Diligent control and institutional support make great field trips

“No pain no gain” probably accurately describes how educators should see risk-taking when they think of organising field trips.

“The moment you leave the classroom,” said Dr. Laszlo Varro, Head of Administration Services of Chinese International School (CIS), “you expose your kids to risk and you cannot say that it’s 100 per cent safe. But it has to be manageable.”

“If you want to do something in a desert region, you can go to Inner Mongolia where everything is controlled; or you can go to the Sahara where nothing is controlled. There are variations in between and you need to decide what exactly you want to achieve and what exactly you can handle.”

This vigilance drives CIS’ trip planning process. Dr. Varro and his team manage risks proactively and do not rely merely on outsourcing.

Said Dr. Varro: “Service providers are professional and there is a certain level of trust. However I believe that to make sure the students get the maximum from a trip, the teachers need to experience how a trip is organised.”

The experiences gained over the years help reduce risks. Dr. Varro gave the selection of accommodation as an example. In the last five or six years, when his groups went on field trips, they usually stayed in locations where nobody was beside them. They were the only guests at accommodations including hotels, guest houses and motels.

Dr. Varro said, “One area where conflicts can occur is when students feel a bit relaxed, safe and tired after returning to the accommodation. If there is nobody around us, it makes our lives easier. The students can be noisier where potentially in another environment it might upset other people.”

He recalled an incident that happened when his group was visiting Tibet.

Once a CIS student was sick in their Tibet trip. One of the teachers travelled all the way back to Lhasa, which was a 24-hour car ride, to drop the student at the airport to meet the parents who came to take the kid. The teacher then travelled back, taking another 24-hour car ride. The group could not have done that if all the teachers only had the one-time entry permit.

“When travelling to Tibet prepare a special permit. There needs to be a person who has the right travel freely in and out of the region.”

“All these tiny details are important when you run the trip. I don’t feel outsourcing to a service provider is always completely safe,” Dr. Varro.

When asked about the duty of care challenges that educators would have to overcome in managing trips, Dr. Varro thought support from schools was very important.

He mentioned again the 48-hour non-stop transit of the escort teacher during the Tibet trip, stressing “You need people who are prepared to do this mentally and physically.”

“I keep telling our leadership that we need to appreciate and support teachers who are willing to give up their time, stay away from their families, and do the extra leg work to have a trip.”

“They all come with great intentions. Nobody gets extra money for this. It’s not a free holiday. One challenge is that the institutions have to recognize this and support the people who are willing to go the extra mile for the students. That’s something that is going well in our school but not necessarily everywhere.”

As seen from CIS’ experience, the responsibilities to take care of students should be shared among different stakeholders and not only the trip leaders and service providers. By concerted efforts, students go on adventures and explore the world safely.