Dulwich takes education out of the classroom

Dulwich students and teachers with a Philippine family, whose new house they helped to build on a trip last year to Tacloban, Leyte, Philippines / Courtesy of Dulwich

By Hallie Bradley

A child's education happens outside the classroom just as much as inside it. David Jewitt, head of Outdoor Education at Dulwich College Seoul, has been working to provide a more cohesive curriculum providing not just classroom lessons but also real-life learning opportunities.

“Living in a risk-averse and digital culture, many of the lessons I learnt from adventure are at risk of becoming endangered,” Jewitt explained to The Korea Times.

With that in mind, he carefully constructed various meaningful experiences and challenges to allow students to take lessons from their classrooms on planning, preparation processes and problem-solving into the great outdoors.

The youngest students start with spending a day out in the city on various cultural and experience programs, and staying the night at school to develop a sense of independence. Moving up into middle school, students will go camping in nearby cities like Chuncheon and Yangpyeong.

“They will be carrying their own kit, striking their own camp,” headmaster Graeme Salt explained. “There is a challenge element to it. There is also a purpose.”

Progressing into high school, the students are whisked abroad where the trips are slightly more rigorous with biking, hiking, rafting and other physical activities that are never too difficult, but do present some level of difficulty for the students to overcome.

“It's a measured progression for things we know they're capable of doing,” Salt said. “This is the challenge of education. It's providing challenges in the classroom or outside for things people can reach for and they surprise themselves when they get there. It's a growth model.”

Jewitt has designed the various challenges with levels. This year, for example, one group will be biking for several days from campsite to campsite. Some students, the staff found, didn't even know how to ride a bike. However, that is okay. The students will all camp together but there are various trails and paths for the students to get there depending on their level of ability. The students will bond while learning the importance of teamwork, leadership and empathy.

The program is across all grades and is meant not just to supplement the curriculum but to be a cohesive part of it.

“By adjusting environmental, technical and self-sufficient complexity we aim to build the students of tomorrow with the skills and confidence to plan and undertake their own independent adventurous journeys,” Jewitt said.

Dulwich College is one of the U.K.'s oldest independent schools, founded in 1619. Dulwich College International, established to bring the Dulwich education to students around the world, is now one of the fastest-growing U.K. independent school networks.

Here in Seoul, Dulwich College was founded eight years ago in Seocho-gu and today has more than 650 students ranging from 3 years old to 18 years old. Over 40 nationalities are represented in the classrooms that are designed to nurture the intellectual, physical, social and emotional development of all students.