Despite frequently having an educational mission, most zoos have not gathered data to demonstrate whether field trips have a measurable impact on students' learning. Educators may also need information about teaching strategies that best help students gain and retain knowledge from zoo field trips. Previous research shows that social interaction is important for building knowledge, and that students prefer to work together on learning activities during zoo field trips. This study looked at students' long-term knowledge retention after a cooperative learning activity on a zoo field trip.
The researchers recruited 117 high school students in Germany who attended a zoo field trip to participate in the study. During the field trip, the students participated in the jigsaw approach, a cooperative learning activity in which small groups of students focus on learning specific information, and then the groups report back to each other. The students completed a short multiple-choice test one week before field trip, immediately after the field trip, and then six weeks later. To measure the students' learning and knowledge retention, the authors used a statistical analysis to compare the students' combined test scores at each stage. For comparison, 61 high school students who did not go on a field trip also completed the test three times at the same intervals.
The results show that students' knowledge increased significantly after participating in the cooperative learning activity on the field trip. On the long-term the students' test scores decreased slightly compared to the scores on the test given immediately after the trip, but the long-term knowledge outcomes were still significantly higher than the pre-field trip test. These findings show that despite the one-time approach, the cooperative learning during the field trip had a significant lasting effect on students' learning.
The results of this study are limited by the cohort of participants: the study focused on high-school aged students, and did not consider other individual learning factors that may affect students, such as previous zoo visits. The authors of the study also chose not to connect the field trip learning with in-classroom activities, because they wanted to demonstrate the learning outcomes after just a single event. This approach may not reflect actual teaching practices, as teachers will often follow-up field trips with in-classroom activities or worksheets.
The authors conclude that one-time cooperative learning events outside the classroom can facilitate long-term knowledge gains for students. They also cite previous research to suggest that reinforcing the knowledge with in-classroom activities may help increase retention over time. More studies measuring the impact of zoo field trips on students' learning would help zoos further their educational missions. Similar research across different cultures, age groups, and educational settings will help educators develop more best practices for different learning opportunities.
The Bottom Line
Zoos are often a destination for educational field trips, yet few studies examine students' learning outcomes or help educators know which learning techniques are effective in this setting. The authors of this study conclude that students on field trips to zoos can gain and retain significant knowledge from cooperative learning activities. The authors also recommend that zoos conduct more evaluation on the educational impact of field trips.