The purpose of the master's thesis was to determine the motivation of students to attend forest and nature school in the dormitories of the Center for School and Extracurricular Activities. Two questionnaires were produced for this purpose. One was intended for pupils who had attended forest and nature school and the other for teachers who participated in the organization of forest and nature school in the dormitories of the Center for School and Extracurricular Activities. 330 students from various primary schools and 80 teachers participated in the survey.
The data obtained was processed using the SPSS (Statistical package for social sciences) 18 computer software for Windows. It has been found that boys and girls are equally eager to participate in forest and nature school. For boys, the most important motives when activities in forest and school are concerned are sports games and the organization of sports competitions. For girls, the most important motives are learning about new things and learning in general. There are also differences between boys and girls regarding the importance of individual incentives. Boys regard the encouragement from their classmates or friends as more important, while girls are more encouraged by their teachers telling them what they did wrong and what they can improve. When teachers are concerned, it has been found that they mostly use the play method at forest and nature schools and that they prefer teaching older students (third triad). It has been recognized that the difficulties faced by teachers in the process of learning and accommodation of the children in the dormitories of the Center for School and Extracurricular Activities are students' indulgence, lack of perseverance and poor motor skills.
Motivation is a very important factor in the successful organization of forest and nature school. The mission of the Center for School and Extracurricular Activities is to provide high quality, interesting, educational, varied and fun forest and nature school experience to as many children and young people as possible. All this can be achieved through innovative programs that help to increase children's motivation to participate in forest and nature schools.
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