The number of field trips taken by K-12 classes dropped off precipitously during COVID. Even after normalcy returned to schools, the number of such outings remained low. In 2023, Wilkening Consulting and the American Alliance of Museums ran a survey of 340 museum directors in the United States, and 40 percent of the respondents said they were still seeing fewer visits from K-12 teachers and students compared to before the lockdowns, according to Education Week.
Why should this concern teachers and parents? Because field trips provide an exceptional and indispensable educational opportunity. In addition to breaking up the routine and enlivening students who’ve become enervated from sitting at a desk all day, field trips afford students the chance to learn experientially instead of just from books and videos.
