Paragon Prep in Austin, TX

By Lindsay Hay, Guest columnist
Aug 14, 2026

“Where are we?”

My phone couldn’t tell me.

Standing deep beneath Osaka, Japan, in one of the world’s busiest subway systems,
my group of students wandered through a maze of tunnels, staircases and signs we
couldn’t read. Without the sun, a skyline or familiar landmarks, even digital maps
became almost useless.

In that moment, I had an unexpected thought: This is exactly where we need to be.

After 15 years of leading student travel programs, I’ve come to believe that getting
genuinely, uncomfortably lost is one of the most valuable learning experiences we can
give young people. Not because we want them to struggle, but because navigating
uncertainty teaches lessons that no worksheet or lecture can replicate.

Travel has always been educational, but not simply because students visit museums
or historic sites. Its greatest value lies in the unexpected moments that require
observation, problem-solving, communication and resilience.

Those opportunities are becoming increasingly rare.

Today’s children are growing up in a world designed to eliminate boredom and
uncertainty. Waiting rooms, restaurants, airports and even grocery stores are filled
with children absorbed in screens. I recently visited Disney World and saw toddlers
watching iPads from their strollers while surrounded by one of the most immersive
environments ever created. They were physically present but mentally somewhere
else.

As parents and educators, our instinct is often to make every idle moment easier. But
when we constantly entertain children, we rob them of opportunities to become
curious, observant and independent. Boredom often sparks creativity, and uncertainty
builds confidence.

That’s why our trips have a simple rule: no cell phone use by students, except to call
their parents at night.

Without devices, students begin paying attention to each other and to the world
around them. They notice architecture, landmarks, neighborhoods and conversations.
They learn to remember turns, ask thoughtful questions and solve problems together
instead of searching for instant answers online.

Those aren’t just travel skills. They’re life skills.

Back in Osaka, I wondered how many students would know how to retrace their
steps if they became separated from the group. Would they remember the
landmarks? Would they know what information they needed? Would they feel
confident enough to ask a stranger for help, even in another language?

As those questions ran through my mind, a local woman approached us with a smile.

“Hello. Where are you from?”

“Texas,” I replied.

Then I asked, laughing, “Is it obvious we’re lost?”

She laughed too and pointed us toward our hotel. During that same week, three
different Japanese residents noticed we needed help before we even asked.

That experience left me with another lesson: because they weren’t distracted by their
own devices, they noticed the people around them.

Education doesn’t end when students leave the classroom. Some of the most
meaningful learning happens when they are navigating unfamiliar places, adapting to
new cultures, solving unexpected problems and relying on one another instead of a
screen.

In a world where technology can answer almost any question, perhaps the most
valuable skill we can teach isn’t how to find the fastest route. It’s how to think when
the map doesn’t work.

The goal isn’t to keep our children from ever getting lost.

It’s to give them enough real-world experiences that they’ll know how to find their
way.

ARTICLE LINK https://www.statesman.com/opinion/columns/your-voice/article/kids-need-chances-get-lost-find-way-22384435.php