This document summarizes a study on the role of information and communication technologies (ICT) in tourism education in South African secondary schools. It finds that while ICT is seen as valuable for student learning and teaching, barriers like a lack of resources, teacher skills, and policies limit its integration. The study interviewed 24 tourism teachers and officials across urban, township, and private schools. While some teachers integrated ICT regularly, most faced challenges like technology anxiety, restricted mobile device use, and underutilized tools. Addressing such barriers through training, collaboration, and advocacy could better support ICT's role in tourism education.

1. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 1
The Role of ICT in Tourism Education:
A Case Study of
South African Secondary Schools
Asta Adukaite, Izak van Zyl, Lorenzo Cantoni
Università della Svizzera italiana, Lugano, Switzerland
Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, South Africa

2. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 2
Research setting: South Africa
• Tourism key economic sector and employer
– 9.4% of GDP & 9.9% of total employment
• Almost 10 million tourists arrivals in 2013
(WTTC, 2015)
 Demand for skilled workforce
Local population:
– Awareness on the nature & role of tourism
– Critical evaluation of its potential

3. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 3
Tourism - high school subject
 Vocationally-focused alternative
 Grades 10-12, an elective, 4 hours weekly
 Familiarization with tourism phenomenon
 Triggering interest
 Potential career opportunities

4. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 4
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Number of schools offering tourism
• One of the most popular elective
(20% of students)
• > 370 000 learners
• > 5 000 teachers
• >200 curriculum advisors
(UMALUSI, 2014)

5. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 5
Challenges & research gap
• Image of the subject: easy; “dumping ground” for academically weak
students
– Lack of interest, motivation & engagement
• “Too few students coming out of the public school system view tourism as a
viable career option” (Chili 2013:36)
• Shortage of qualified tourism teachers (Chili, 2013, 2014; Kuze, 2013; Punt, 2010;
Umalusi, 2014)
• “total disquiet with a particular literature in South African tourism education
in schools. […] it’s so scarce that it’s an area for concern […]” (Chili, 2013:34)

6. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 6
ICT & education
• Great deal of energy and funds are dedicated equipping schools with ICT
• ICT recognised as a vital tool for educational development
• ICT not effectively realised
• infrastructure, policies, school culture, management approaches
• technology self-efficacy & anxiety, teacher training
• Voluminous body of research on ICT in education
• no research in Tourism education
(Van Zyl, 2013; Fanni et al, 2013; Vandeyar, 2015; Harris, 2015)

7. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 7
Research design
RG1. To determine the extent ICT supports tourism education in SA high schools.
RG2. To identify the barriers for ICT integration in tourism education.
Qualitative
• In-depth semi-structured interviews (n=24), 30-75’
• Tourism teachers (n=19) and government officials (n=5)
• Non-randomized sampling
• 2 districts, schools ranging from urban to township
• Inductive thematic coding NVivo10
• Intercoder reliability test on 30% of transcript sample, 83% agreement
• Technology Domestication (Habib, 2005)
• Social Cognitive Theory (Self-efficacy) (Bandura, 1977)

8. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 8
Type of school Western Cape Eastern Cape
Public school (Township).
Before 1994, only black or
colored schools, often
inadequately resourced
Public school (ex-model C).
Before 1994, only white
schools, well resourced, now
integrated
Private schools. Independent,
well resourced
5 schools
6 teachers
3 schools
4 teachers
2 schools
1 focus gr.
2 teachers
4 schools
5 teachers
2 schools
2 teachers
0
Total: 16 schools
19 interviewed teachers

9. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 9
RG1. To determine the extent ICT
supports tourism education in
South African high schools.

10. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 10
Tourism teacher
 19 tourism teachers: 16 F; 3 M
 ~6 years of experience in
teaching tourism (from 15 to 1)
 2 teachers dedicated to tourism
geography (6), business
studies (4), languages (4),
consumer studies (2), and
history (1)
 3 had formal education related
to tourism
 mainly self-taught

11. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 11
Value of ICT for LEARNING
ICT LITERACY
 STUDENTS’ FUTURE
CAREER
If we cannot bring them to the national park, we have
to bring the park into the classroom with technology
WIDENING ACCESS
AUTHENTIC LEARNING
EXPERIENCE
INTEREST, ENGAGEMENT
& MOTIVATION
We did the Colosseum in Rome with Grade 12 and I
showed them a portion of “Gladiator”, because I wanted
them to realise that it’s not another boring building
I log in on Google Earth and tell them where in the world do
you want to go? It pops up on the screen and it’s amazing how
they enjoy something like that…
If they go out there and they haven’t done anything ton
he computers they are behind the rest of the workforce

12. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 12
Value of ICT for TEACHING
KNOWLEDGE
• internet, mainly for
information research, &
YouTube videos
It’s been nerve-racking at the beginning. I started with a
textbook; fortunately it had a CD in the back. […] Just
reading and going, taking module by module and
researching them on the internet. For example, when they
talk about in-room technology, what do they mean? […]
the internet has been invaluable
I WhatsApp a lot with other tourism teachers in the area.
We do exchange a lot, they know I am the strongest in the
world icons and time zones. The other teacher is stronger
on currencies so we exchange
INTERACTION
• connecting with colleagues
• share materials
• WhatsApp, email (mailing
lists), Dropbox and Facebook

13. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 13
Theory of technology domestication
(Habib, 2005; Haddon, 2006; Chigona et al, 2010)
Commodification (acquisition; symbolic and functional claims)
•fairly achievable in the majority of the cases
•teachers expressed positive attitudes toward ICT-enhanced instructional tools
•a third of interviewed teachers did not use any technology
Appropriation (technology actively used, integrate into formal
(timetables) and informal (routines) structures)
•9 teachers
•use & integrate ICT in educational practices on regular basis
• in-room technology, computer lab, bringing personal ICT devices to work
Conversion (user wholly adopts technology - displaying to
outside world physically or symbolically)
•4 teachers
•regular usage for curriculum delivery
•connecting with colleagues, sharing materials, taking advantage of mobile technology

14. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 14
RG2. To identify the barriers of ICT
integration in tourism education.

15. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 15
• Technology anxiety
• uncomfortable, intimidated, overwhelmed
• lack of skills and experience
• Lack of resources
• minority have in-classroom technology 
computer labs
• computer student ratio
• Policies on mobile technology
• banned usage
• teachers’ limited knowledge around its
pedagogical applications
• Unfulfilled potential
• students’ lack of know-how in using their mobile
phones for learning
• students hesitant to use their own internet data
for learning
• ICT as distraction

16. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 16
Addressing challenges
• Training on subject content & teaching methods
• Increased collaboration with more experienced
tourism teachers  opportunities for
demonstrations and observations
• Taking advantage of mobile technology
• ICT for tourism teachers’ professional
development:
• Potential of free digital tools: Dropbox
and Google Drive
• Advocacy for the overall image of tourism
subject

17. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 17
Limitations
• Field work: school sample
• no rural schools due to accessibility constraint
• no schools where Afrikaans and isiXhosa instruction languages

18. ENTER 2016 Research Track Slide Number 18
Other projects
World Heritage Awareness Campaing for
Youth (WHACY) in Southern Africa
www.whacy.org
Contact: asta.adukaite@usi.ch, www.unescochair.usi.ch