Every parent wants their child to succeed. However, while it is true that school is the foundation for success in the future, not everything has to be learned – or indeed, necessarily can be learned – in the classroom.
The reality is, school trips can enhance your children’s learning journey in ways that might not be possible, or easy to achieve, through classroom-based study alone.
When it comes to connecting to and learning from the world at large, there’s no better way than experiencing it first-hand.
School trips abroad, as well as slightly closer to home, can present students with invaluable opportunities to immerse themselves in new and exciting environments. In the process, young people can equip themselves with life skills that only direct experience of travelling can truly equip them with.
Read on for greater insight into the role of school trips in your child’s learning journey, and the benefits they can provide.
The role of school trips, explained
- Experiential learning that reinforces classroom studies
The biggest role of a school trip is to provide your child with interactive, experiential learning. When children can see, touch, and engage with their surroundings, particularly via museums or activities that relate to their classroom studies, they can be helped to retain the information they have already been taught.
Experiential learning gives learners greater authority in, and responsibility for their own learning, in addition to involving them more directly in the learning process. You shouldn’t be too surprised, then, to read that experiential learning encourages learners to be more flexible in their learning, at the same time as helping to build skills.
So, school trips – whether to faraway locations or closer to home – can be counted on to help capture your child’s attention and deepen their understanding of relevant subjects.
- Cultural enrichment and sensitivity
The world is large and diverse. When a child is exposed to different cultures through school trips, they often gain greater empathy and sensitivity to these cultures and their unique ways of life.
Cultural enrichment is essential for children if they are to become responsible and mindful global citizens with respect for diversity. When young people experience different customs and traditions first-hand by interacting with members of different cultures, they will also be going a long way to enhancing their own social skills.
- Social and emotional development
Calling back to how school trips can foster greater empathy and sensitivity in your child, such trips can also help improve a young person’s overall social and emotional development. This is one of the most important roles of a school trip, whether it takes place inside or outside of the child’s home country.
On a school trip, children are able to interact more with their peers, without the need to remain quiet during a lesson. They will need to work together and communicate as a team in order to complete certain activities – particularly relevant for trips to museums, science centres, or local historical sites that host interactive exhibits. Building confidence in new environments bolsters emotional development, too.
- Engaging different types of learners
Ultimately, in a classroom, not everyone learns in the same way. Some children are visual learners, while others lean more towards kinetic learning. It can be difficult for teachers to accommodate all these different learning types in class because of the way school is structured. There are set times for activities, and activities are generally the same for all students.
School trips abroad, as well as overseas, typically provide a much more free-flowing environment. A well-designed school trip will connect children with various multimedia opportunities – they can interact with museum artefacts, natural attractions, or other elements, and they can even write down what they see and experience, if that’s the form of learning that suits them best.
What are the benefits of a school trip?
Although we have indirectly referenced some of the benefits of a school trip above – such as better social and emotional development – there are many more to be discussed. From personal growth to stimulated curiosity and a better sense of real-world issues and skills, there are almost too many to cite.
A benefit that is often overlooked is the scope for such trips to provide children with memorable experiences. The memories of a great school trip aren’t forgotten as soon as your child returns to the classroom, but will be discussed and reflected on for days, weeks and even years afterwards.
The excitement of exploring a new place with friends can be cherished for a very long time, as can the camaraderie formed between peers. A friend that a child makes on their school trip might become an important part of their life.
Why should you consider school trips abroad for your child?
Whilst school trips abroad require careful planning and coordination, the cultural immersion, enrichment, language learning, and personal growth they can cultivate in your child is truly immeasurable. School trips absolutely should be considered as a worthwhile investment in your child’s learning journey and overall development.
School trips across the world can also be completely customisable to students’ learning requirements and an institution’s curriculum. This helps to ensure that, as fun and exciting as these trips can be, they are always underpinned by classroom learning. As a result, you will be able to rest assured that your child will be learning and growing as much as they’re adventuring.