School field trips, once a staple of the educational experience, are quietly disappearing. The reasons behind this trend are multifaceted, but a primary factor is the rising cost of transportation. As school districts face budget challenges, field trips are often the first to be cut, as they are seen as an extra rather than a requirement.

The Impact of Budget Cuts

A survey by the School Superintendents Association found that in 2015, 10% of districts eliminated field trips, while a third had done so during the recession years. The median school bus driver is earning 43% less than the median weekly wage for all workers, making it a challenging job to fill. With a shortage of drivers, schools are forced to shorten or combine regular routes, leaving little room for field trips.

The cost of chartering a bus for a day-long class trip can range from $1,300 to $2,200 per bus, not including mileage and driver minimums. When combined with a driver shortage and budget cuts, the school-paid field trip becomes unsustainable. However, research has shown that field trips have a positive impact on students, particularly those from rural or high-poverty areas, who gain measurable improvements in critical thinking, historical empathy, and tolerance.

A Loss for Students

The disappearance of field trips is a loss for students, particularly those from families who cannot afford to take them to museums or other cultural events. Field trips provide a unique opportunity for students to experience cultural enrichment and learn outside the classroom. As schools increasingly choose to take students on trips to reward them rather than provide cultural enrichment, the trips that survive tend to be the wrong ones, leaving children from disadvantaged families without access to these experiences.

Original reporting: KEYT (Ventura/Santa Barbara) — read the source article.