High School Educational Tours for Students FAQs

Educational tours for students can be one of the most enriching experiences for high school students. Teenagers are at a place in their development where they seek – and, studies and experts say, require – independence. 

But figuring out how to balance that thirst for independence while keeping these risk-prone young adults safe can be a tricky line to walk. But not with student travel tours. 

Educational tours for students are perfect in this capacity because they nurture that feeling of independence – for many, these tours are the first time the student has spent significant time away from their parents – but in an environment that is totally safe. Better yet, they’ll learn something while they’re away (and get a valuable and tangible high school credit) ! You can’t ask for a better combination. 

Let’s now answer some of the most common questions we get regarding student travel tours so you can get a better idea if this is the right choice for your child. 

Are Student Travel Companies in Canada Safe for My Child?

Safety and security is the number one, absolute, primary concern at all times when your teenager joins one of our tours. 

As one of the leading student travel companies in Canada, we’ve run hundreds of tours and have never had a major incident occur.

We’ve refined our tours over the years to make sure that every element of them is safe for your child and their classmates. Our teachers are experienced educators and tour leaders know how to keep the group organized, be mindful of any potential risks, and mitigate those risks at all times. Additionally, we carefully research the destination prior to our trip, so we can make sure we’re aware of any potential issues – and can work to address them before we even land. 

When we take charge of your teenager, we assume that responsibility with the utmost seriousness. We work hard to make sure that your child will be just as safe in our ‘classroom’ as they would be in their homeroom – even if our ‘classroom’ might be in the Galapagos Islands or on the streets of Paris. 

Better yet, our programs excel at developing independence in our students, helping to prepare them for post secondary life. They can have their first experience with responsible budgeting, time management, or even laundry (in some cases)! 

What Will My Child Learn During Student Travel Tours?

One concern that we field all the time from parents is that they’re worried their child won’t actually get the educational value promised. 

First, it’s worth noting that all of our courses are accredited and approved by the Ontario Ministry of Education. This assures students will learn the same skills and gain the same knowledge as if they took the course in a traditional classroom, the only difference is the content is displayed in a real world context which is proven to develop a more meaningful and foster a deeper connection to the material.

Learn more about our student trips:
Earn Credit, See the World With Student Travel ProgramsThe 7 Benefits of Study Abroad Programs

Next, we only work with certified Ontario College of Teachers (OCT) educators who are passionate about teaching and helping teenagers learn; they have to be around students for many more hours than usual, after all. Our teachers are all experienced with both the material and the destination, ensuring they can maximize the educational value of your child. 

Finally, we’re constantly looking at ways to refine our curriculum and incorporate the latest and best teaching techniques. We want your teenager to return home not only having had a great time in Montreal, New York, Ecuador, or wherever they may have gone, but also be able to impress you with their newly-gained knowledge! 

And here’s the best part: by taking learning out of the traditional classroom, our programs have actually been known to spark passionate affinities for the subjects. So students may gain more than just a high school credit and knowledge; they may leave the tour with a newfound passion. 

Will My Child Get Good Grades on Your Educational Tours for Students?

While this may seem like a no-brainer, we actually get this question a lot. This is still school – your child will have to earn their grades, same as they would in a traditional classroom. 

You’re paying for the hotel, food, tours, teaching, and the logistics of the trip – not for a guaranteed A on a report card. 

But here’s the good news: we’ve designed our programs to be engaging, inclusive, intuitive, and intellectually palatable for students. We want our students to achieve their academic goals while stimulating their senses of wonder, independence, and appreciation for all the wider world has to offer. 

In fact, we’ve seen students typically outperform their usual standards when on our tours. Here are reasons for that:

Low teacher/TA-to-student ratio ensures students get more care and attention than in larger traditional classrooms. Our educators are trained to identify challenges they may be facing and quickly address them.
Ideally, we want to instill passion for the subject into students. It’s a lot easier, after all, to feel the wonder of nature and animal biology when you’re actually seeing it in person in the Galapagos Islands or in Fiji  than through a textbook. This almost always means your child will be more engaged, interested, and focused, which in turn leads to better learning outcomes and results.