POLICY: FIELD TRIPS

The Board of Education recognizes that field trips, used as a device for teaching and learning integral to the curriculum, are an educationally sound and important ingredient in the instructional program of the schools. For purposes of this policy, a field trip shall be defined as any journey by a group of pupils away from the school premises, under the supervision of a teacher, which is an integral part of an approved course of study and conducted for the purpose of affording a first-hand educational experience not available in the classroom. When field trips and excursions are to be arranged, the following guidelines apply: A. All trips, and the arrangements for them including transportation, must have advance approval B. Costs must be ascertained. C. Each child who goes on a field trip or excursion must have written parental permission. D. Pupil safety must be of prime concern, and adequate supervision must be provided by staff aided by other adult chaperones if necessary. E. All trips must be well planned, properly timed, and related to regular learning activities, or to district goals and objectives. No pupil is to be denied the right to participate in field trips which are part of the curriculum because of inability to pay. The Chief School Administrator shall develop guidelines for planning trips suitable to the various grade levels, and regulations governing frequency, distance and expense. The Board does not endorse, support or assume liability in any way for any staff member of this district who takes pupils on trips not approved by the board. No staff member may solicit pupils of this district for such trips within the facilities or on the school grounds of this district without Board permission