoor teachers (OT) and classroom-based teachers (TT) in Israeli elementary schools, addressing limited comparative evidence on whether teachers working across instructional contexts differ more in domain-relevant professional practice than in broader demographic and motivational characteristics. A comparative cross-sectional survey was conducted with 153 in-service teachers in Israeli state elementary schools, including 83 classified as OT and 70 as TT based on professional self-identification. Measures assessed teaching motivations, general teaching self-efficacy, outdoor teaching self-efficacy, and indicators of outdoor-related professional practice and professional background characteristics. No significant demographic differences emerged between OT and TT, and the two groups were also similar in their teaching motivations. However, OT reported greater engagement in outdoor-related professional practices, higher comfort with outdoor teaching, and a stronger sense that outdoor teaching was central to their professional role. General teaching self-efficacy did not differ significantly between groups. Within the OT subgroup, participation in community volunteering was positively associated with general teaching self-efficacy in regression analyses, whereas the model predicting outdoor teaching self-efficacy was not statistically significant. Overall, the findings suggest that differences between OT and TT were more evident in outdoor-related professional practices than in demographic characteristics, teaching motivations, or general teaching self-efficacy, underscoring the importance of context-relevant preparation for outdoor teaching.