If you’re considering school trips involving sports tours, you may have a few questions before you go ahead and choose your specialist operator and book. Here are some responses to frequently asked questions.
What are school trips based sports tours?
School trips can be organised for any one of a number of purposes. Some may be targeted at developing students’ language skills in another country, or others more on exploring historical monuments, culture and archaeology. Sports tours, as the name suggests, are aimed at enhancing the participants’ knowledge of a particular sport and, of course, their skill and performance levels. This is done through professional coaching and participation in matches.
How is this different to doing the same thing at home?
Most coaches and teachers will tell you that the development of sporting prowess in young people can be improved by exposure to different techniques and ways of doing things. Top qualified and professional coaches may be able to open up awareness and increase the confidence of participants. If school trips are overseas, the differences in training and development might be even more pronounced – and that can only be beneficial.
Where are such tours based?
They may be in any number of locations. For example, football tour school trips can take place in Paris, London, Malta, Ireland or Italy (as well as other locations). During the training sessions, experienced coaches and referees will be handing out tips and arranging practice sessions. These may be followed up by matches against other British and local sides.
Are other sports available?
Yes, there may be similar trips available (locations may, of course, vary) for sports such as hockey, basketball, lacrosse, netball and cricket – to name a few.
What about broader cultural issues?
Sports and education professionals alike recognise that it is sometimes necessary and desirable to take a break to allow young people the opportunity to get away from the sports field. That’s why these types of tours also place emphasis on the students getting around and seeing the local sights and developing something of an understanding for the different culture surrounding them. This helps them avoid becoming ‘stale’ and also might help them to see the role and importance of their sport in the background context of that other culture.
What role does safety play?
Many parents or care providers naturally have some concerns when their children are away from home on school trips – it is perfectly normal and understandable. On specialised sports tours, both the educational establishment and tour facility providers have the safety of children at the forefront of their considerations.
On the sporting side, only fully qualified instructors are used and very careful attention is paid to safety measures. Of course, no sport can ever be regarded as being totally risk-free, so first-aid facilities will typically be available at the sporting venues concerned and the activities will be conducted in accordance with legal safety requirements. It is important to have peace of mind that on school trips, the tour or group leader travelling with the students will be responsible for the overall safety of the youngsters concerned. 해외축구중계