Field trips in environmental education

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Field trips are a popular method for introducing students to concepts and experiences beyond the classroom, especially in trans-disciplinary areas like science and environmental education. While educators generally view field trips as beneficial and students cherish them as an alternative to traditional instruction, educational research reveals a more nuanced reality. As school systems increasingly demand evidence of the educational value of field trips, significant gaps often emerge between theory and practice. Out-of-school educational settings also face challenges in providing field trip experiences that meet multiple, sometimes conflicting objectives. The author, a Senior Researcher at the Institute for Learning Innovation in Annapolis, Maryland, conducts an in-depth empirical study of teachers and students on environmental field trips, alongside a comprehensive literature review, to create a framework for understanding the impacts of field trips and learning in informal settings: The Integrated Experience Model. This work is valuable for scholars, teachers, and educators involved with field trips, as well as those interested in the contextual factors that influence learning in informal or free-choice environments, particularly within environmental science and sustainability education.