Sending Your Kids Overseas Feels Scary, But It's Actually Great For Them

 

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Sending your kids overseas with their school can feel terrifying for parents used to monitoring their kids 24/7. It can be particularly scary if they’ve never gone away before. Being in a foreign country, they don’t have the same guarantees as being back home. And they’re a long way from you if they get into trouble. It’s all nail-biting stuff. 

But the research says that sending your kids overseas is actually incredibly good for them. In fact, it could be just the thing they need to supercharge their development. But why? Let’s take a look. 

It Gets Them Out Of Their Comfort Zone

In the west, we really don’t have any meaningful rites of passage. Sure, kids are supposed to go to college at age 18 and then get a job when they finish, but that’s not really a rite of passage in the traditional sense. It might set them up for adulthood economically, but not psychologically. 

That’s where going overseas can really help. When kids fly abroad, they sever the metaphorical umbilical cord to the family home. All of a sudden, they’re adrift in a foreign land having to fend for themselves. It’s an utterly different experience for them. 

Sure, it’s scary at first. But so are all rites of passage. The important thing is that they follow through with it. 

It Builds Confidence

Being away from the family home also builds a sense of self-confidence. Children feel like they are able to stand on their own two feet and don’t have to rely on their parents all the time. 

Before they go away, this feels kind of intimidating. But they eventually get used to it and, over time, start to actually enjoy it. They find that they can live life on their own terms without having to worry about what their parents think. 

It Improves Networking

Networking isn't the first thing you associate with geography field trips, but it happens more often than you might think. Children who make connections early on in their lives find it much easier to travel freely as they get older. 

When kids travel abroad, they encounter many friendly people. These individuals, whether hotel staff, family hosts, or foreign schools often remember their visits for life and want them to go back in the future. It makes globetrotting so much easier for your children when they grow up. 

It Immerses Them In Another Language

Granted, there are multiple countries around the world that share the same languages. But chances are your child will be going to a country where they speak something different from the usual English. If that’s the case, it can help them accelerate their learning. Kids are much more likely to pick up French if they live in France compared to, say, Nottingham. 

It Helps Them Adapt To Globalization

Lastly, going abroad for school trips helps kids adapt better to globalization. Rather than focusing on their own culture, they get to explore more of the world. It helps them to become global citizens.