Educational Travel Courses for Teachers

Teaching through travel is one of the most interesting and educational ways a teacher can spend time in the summer. Educational Travel is about a carefully planned combination of tours, site visits and hands-on experiences built around learning and teaching objectives. At Dominican University we believe Educational Travel is about absorbing culture, architecture, experiences and sometimes science. And if you can’t afford a ticket or take the time for a weeks in South America or Europe, educational travel can be done close to home. Educational travel not only gives a teacher or student a different cultural perspective but, as the Harvard Business Review recently pointed out in a study, research shows that when people are exposed to novel cultural values and norms, they’re more likely to reflect on their own values and beliefs. Going abroad helps you develop a clearer sense of self. Teachers that travel gain new insights into their own culture. Research shows that when people are exposed to novel cultural values and norms, they’re more likely to reflect on their own values and beliefs. At Dominican University Educational travel is about earning professional development credits by documenting your experience and connecting it to enhance your classroom instruction.

Travel as Education

While College instructors can lead a class to Europe or The Galapagos Islands during the summer, the K-12 teacher should view educational travel as a way to gather information, photos and inspiration that can be brought back to the classroom in the form of a presentation or an ongoing class lesson plan. Our Galapagos course is a perfect example for educational travel. The Galapagos course involves walking in the footsteps of Charles Darwin and to a place so unique it has changed our entire understanding of human evolution. Since Charles Darwin first set foot on the Galapagos Islands in 1835, the archipelago has been synonymous with science. Located 531 miles off the coast of Ecuador it is one of the world’s foremost destinations for wildlife viewing, offering teachers onsite experiences that can be brought back to the classroom. K-12 and Community College teachers can earn graduate-level units/credits towards professional growth for travel on a Galapagos Education tour. By registering through the Dominican University of California (DU), Continuing Education Program, in EDUO 9851, the Galapagos Experience, you will be eligible to earn 3 Professional Growth, graduate-level semester credits/units by completing all of the trip requirements and documenting your experience.

Benefits of Educational Travel

The psychological effects of studying abroad and the impact they can have on classroom teaching are immense. Social science studies have shown that international experiences can enhance creativity, reduce intergroup bias, and promote career success. Producing a travelog video and planning a curriculum around your travel experience can have an influential impact on the study of science, history, social studies and more. Showing your students the amazing world that exists beyond their neighborhood and city/town can leave lasting impacts. Educational travel involves pre-trip study work and information sharing. It allows participants to discuss what they learned from the daily experiences. Teachers can share how it impacted them personally as well as how it might enhance teaching and learning.

Education Travel Locally

As mentioned, you don’t have to travel far. A trip to the Grand Canyon, Yosemite or Washington D.C. can provide plenty of teaching material that can wow and engage your students to use their imagination and think of a world beyond their neighborhood. The visiting California parks and Museum series requires teachers to explore three museums and/or parks within California and create an engaging, standards-based unit on California history. The National Treasure Washington D.C. Series explores our country’s most cherished and historical sites and museums. Perhaps one of the best educational travel experiences you can have as a teacher in terms of documenting America’s cultural heritage is a visit to the National Mall. For a teacher, walking along the National Mall and moving from monument to monument and memorial to memorial is an experience that melds information and inspiration within the teacher/learner process. What you learn from the experience can be taken back to the classroom. It Is also a vital tool when it comes to making the case for a student field trip.