Virtual Global Education Exchanges, and Europe Student Travel Ideas

What are ways to do virtual student exchanges across countries? Going further, is it possible to travel with students without using a professional tour company? Let’s hear the experience of Dr. Rhett Oldham, who was able to achieve this feat multiple times! Let’s start the interview.

Teaching Traveling: Rhett, before we get to your student travel story, tell us about the virtual global education exchanges you did.

Rhett: Teaching World History to 8th graders can be a challenge, but the students at my middle school in Ste. Genevieve, MO have been great to teach. One of the reasons students like the class is that I teach World History as if we are going there.

Every unit, we look at the cities, countries, and UNESCO Heritage Sites, and talk about their historical relevance. We discuss the cultures of the countries, but we go a step further. We actually talk to the students living in the different places we study.

When we are studying Rome, we talk to students in Italy and Croatia. When we study the Byzantine Empire, we talk to students in Turkey.

As we examine Islam, students talk to students in Morocco. The Viking unit features a collaboration with students in Norway or Denmark.

During the Middle Ages, students collaborated with students in France and the United Kingdom. Throughout my time at Ste. Genevieve, my students have collaborated with students in Greece, South Korea, Germany, Mexico, Spain, Portugal, and many more countries. 

When the students are talking to their new friends around the world, they are talking to them on Snapchat and Instagram. We exchange information on a secured Padlet and the students add their counterparts on their social media and start communicating.

It should be noted there is always a digital citizenship unit taught before any of this begins. We even meet for a group call many times like this call with students in Greece that started at 6:15 AM! Students love meeting people around the world and finding out we have more in common than we have differences. 

One of my students favorite activities is the Denmark-USA Candy Exchange where my friend Sebastian Cohrt at the Vig Skool in Denmark sends a box of Danish treats to Ste. Genevieve and I sent a box of candy to Denmark. We schedule a Zoom call, place the students in breakout rooms, and the students describe the candies they are eating to each other. It is a great way to meet new people and find out about different tastes.

TT: Wow! So how did you pivot into student group travel?

Rhett: As a result of these virtual exchanges, I suggested to my students we should go there and meet our new friends. Immediately, students proclaimed it would be too expensive and out of reach.

I told my students that if I could prove to them we could travel anywhere in Europe for 10-12 days for $1500.00 I would plan a student trip… which is exactly what I did. Here is our cost break-down:

• Train: St. Louis to Chicago, $50 Round Trip
• Flight:  Chicago to London, $800.00 Round Trip
• Three Excursions, $400.00 Total
• Chicago Hotel, $100 a person
• Incidentals and Travel Insurance, $150.00
• Total: $1500.00

By the way, all students are required to only bring carry-on luggage and a backpack. I am a devoted Rick Steves fan and follow his advice, plus his guidebooks are second to none.

That first trip to the UK was a blast!!! I contacted my friend Andy at a school in Billinghurst, and he was all in! We went to London, Stonehenge, Salisbury Cathedral (a copy of the Magna Carta is there), and Brighton Beach.

Not only that, the students had the opportunity to attend school twice AND live with a British family! Then the students from the UK visited us in the USA as part of the exchange. It was amazing and so memorable. That was in 2018. 

TT: Amazing. What about your Denmark tour with students?

Fast forward to 2023, and my friend in Denmark, Sebastian, was willing to host our students from Ste. Genevieve at his school in Vig, Denmark. Seven students traveled with me in June 2024 with the cost staying at $1500.00!

The format was the same: Two days at school, three excursions, and weekends free to do as you please with your host family. This trip included a day trips to:

• Lund, Sweden where the phenomenal Romanesque, Lund Cathedral, is located with an amazing astronomical clock and Lund University founded in 1425.
  
• Copenhagen Day where we took a bike tour on Danish Independence Day and got to see the King and Queen among other people and places.
  
• Roskilde Day to see the Viking Ship Museum where we rowed a replica Viking Ship! We also went to Roskilde Cathedral which is the most important church in Denmark, the official royal burial church of the Danish monarchs, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Most importantly, the students made lifetime memories and lived with Danish families who were just amazing. The Danish people made our stay so memorable and we all learned so much about the Scandinavian region. 

I completely understand why teachers use travel companies. Students are still experiencing the world and traveling.

I just wanted my students to see that travel is attainable and then experience a genuine local experience. No matter what you decide, taking students abroad is one of the best things I have ever done in education.

Unfortunately, this was my last student-teacher travel experience. I have retired from Ste. Genevieve Middle School and I am now the Director of Social Studies Curriculum at the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education in Missouri. One of the benefits of this new position is I will be advocating and promoting teacher travel to educators in Missouri (and recommending Lillie Marshall’s website)!

TT: Thanks so much, Rhett! Readers, what questions or comments do you have?