School is not just about reading, writing and arithmetic. The role of a school is to help students cultivate skills, knowledge, and an understanding of the world that will make them productive global citizens. School sports trips give children a unique opportunity to increase their understanding of the world they live in. Whether it’s learning a new language, experiencing a new culture, or exploring a new landscape, school trips provide the perfect opportunity to expand your students’ horizons.
School tours – no matter what the sport or the destination – play a crucial role in developing students’ self-confidence. These trips not only encourage independence, but they also open doors for students to develop new friendships and strengthen old ones. School sports trips are the perfect way for team members to bond. Friendships developed within an educational environment may only involve a few hours together each day but spending several days or weeks together outside of the normal classroom environment goes a long way to strengthening team bonds. Team members will also have the chance to make friends with members of the opposing team. Despite being on differing teams or from different parts of the world, students on sports teams will share one common interest: passion for their sport. That common interest could be enough to spark lifetime friendships – both between individual students, and between your schools for future trips!
School tours are also a great way for coaches to bond with their teams. Spending time with players away from the pressures of school and life back home gives coaches the chance to get to know students on a personal level, as well as allowing space for teammates to bond while sharing a unique and life-changing experience. Seeing teachers and coaches in a more relaxed environment and being able to develop more personal connections makes students more motivated and participatory upon returning to the classroom. It’s no surprise, then, that school sports tours can have a hugely positive impact on students’ achievement across all subjects. Combining sport with cultural and education experiences is an invaluable tool for enriching students’ education.
Playing abroad is also a great way to test your students’ skills. Playing sports in another country opens up new competition and is a unique eye-opener to the way they are played and approached by other nations. For instance, coaching methods are vastly different between European and South American football. Whatever the sport, school trips provide a great opportunity to experience different strategies, coaching and play styles first-hand, with players able to learn moves that teams can eventually use on their home court.
The benefit to students who compete in sports trips in foreign countries is clear. For many, it is the first opportunity for adventure – many will be taking a flight for the first time in their lives, for example. Taking part in this new and unique experience, learning about foreign cultures and developing new friendships are just a few of the lifetime benefits that stem from trips of this nature. Your group will go back home after an exhilarating week feeling more confident, and having new skills and enhanced prestige. It’s no surprise, then, that such trips are so thoroughly enjoyed by both students and their coaches.