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An investigation into the gaps between tourism education provision and industry need in KwaZulu-Natal
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There is a growing demand for professionally educated and trained staff in the tourism sector. However, current literature reveals a significant disparity between the tourism education provided by institutions and the skills required by the industry. A major challenge facing tourism education institutions is the identification of industry needs and requirements and the involvement of industry in curriculum design. The aim of this research is to examine the education, skills and training required of tourism employees and whether the provisions of higher education tourism courses are adequately meeting industry needs. Identifying this „gap‟ will assist in improving the development of tourism education programmes to meet the needs of industry. The research examines the relevance of the tourisms qualification from three stakeholders‟ perspectives, namely, managers from the tourism sector, tourism graduate employees, and tourism academics. Surveys, in the form of structured questionnaires, were used to obtain information from the three groups. The overall findings of the study revealed that gaps do exist in the tourism curriculum according to the perceptions of stakeholder groups that participated in this study. The recommendations are that closer collaboration is required between academics, managers from the industry when designing tourism curriculum and also to sustain the relevance of the curriculum to meet the needs of industry. Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the Masters Degree in Technology, (Tourism Management) in the Department of Hospitality and Tourism, Durban University of Technology, 2009.
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The system approach is a term that means to do something systematically. In the educational industry, to assure the quality and excellence, education planner must consider on input, process, and output of the education system. The inputs are the facilities (Infrastructure, Curriculum, students & teachers and administration) related to teaching & learning while the processes are the delivery of contents (Skills, Knowledge, and Experiences)in teaching and learning. The outputs are the end-result (Employment opportunities, growths & satisfaction) of the educational system. Probably the most difficult struggle facing by the educational industry is about how the education system can be customized to get quality and Excellent outcome. This research is exploratory research, which based on the secondary data from different research papers on tourism education and education. System approach already applied in many disciplines. In this research, we tried to incorporate the system approach in Tourism Education. This research tried to identify the components of the Input, Process, and output of tourism education system. This paper is also attempted to explain that, how these components are affecting the overall tourism education system. If we focus on these components, we can assure the quality and excellence education in Tourism Education.
Changes in the higher educational environment are having a tremendous impact on the education process, curricula, learning outcomes and instructional practices. This paper aims to identify the challenges facing established universities in tourism and hospitality education and to provide insight of how these could be managed in the future. Five sources of change are identified: the socio-economic and technological environment; global competition; the student market; educators and teaching methods; and the tourism and hospitality industry. The exploitation of modern technologies and the development of information literacy and knowledge management skills are the two major issues that universities need to consider in the future.
s research interests are teaching and learning practices in higher education and the ways in which national policies are constructed within institutions. LEE SUTHERLAND holds a doctoral degree relating to the implementation of Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) in higher education, and works in the fields of quality assurance and academic development at the University of Zululand. She has research interests in teaching and learning and assessment and has a particular interest in gender-related issues related to these areas. Abstract This article considers the prevalence of what have been termed 'training discourses' as dominant practices within a particular University of Technology, and discusses the implications of such discourses for teaching and learning. The rapid emergence of this training or skills discourse in Universities of Technology in South Africa, in preference to discourses that emphasise praxis (a combination of theory and practice) and, by implication, of social redress and transformation, is interrogated within the framework of the current emphasis on training for economic growth. While in some instances the training discourses could be considered empowering for students because of the inclusion of authentic, workplace practices, these discourses could also be considered constraining if they limit students' ability to solve problems critically and creatively. The ability to adapt to new and changing workplace environments, this article will argue, could be better developed by a more developmental discourse of 'critiquing', 'knowing' and 'doing', rather than just 'doing'.
This is a book and I do not have a copy to share. It is available at Amazon. There is a later edition (4th) also available: Research methods in busienss studies.