How Traveling Sets the Foundation for Success in School
When young people succeed in school, they come away with the knowledge, tools, and skills they need to achieve
their goals in life. Real learning doesn't happen only in the classroom, though. Students learn by gaining valuable
experiences outside of school as well. Traveling is one of the best ways that students can expand their horizons, and
it also sets a strong foundation for success in school.
Traveling with Family
Students who travel with their families have the opportunity to see the world from a new vantage point and get to
use their experiences to further their educational pursuits. Family travel offers more benefits than some may think.
With the support and guidance of parents or other family members, students can focus on gaining first-hand
experience instead of worrying about logistics. Traveling on immersive Southern Caribbean cruises or exploring the
Australian Outback is less overwhelming when students tag along with their families.
Furthermore, the level of comfort and closeness that exists within the family provides a safe space to have hard or
uncomfortable discussions about what students see and feel while traveling. It's not always possible to avoid issues
such as poverty or discrimination while traveling, and students can explore these tough realities with their parents in
a way that they might feel hesitant to do with their teachers and peers.
Travel Study Trips
Beyond family travel, students should also take opportunities to go on travel study trips while studying at college.
University-organized trips offer unique itineraries and often focus on themes such as climate change, ancient history,
conservation, art and culture, and more. When students travel in this way, they experience a different type of
exposure usually facilitated by an expert in the field. Educators curate these trips specifically to provoke dialog and
discussion as well as to further educational goals within the student's field of study.
Respect for Diversity
Students who travel develop a healthy and grounded respect for diversity. Breaking out from the everyday settings
of home and school life is an important milestone for students and can help them understand that the world holds a
huge amount of diversity.
The first step of this process is usually recognition. The simple and powerful act of seeing other people, other
cultures, and other ways of life. Yet, traveling encourages students to do more than just see. It asks them to accept a
new reality as valid and valuable. This is something that doesn't happen while watching movies and documentaries
or spending time on social media. For students to understand the value of a diverse world, they have to experience it
firsthand.
Curiosity and Courage
Two of the most difficult traits to encourage are curiosity and courage, and traveling inspires both. When students
travel, their natural curiosity comes alive. If educators believe that every student is born with some level of curiosity,
then they will see this proven true when students travel. Once given the chance to explore something unfamiliar, the
majority of students respond with a healthy curiosity.
It also takes a lot of bravery to exit the known world and go somewhere new. Traveling is an exercise in taking
courageous steps into the unknown.
Creative Problem-Solving
At every step of a student's journey in school, educators try to find ways to encourage the development of creative
problem-solving. Simply, creative problem-solving is a process that fields many different possible solutions while
looking at an issue from a wide variety of angles. It takes effort and sustained commitment for educators to help
students develop a sense of this life skill in the classroom, but it can be easier and more efficient to achieve through
travel.
Traveling involves complex planning and exact execution, and still, many things go wrong. Pivoting from a delayed
overnight train to a nearby secondary location is just one example of how students can experience creative problemsolving in a real-life situation.
Every student should have the opportunity to travel. It's not just about having fun, though that's certainly an
important aspect, it's also about building a solid foundation of experiences, perspective, and skills to use in the years
to come.