School trips overseas - Good idea - Waste of time?

[Winston001]

Any thoughts? I'm under pressure for my daughter to go to Tahiti for a French class experience - they will live with local people for a couple of weeks.

I'd rather use the money towards her university education.

[Headbanger]

Sounds awesome. Might even be a life changing event, Ok, perhaps just an eye opener, But she will remember it for life. Let her go.

[CookMySock]

nah let her do it. go with her!

we went with our kids to Vanuatu on a school trip. It was awesome. Something we will never forget.

edit: my 12 y/o daughter raised ALL her money herself, selling chocolate bars and stuff.

DB

[sAsLEX]

Was on the French ship in port on Friday night, based out of Tahiti they are, had good champagne......... but on a school trip go for it!

[McJim]

Hmm - Tahiti. I'm thinking Gaugin, under age marriage and syphilis.

Better to send her to Paris.

[McJim]

nah let her do it. go with her!

we went with our kids to Vanuatu on a school trip. It was awesome. Something we will never forget.

edit: my 12 y/o daughter raised ALL her money herself, selling chocolate bars and stuff.

DB

Vanuatu? That's the area around Palmerston North innit? Home of the Vanuatu Standard?

[Dargor]

Most probably a waste of time IMO.
What are they going there to learn, its a french class is it, why do they have to go there to learn about it. Why is french so important.
Shouldnt she have science and math to learn. She might not be a nerd but why should one class take two weeks away from her other classes.

[sAsLEX]

Why is french so important.

And all French learn English so its a bit pointless learning it......

[Mutley]

Our oldest daughter went to the gold coast in year 12 for a week "Geography Trip" to study the effects of tourism on a populated area.
She had to fundraise to pay for her trip and to pay for the teachers who were going with the class but as parents we also had to contribute to ensure enough funds were available.
They spent less than half a day studying the effects and the rest of the time playing. She had a ball. We (the parents) were annoyed.

Our youngest went to Japan for a Choir trip. They spent 10 days in Japan staying with two different family's in two different cities. Sang a little, got to learn some of the culture, impart some of ours and had a great time. She also had to fund raise for herself and travelling teachers and as parents we also had to provide funds to cover any shortfall. This trip however seemed more value for money and funnily enough it is our youngest who has chosen to go on to University to study music and languages.

Often these trips are a blatant junket with little or no educational value. It is up to the parents to decide.
For our part, although the Japan trip was twice the price of the Australian trip , it had better educational, cultural and financial value.

If she is learning culturally as well as educationally the trip may be worth it.

[Headbanger]

They are always a perk, Nothing wrong with perks, The Gold Coast one is a hard case though. wonder if those teachers went on to politics.....

[alanzs]

Travel is always good for kids IMHO. Expands their minds and exposes them to parts of themselves they aren't generally aware of. Being resilient, flexible and taking risks outside their cotton wool protected environment.
You may want to take the money and go to Paris or Holland. Holland cause it's a different language and you can smoke some great dope there, check out the hookers when she's asleep while taking her to museums, Van Gogh house, red light district, coffee shops, etc. Paris because the whole place is a tourist attraction. Chock block full of history and cultures from all over the world. Besides great food.
Pass on the English speaking places in Europe though (London is good if you want to see a few shows, but VERY expensive).... Why bother, it's just like all the other western culture places, except much more expensive.

Took both my kids (son and daughter) individually, to the above places when they were 12-13 by myself. Great bonding times that we still talk about many years later. They have both said it was some of the best times in their lives. My daughter went to Italy on a school trip a couple years later and hated it! Uptight parents, shitty lodging, tight wad assholes went for budget everything and they didn't have any fun.
You only live once, so go for it... Money very well spent, IMHO.

[Pumba]

I personally did the rugby tour thing. Or was that a drinking tour with a few games of rugby thrown in?

Great fun.

Reality is that all these college tours are purly junkets, with limited education value, and whatever the education value is it is very quickly forgotton, but my god are they fun.

Let her go, its only money.

[Mom]

I am not sure this applies to all schools but...

My daughter studied Japanese at college. Her teachers were planning a trip to Japan for 10 or so days. This was an annual trip. Parents meetings revealed that the accompanying teachers expenses (apart from personal spending money of course) was to be paid for pro-rata by the students. The cost was far too much for this then solo mom to afford. The entire trip did not go ahead.

Later that year, she was selected to be the college exchange student to Japan. When I went to book her airfares I discovered that by obtaining an international student ID she could travel to Japan for $1600 return!! A saving of $600 if she did not have one. Apparently this is a recognised discount that both students and teachers can use if they pay $25 for a international student ID. This was no secret, but seemingly not important for the teachers to research as they did not have to pay anyway!

There is one teacher here that has a 10 day annual trip to FIJI paid for by his Geography students.

Unless you can genuinely afford it, dont do it. It is a wonderful experience no doubt about it, but a junket all the same. I would say no myself.

[tri boy]

Holy shit, the furtherest I went on a school trip, was to the local court house and police station.
Times have changed a bit.
(also went to the milk factory, but it was closer, but the same people who worked there, were also appearing before the beak at the court house, small town ya know).

[MaxB]

Good Idea.

My eldest was set to go on a 6th form trip to France in early 2009. She got a part time job and saved hard. It was going to be a struggle but somehow we would have managed it. Then the teacher gets pregnant and the deal is now off. My daughter will have left school by the time of the next one. Bugger.
The money will go to some local trips but it is not the same.

I think travel makes the traveller a better person just for seeing how other people live.