Trips & International Opportunities

Some of the most memorable learning and personal development experiences happen beyond the classroom. 

At Hockerill, trips, visits, exchanges and international experiences are an important part of Sixth Form life. Some directly support students' academic studies; others develop language and cultural understanding, provide opportunities for service and adventure, or simply allow students to experience something completely different. 

Together, they contribute to our Personal Development curriculum, support academic ambition and help students develop the confidence, independence and international outlook that we want them to take with them beyond Hockerill. 

Taking learning beyond the classroom 

Throughout Sixth Form, students have opportunities to take their learning into different environments. 

We organise a wide range of day trips and subject visits to support the academic curriculum. These might include geography fieldwork, theatre visits, exhibitions, conferences, lectures or visits to places directly connected with a particular course. 

The purpose is not simply to take students out of the classroom, but to allow them to experience their subjects differently: applying what they have learned, encountering new ideas and expertise, and seeing connections between academic study and the wider world. 

For students beginning to think seriously about university and future careers, these experiences can also help deepen interests beyond the formal requirements of their courses. 

Languages, exchanges and cultural experiences 

As an IB World School with a diverse international community, languages and intercultural understanding have an important place at Hockerill. 

We organise visits and exchanges that allow students studying languages to use them in authentic settings and experience the cultures connected with them. However, some of these opportunities can also extend beyond language students, becoming wider cultural experiences for students who want to discover more about another country and its people. 

Our Japan trip is a good example. It supports students learning Japanese but can also provide other students with the opportunity to experience Japanese culture at first hand. Similar opportunities have included visits to China and, at different times, a range of European destinations. 

For language students, using another language outside the classroom can transform confidence. For everyone involved, living within or visiting another culture encourages curiosity, adaptability and a willingness to see the world from perspectives other than their own. 

Learning together across the College 

Not every Hockerill trip is exclusively for Sixth Form students. 

Some experiences bring together students from different year groups, creating opportunities for older and younger students to travel, learn and participate alongside one another. This helps build relationships across the College and gives Sixth Formers another opportunity to act as positive role models within the wider Hockerill community. 

Other experiences are deliberately designed specifically for Sixth Form. 

The Berlin History trip, for example, takes place during the May half-term and is exclusively for Sixth Form students. It allows students to encounter at first hand many of the places, events and ideas that form part of their academic study, while also experiencing one of Europe's most historically and politically significant cities. 

Both models have value: sometimes the experience comes from being part of the wider College community; at other times it comes from travelling and learning specifically as a Sixth Form group. 

Adventure and shared experiences 

Not every trip needs to be academic. 

Our programme also includes opportunities where the principal purpose is participation, challenge and enjoyment. Our ski trip, for example, has taken students to North America in recent years and gives students the opportunity to develop their skiing, challenge themselves physically and share an experience with friends and other members of the College community. 

Experiences such as these matter. Sixth Form is academically demanding, and opportunities for adventure, activity and enjoyment form part of the balance we want students to develop between hard work and a rich life beyond their studies. 

Travelling with others also develops qualities that are difficult to teach formally: independence, adaptability, organisation, consideration for others and the confidence to deal with unfamiliar situations. 

Zimbabwe – service, community and adventure 

For many students, one of the most significant opportunities available during their time at Hockerill is our Year 12 Zimbabwe experience. 

Hockerill works in partnership with Tag Rugby Trust, an organisation whose work in Zimbabwe uses tag rugby as a means of connecting communities and creating opportunities for young people through sport, education and leadership. 

Our students do not travel simply to observe. They become actively involved. 

Working alongside Tag Rugby Trust and local communities, Hockerill students help to coach young people and support the organisation of rugby activities and events. They also participate in wider community work, meeting and working alongside people whose everyday experiences may be very different from their own. 

The experience asks a great deal of our students. They need to communicate, work as a team, take responsibility, adapt to unfamiliar circumstances and contribute positively to the communities they are visiting. 

The service element is then combined with the opportunity to experience some of the extraordinary landscapes and wildlife of the region, with previous itineraries including experiences such as safari, the Zambezi River and Victoria Falls. 

Students frequently describe the Zimbabwe experience as life-changing. It is easy to understand why. It combines service, challenge, teamwork, cultural understanding and adventure in a way that few experiences can. 

It also captures something important about Personal Development at Hockerill. We want students to become increasingly aware of the world beyond themselves, confident in unfamiliar environments and prepared to contribute rather than simply observe. 

Developing an international outlook 

International-mindedness is not something we want students simply to study. We want them to experience it. 

Travelling to another country is one way of doing that, but the real value comes from what students do when they get there: communicating with people from different backgrounds, encountering different cultures and perspectives, adapting when things are unfamiliar and reflecting on their own assumptions and experiences. 

For some students, these opportunities directly support their academic ambitions or language learning. For others, they provide challenge, service, adventure or an opportunity to experience somewhere they might never otherwise have visited. 

All contribute to the same broader aim: helping students become curious, confident, independent and outward-looking young adults. 

Make the most of the opportunities 

The programme of trips and visits naturally develops from year to year, and individual opportunities will depend on subjects, demand and the activities taking place within the College. 

What remains constant is our encouragement to take advantage of them. 

Visit somewhere connected with your studies. See a performance. Carry out fieldwork. Use another language. Experience another culture. Travel with students you do not normally spend time with. Challenge yourself physically. Work alongside a community very different from your own. 

Some experiences will deepen what you already know. Others may introduce you to something completely new. 

Both are an important part of making the most of your two years at Hockerill.