EDMONTON — After consulting with upwards of 800 staff, students and parents, Edmonton Public Schools has decided to evaluate international field trips on a case-by-case basis.
Superintendent Darrel Robertson said recent world events forced them to stop and think about international student travel, but added it was important to find a balance between what’s educational and what’s safe.
“We have been reminded how quickly world events can change,” Robertson said. “We must be prepared to be flexible and responsive.”
Each trip overseas and to the United States will be reviewed and individually re-evaluated, he said. Final decisions on whether or not to take each trip will be made after consulting the federal government’s travel advice, advisories issued by destination countries, travel and insurance experts and with input from parents, guardians and Edmonton Public staff and chaperones.
The school board said the superintendent has the right to cancel a field trip at any time, or bring students and staff home from an international trip that’s already underway.
“Our overarching focus is on the safety of our students and staff,” Robertson said. “While we’ll do everything we can to offer invaluable out-of-country learning experiences, at the end of the day, our priority will always be to see our students and staff, home and safe.”
Edmonton Public said it will monitor the situations in Paris and Belgium and will examine alternate destinations for trips planned to those locations.
Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale says he knows of no reason why school boards should cancel international student trips over terrorism fears, but he says the decision is ultimately up to educators.
Goodale suggests school boards should consult with RCMP and other federal authorities if they are concerned.
He was responding Thursday to questions about schools boards that have cancelled trips following recent terror attacks in Paris and California.
“To the best of my knowledge at this moment, there is nothing that would particularly provoke that kind of a response, but it will be up to school boards and so forth to make their own decisions in these matters,” Goodale said in Ottawa. “What terrorists are trying to do is destroy our way of life, and we must be very clear that we’re not going to give in to that kind of abuse and threat.
“At the same time, you have to behave prudently.”
READ MORE: Another Alberta school board cancels student international trips, cites safety
The decision by Edmonton Public comes as yet another Alberta school board decided to cancel all international student trips. The Black Gold Regional Division south of Edmonton made the decision Thursday after consulting with parents. All international student field trips are cancelled until Aug. 31, 2016.
On Monday, the Edmonton and Calgary Catholic school districts cancelled all their international trips for the rest of the school year over safety concerns.
The Calgary public boards put such trips on hold and is expected to make decisions on whether to cancel them before the end of the month.
On average, 1,500 Edmonton Public school students go on international trips each year. From now until the end of the school year, 1,350 students are slated to take international trips.
With files from The Canadian Press.
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