Module 7: Field Trip Policy

The Educational Value of Field Trips

§ Schools typically undertake field trips as they are seen as experiences that are
central to the schools’ educational mission.

§ Schools exist not only to provide economically useful skills in numeracy and
literacy, but to produce civilized young men and women.

§ Families that are so resourced are able to provide field experience opportunities to
their children. However, students from less fortunate families may not receive
these experiences.

§ In recent times field trips have been seen as an ‘unnecessary frill’ and focus has
been shifted to increasing student performance in Math and English.

§ Some schools believe student time would be better spent in the classroom
preparing for exams.

§ Field trips have been conducted as a way of rewarding students rather than to
provide cultural enrichment.

§ More senior teachers view field trips as educational opportunities while junior
teachers view field trips a ‘enjoyment’.

§ Four ways in which students from rural and high-poverty schools benefit visiting
art museums:

o Critical thinking

o Historical empathy

o Tolerance

o Interest in art museums

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 § Policy makers should consider the above benefits when deciding whether schools
have sufficient resources and appropriate policy guidance to take their students
on tours of cultural institutions.

Field Trip Policy

Legal Considerations

§ The maintaining of the Field Trip Policy in schools is extremely important as it

creates standards for safety and accountability measures. A field trip is expected
to be educational-based and usually occurs when students are required to leave
the school compound. There are several types of field trips namely:

o day field trips

o recurring field trips

o field trips with special hazards

o near water or involving swimming

o in remote locations

o excursions involving animals

o outdoor educational activities

o extended trips

o overseas country trips

School Field Trip Procedures

§ When planning a field trip, all involved (employees of the school) must take
proper care to prevent any act of negligence, whether it is deemed intentional or
unintentional.

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 § The school has direct responsibility to ensure the safety of all students, staff and
visitors. Therefore, procedures, plans and safeguards must be in place for the
protection of all.

Field Trips

§ When planning a field trip, there should be a detailed description of field activities,
information regarding transportation, means of providing food, students’ medical
information and other special needs.

§ The Ministry has projected a list of field trip activities to avoid such as non-insured
activities, beach trips or any form of water activity, places of questionable intent,
high-risk activities that may cause any damage or loss and athletic activities not
approved by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information

The Approval Process

The Role of the Principal/Administrator in planning a field trip

§ Principals/Administrators play a very important role in the planning of a field trip

as they are recognised as the chief accountable officer.

§ The Principal/Administrator has direct responsibility to ensure the organiser of

the trip carefully considers all aspects of the field trip, and completes all sections
of the School Sponsored Field Trip Preliminary Approval Form

§ The role of the principal is to ensure that all students who will be in attendance of
the field trip have insurance coverage.

§ The Principal/Administrator is expected to review all permission letters, and

contracts are to be signed by parents or guardians to ensure the granting of consent
to their child attending a field trip. Also, parents should be notified of the potential
risks which may be involved (see Sample field Trip Description with Itinerary).

§ Members of the Board should be apprised, and approval sought for all field trips
which will be over 50km in range of the school.

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 § Utilise field trip checklist to ensure correct procedures are being followed when
planning.

Identification and Risks Assessments

Familiarity with Facilities where the Field Trip will be hosted

§ All risks and possible damages should be assessed when planning a field trip.
Other persons should be involved when this examination/assessment is being
done. The examination of the facility to be visited must be done prior to the
scheduled date for the field trip. There should be a written evaluation complete
for this risk assessment visit.

Addressing Medical Needs of Students

§ The medical needs should be observed for all students who will be attending a
field trip and all staff members attending should be knowledgeable of same and
accommodate these needs.

§ In order to conform to medical procedures and the school’s policy, the school’s
nurse should be included for ensuring that the medication form is completed by
parents and guardians for the administering of any medication while on field trips.

§ According to school policy and procedures, at least one person on the trip should
be trained to administer medication to students.

§ Medical insurance is recommended for all students.

§ In light of an emergency, prompt and appropriate medical care should be given to

student(s).

Supervision of students

§ All students should be supervised by being in sight at all times and an appropriate
ratio of students to supervisors must be established. Adequate supervision should

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 be specially considered and an account for students and staff should be conducted
periodically.

§ Staff who will be in attendance at the field trip should be trained in First Aid or be
CPR-trained and must be in possession of the first aid kit and other supplies which
may be needed in case any unexpected situation occurs.

§ Chaperones and/or supervisors should be apprised of the nearest medical facility

in the case of an emergency which requires medical attention.

Selection of a Chaperone

§ If a chaperone is selected or volunteered to attend a field trip, they should be at

least 21 years of age, screened and able to work well with students and staff.

Transportation

§ There are several modes of providing transportation for field trips: school bus,
chartered bus, transportation provided by parent(s), air transportation, and
railroad transportation. When travelling via any vehicle for the field trip, there
should be certified copies of the insurance certificate, road license for buses,
certificate of fitness, and a valid drivers’ licenses.

§ In the instance where a parent provides transportation to their child, the parent
must give the school in writing a notation releasing the school from any liability
in the event of loss or damage. (See Field Transportation release form).

§ In the event that the field trip is walking distance, the safety of the students and
increased supervision should be considered.

§ If the field trip is overseas, approval should be sought from the school’s Board if
students are not travelling via a commercial airline.

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Overnight Field Trips

§ Inspection and arrangements for sleeping for all persons in attendance should be
conducted prior to the field trip.

§ There should be a good distribution of supervisors to students as students must

have supervision at all times.

§ Contact of the housing for sleeping arrangements should be communicated to the

principal, parents/guardians.

MoEYI Policies

§ Parents, Chaperones, guardians and teachers should be apprised of the policies

and procedures which speak to students’ conduct while on the field trip

§ All documents pertaining to the field trip should be issued to parents or guarding
for signing. This will be reviewed by the Board before the scheduled trip

Pre-Trip training for Chaperones and teachers

§ All supervisors who will be supervising students at the field trip, should be
engaged in an orientation session prior to the field trip. Each person should be
informed of the required expectations, duties, procedures and mode of operating
while on the field trip to ensure proper supervision and prevention of injury and
damage.

Security of Valuables

§ All valuables and monies should be students’ possession. However, if an item is

not important for the field trip, the student should be asked not to take same with
them.

Emergency Communication

§ In the case of an emergency where communication is being disrupted, there should

be a method by which communication will take place amongst those persons

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 attending the field trip. This decision should be outlined prior to the field trip and
each staff, supervisor, or chaperone should have the contact for everyone in their
possession.

Safety Management Programme Plan for Field Trips

§ It is important that a safety management plan be in place for all those in attendance
of the field trip.

Sponsoring of Field Trips

§ In the event that a school is utilising an outside sponsor, the sponsor should be
screened for having a clean record and if the sponsoring company has experience
in planning preparing for the type of field trip.

§ If the field trip is sponsored by the school, all forms including the School Sponsored
Field Trip Preliminary Approval Form should be completed by the organiser and
submitted to the principal for approval.

NB: Please refer to Field Trip Policy Guideline for more details and available forms with regards
to the planning of Field Trips.

The Beginner’s Guide to Interactive Virtual Field Trips

§ For students, field trips are welcome and exciting break from day-to-day
classroom activities that will solidify the curriculum experiences.

§ Virtual Field Trips (VFT) allow students to gain similar experiences of an actual
field trip through the use of the internet and/or video conferencing equipment.

§ Forms of VFT include:

o Touring a historic site

o Witnessing scientific experiments

o Watching live demonstrations in the field

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 o Attending folk festivals or other events

§ VFTs different from traditional field trips by virtue of the internet using
asynchronous or interactive synchronous formats.

§ Asynchronous VFTs are not delivered in real time. Examples include websites that
include text, audio and video resources.

§ Synchronous VFTs are interactive and provide real time experiences.

§ Benefits of VFTs include:

o Students are able to view, hear and interact with people who are far away

o Students can explore a vast amount of experiences from different topics

without having to travel

§ VFTs remove the barriers between your classroom and those far-away people and
resources.