Having more field trips at Triton High School would be beneficial to improving the learning of all students. Recently due to COVID, field trips have become significantly scarce. Yet they are very important, for education and students’ well -being. It has been proven in studies that students perform better and remember more when on field trips. It allows students to see the skills and knowledge they are learning applied in the real world, which gives a better understanding and makes them more eager to learn.
A study, published in The Journal of Human Resources, found that “students who participate in multiple field trips during the school year have higher test scores, perform better in class and have increased cultural conscientiousness over time.” This production boost to students would be beneficial to teachers as well. It would allow for a more engaged classroom from the students. It also is good as it boosts results overall on tests showing it is worth the while. While planning field trips is a lot of work it shows results in student work,
“Field trips have been non-existent for the last two years, and many cultural institutions like museums and science centers were closed. Schools want to make up learning loss from the pandemic and might feel pressure to sacrifice a well-rounded education for increased seat-time,” says Erickson, an assistant professor of educational leadership at BYU. “Field trips might be the first thing to go. Addressing student learning loss is crucial, but schools should be thoughtful in their approach.” It has been proven through research and results that field trips can be extremely beneficial to students. However they are becoming a lot less frequent, I remember them being much more common when I was younger. However while I think field trips may have more of an impact on younger students, it would still be beneficial to high school students as well.
While some may be concerned about the money it costs to run a field trip for students, while others are afraid of students misbehaving, there are simple solutions to these problems. Costs of the field trips can be solved with things as simple as fund raisers where the class tries to raise money for the trips. To relieve stress on the teacher these fundraisers should be student made and planned. If students cannot raise much money or fail to follow through and run the fundraiser then the fee for the trip would be increased.. Another thing they can do is add a small fee to attend the trip. A combination of these two would allow for field trips not having money to no longer be a problem.
While others may argue students may misbehave or try to cause harm or chaos, the simple solution is to add requirements to attend the field trip. If students are misbehaving in classes the teachers can deem them unable to attend due to behavioral issues. I could be ruled through a system where students get one or two warnings and if they ignore these and continue to misbehave then they are not allowed to go. It would be a fair system where students can steer themselves back on the right track after a warning giving them a second chance. This is a simple solution to the problem of students misbehaving. Removing the ability to attend or punishing them for misbehaving should work.
