Teaching Natural Sciences in the environment: From the "Institucion Libre de Ensenanza"(ILE) to the "Education System General Organic Law" (LOGSE) from Spain

Interest about knowledge of nature in Spain was promoted at the end of the XIX century by some modern pedagogic movements as the "Institucion Libre de Endenanza" (ILE). The aim of this education was to put students in contact with nature by means of school excursions with Natural Sciences activities included. From 1920 to 1930, school teachers as Enrique Rioja, Modesto Bargallo and Vicente Valls were inspired by these new environmental ideas, that were included in the republican education laws. During the first period of the Franco system the environmental ideas were abolished in the Spanish education. In 1953, a new education law mentioned some environmental ideas. In 1961 Carlos Vidal Box published the book Didactica y Metodologia de las Ciencias Naturales, inspired in the ILE environmental ideas, that started a renewal in the Natural Sciences teaching. The "Ley de Ordenacion General del Sistema Educativo" (LOGSE) introduced again in the Spanish education the interest about the study and conservation of the environment.