Since the middle of the last century tourism has demonstrated almost continual growth, with international tourist arrivals now recorded in excess of one billion per annum. Given the global socio-economic significance of tourism, it is imperative to develop educational opportunities for those working in tourism-related industries. These opportunities should fulfil the changing needs of both industry, travellers, and the learners themselves. While the concept of lifelong learning in the tourism industry plays an important role, it has received little academic attention to date. This book provides a theoretical overview of lifelong learning for tourism, exploring its history, practice, and conceptualization. It demonstrates the importance of lifelong learning for tourism from a variety of perspectives, drawing on educational, industry, policy, and socio-economic insights. The book explores managerial and political implications, critical issues, best practice examples, and draws on a range of international case studies to demonstrate theory in practice. Finally, it offers a conceptual framework for future curriculum approaches. This book will be of interest to students, scholars, and practitioners of tourism studies, hospitality, business and management, and international development. It will also appeal to those interested in adult education, vocational training, professional development, and pedagogy.

This comprehensive Handbook provides an international perspective on contemporary issues and future directions in teaching and learning in tourism. Key topics include assurance of learning, development of skills, learning in the field, work integrated learning, sustainability and critical studies, internationalisation, technology enabled learning, links between teaching and research, and graduate student supervision. Within these topics attention is devoted to the discussion of curriculum, pedagogy, assessment, students, educators and trends and issues. The Handbook provides a valuable resource for understanding teaching and learning theory and practice in tourism.

The project team investigated the points of view of academic staff involved in educational tourism, the educational tourism sector and clients' expectation of their tourism experience. Reasons for increased involvement of universities in educational tourism are presented.

Tourism is much more than an economic sector, it is also a social, cultural, political, and environmental force that drives societal change. Understanding, responding to, and managing this change will inevitably require knowledge workers who are able to address a range of problems associated with tourism, travel, hospitality, and the increasingly complex operating environment within which they exist. The purpose of this Handbook is to provide an insightful and authoritative account of the various issues that are shaping the higher educational world of tourism, hospitality and events education and to highlight the creative, inventive and innovative ways that educators are responding to these issues. It takes as its central focus a dynamic curriculum space shaped by internal and external factors from global to local scales, a variety of values and perspectives contributed by a range of stakeholders, and shifting philosophies about education policy, pedagogy and teaching practice. A benchmark for future curriculum design and development, it critically reviews the development of conceptual and theoretical approaches to tourism and hospitality education. The Handbook is composed of contributions from specialists in the field, is interdisciplinary in coverage and international in scope through its authorship and content. Providing a systematic guide to the current state of knowledge on tourism and hospitality education and its future direction this is essential reading for students, researchers and academics in Tourism, Hospitality, Events, Recreation and Leisure Studies.

The project team investigated the points of view of academic staff involved in educational tourism, the educational tourism sector and clients' expectation of their tourism experience. Reasons for increased involvement of universities in educational tourism are presented.

Increasingly tourists are seeking learning and educational holidays. This interest has led to the provision of tourism product with some form of learning or education as an integral component, including cultural heritage tourism and ecotourism. The growth of offshore education and lifelong learning has stimulated cross-border movement for language learning, school excursions and university student travel. Reflecting this growth in educational tourism types, the author outlines the main forms of educational tourism, their demand and supply characteristics, their impacts and the management issues associated with them, taking a holistic systems-based perspective. The book argues that without adequate research and appropriate management of educational forms of tourism, the potential regional development impacts and personal learning benefits will not be maximised. The book highlights the need for collaboration and networking between both the tourism and education industries to adequately manage the issues surrounding the growth in educational tourism.