Why Are School Trips Important For Students?

Students learn best when they can see, hear, and experience things first-hand.  Multi-sensory learning is an important part of school life, and school trips answer the requirements of all five senses.

It’s because of this that schools arrange trips to help children learn more about the subjects that they are studying. Educational trips can be used to support all kinds of subjects; History, Geography, Science and Languages are the most popular, but they can also support cultural enrichment and wider social development.

Learning Outside the Classroom

All young people need the knowledge, skills and understanding to live in, and contribute to, a global society and this begins with an understanding of the world in which we live, including the languages, values and cultures of different societies. The first-hand experience gained on a residential school trip is one way of enabling young people to acquire this mix of knowledge, skills and understanding. All of these activities, in their different ways, help to develop self-esteem, self-confidence and independence. They also give young people the opportunity to experience other cultures, meet and develop new friendships whilst broadening their horizons and knowledge.

Tours are a particularly strong way to consolidate learning, as young people’s experiences can be directly related to the real world. For example, geographical studies come to life with the actual physical feature right there in front of them; and a foreign language is easier to use in its native environment.

Here are some of the many reasons why students should learn outside the classroom:

• Students learn in a multitude of different ways – traditional classroom learning may not always be best for every student.
• Educational trips can be used to support all kinds of subjects – bringing learning to life.
• Students can develop a sense of responsibility outside the classroom, giving them opportunities to put into practice, the content learned in the classroom.
• It can help develop students’ self-esteem, self-confidence, and self-belief.
• It gives young people the chance to experience cultures, respect differences, and develop new friendships with their peers and thus broaden their horizons and knowledge.
• Tours are a strong way to consolidate learning, the experience from a trip can be directly related to the real world.
• Students can put their learning into real live practice – such as speaking French they learn in the classroom at a market in France.
• Trips have long lasting benefits – Can you remember your favourite school trip? Many children recall their favourite exhibit, visit or destination with fond memories.
• It can ignite a student’s passion for that subject that they may not have had the inspiration for in the classroom.
• It can benefit teachers as well as students! Teachers can see how their students learn and view the world, this can generate ideas which teachers can bring back into classroom.

The Council for Leaning Outside the Classroom (LOtc) is a registered charity existing to champion learning outside the classroom. They believe that EVERY child should be given the opportunity to experience life and lessons beyond the classroom walls as a regular part of growing up. Click here to read more from the 'Learning Outside the Classroom' Organisation.

European Study Tours holds a Learning Outside the Classroom Quality Badge which is the first nationally recognised accreditation for organisations and venues providing learning outside the classroom experiences which are safe and offer high quality teaching and learning.

Browse our website for inspiration! You can search by destination or by subject, or call us on 0330 838 4120 and let us help you plan your perfect trip!