Scotland’s school grounds: playful and play-full learning environments?

The starting point of this paper is the Scottish School Grounds Survey of 2005,which provided nationwide insight into the extent to which school grounds werebeing used as learning environments for children in nursery, primary, secondaryand special schools in Scotland. Reflecting specifically on provision for play andthe way in which play facilitates formal and informal education, and consideringdevelopments in Scotland’s school estate over the last decade, this paper arguesthat Scotland’s school grounds are not yet play-full and playful learningenvironments. The paper concludes by reflecting on ways in which Scotland’sschool grounds could and should be positioned more centrally in school education.