University Academy Upper School students have attended many field trips in the past several months. Field trips are a great way to explore the world in an educational way. Field trips can even help students with understanding the past and its effects.
A field trip to the Ewing Marion Kauffman Center for honor roll students occurred on Feb. 4. The play, “Underground,” was a captivating story about the underground railroad and the history of slavery.
Some field trips are for classes, some are for students who have earned them, and other field trips are for people who are in particular organizations.
20/20 Leadership helps with the development of students inside and outside of school by providing opportunities like scholarships and a variety of field trip experiences. Most recently, UA’s 20/20 Leadership students visited and toured The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. The group discussed having a budget, assets, liabilities and credit cards. A select group of UA seniors and juniors attended the 20/20 field trip.
E Velasquez, a University Academy senior, said she learned about investing and earning interest. Field trips offer multiple skills for students in life and as well as in the education curriculum.
The sophomores have been learning about World War I in their U.S. history class with Mr. Michael Shabason, an Upper School history teacher. Every sophomore had the opportunity to attend the field trip to The National World War I Museum and Memorial in February.
Markeiara Wilson, a UA sophomore, said she enjoyed learning more about the history of America.
“My favorite part of the field trip was the poppy flowers on the glass bridge,” Wilson said, referring to a part of the museum where there were beautiful red flowers on a glass bridge to honor the soldiers who died in battle.
Wilson said the information that stuck out to her the most was about the trench warfare used in World War I.
She said, “The most interesting thing in the setups were the rats.” The rats are significant because they would be attracted to the food and debris around the warfare area. This illustrates how dirty the environment was during the war.
Some field trips help find solutions to the problems of the world.
Each year, Dr. Leah Edens, an Upper School English teacher, selects a handful of students who are outgoing and have a passion to discuss the challenges of society to take part in an American Public Square program.
American Public Square (APS) is an organization that focuses on discussing the issues of today’s society in a civil manner. People attending APS events are encouraged to speak their minds respectfully.
Students from several Kansas City high schools, including UA, come together each year to organize a panel discussion that is open for the public to attend. The students select a new topic every year. This year’s topic is homelessness, and the annual event will take place on April 10 at Rockhurst University. The students meet up many times throughout the year prior to the event to plan and put it all together.
One recent APS field trip involved attending a discussion at Avila University. Haley Hughes, a UA junior and one of this year’s APS participants, said she enjoyed discussing how much of Kansas City is affected by not having a home and finding solutions. According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Kansas City has the highest percentage of people experiencing chronic homelessness in the country, even higher than Los Angeles, California, which is second but 9% lower.
“I love to talk, and I like to talk about general issues/problems in the world and building a community! So I was happy when Dr. Edens asked me if I wanted to join,” Hughes said.
There are so many benefits of taking field trips, which serve as short adventures that expand teaching and learning beyond the traditional classroom. Field trips help create real world learning opportunities and build curiosity.
Velasquez said, “I think it could be beneficial for everyone, but especially seniors, to attend these sorts of things. It can help people gain an understanding before they go out into the world.”
When school can become too much, a change of pace can be very beneficial for students.
“It can also give us breaks from stress that school may give us. I think it’s always necessary and healthy to take breaks from things that drain you or stress you,” Hughes said.
University Academy provides students with kinesthetic, auditory and visual learning experiences. Through field trips, students are offered multiple ways to understand academic material, while also preparing for their futures.
