Overview
The United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) identifies tourism as a key driver for socio-economic progress, and identifies that particularly developing countries benefit from sustainable tourism. However the contribution of tourism to economic, environmental and community well-being depends on the quality of the destination products and management of the industry. In this unit you will examine tourism from a sustainable development perspective and explore management issues surrounding the economic, environmental and community aspects of tourism at the regional and destination level.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
There are no requisites for this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2017
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Postgraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback – Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Student
Face to face contact time in the course very valuable for learning outcomes
Continue with face to face delivery where possible
Feedback from Student
Would have preferred to separate presentation assessment items between this unit and the previous course.
In attempting to accommodate the specific needs of this student, we allowed two assessment presentations to be delivered in the same afternoon. This didn't work for the student in the end and we will manage our unit assessments separately in future.
Feedback from Student
Flexibility of delivery very valuable
Continue with flexibility in delivery to meet the needs of students where possible.
Feedback from Student
Sequential delivery of subjects worked well
At a program level, the sequential delivery of subjects has worked very well for this student and it is recommended the program remains with this style of delivery.
- Analyse and critique a range of sustainable development theories.
- Critically examine the role of tourism in sustainable development.
- Evaluate tourism development strategies in the context of sustainable development theory and practice.
- Assess the challenges for the tourism industry in achieving and managing sustainable development across a range of contexts.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | |||
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1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
1 - Written Assessment - 30% | ||||
2 - Presentation - 30% | ||||
3 - Practical and Written Assessment - 40% |
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
1 - Knowledge | ||||
2 - Communication | ||||
3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills | ||||
4 - Research | ||||
5 - Self-management | ||||
6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility | ||||
7 - Leadership | ||||
8 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures |
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |
1 - Written Assessment - 30% | ||||||||
2 - Presentation - 30% | ||||||||
3 - Practical and Written Assessment - 40% |
Textbooks
Tourism and sustainability: Development, globalisation and new tourism in the third world
Edition: 4th (2015)
Authors: Mowforth, Martin & Munt, Ian
Routeledge
UK, USA
ISBN: 1317747224, 9781317747222
Binding: Paperback
Additional Textbook Information
E-book available
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 6th Edition (APA 6th edition)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
a.c.anderson@cqu.edu.au
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Day 1: Thurs 31st Aug
- Unit overview
- Lecture/workshop 1: What is sustainable development?
Day 2: Fri 1st Sept
- Lecture/workshop 2: Measures of development
Day 3: Sat 2nd Sept
- Lecture/workshop 3: Agencies and communities
- Lecture/workshop 4: Tourism as a strategy for development
- Lecture/workshop 5: Sustainable tourism development plans
Day 4: Sun 3rd Sept
- Lecture/workshop 6: Case studies
- Field trip
- Group work for assessment
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Consultations for assessment
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Day 5: Thurs 14th Sept
- Lecture/workshop 7: Sustainable tourism and government policy
Day 6: Fri 15th Sept
- Lecture/workshop 8: Assessing tourism development for sustainability
Day 7: Sat 16th Sept
- Lecture/workshop 9: Challenges for tourism and sustainable development
- Lecture/workshop 10: Looking to the future
Day 8: Sun 17th Sept
- Lecture 11: Review
- Presentation assessments
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This unit is delivered face-to-face in Cairns as an intensive in Weeks 7 and 9 of Term 2, and via distance over the course of Term 2 (Weeks 1 - 12). Please take note that assessment due dates are the same across both modes of delivery.
1 Written Assessment
Details
Attracting tourists can sometimes be seen by decision makers in a place as an easy way of boosting the economy and ‘developing’ a place. Whilst this can be true, there are many other facets to tourism development that need to be considered if it is to contribute to sustainable economic, social, cultural and environmental outcomes. Sustainable tourism development plans (STDPs) are one way in which destinations can strategically address the true value of tourism as a method of development in their specific context. This assignment is aimed to get you thinking about the key aspects of tourism as a strategy for sustainable development in a specific, applied context.
As a group, develop the terms of reference (ToR) for a sustainable tourism development plan for a location of your choice. This document describes exactly what should be covered in the STDP when it is written, and explains why these elements are important. It should consider how tourism as an industry can address the social, environmental and economic aspirations of the community, and detail key issues to be aware of. You can focus on whatever areas you think are important based on the area the plan is for. Some ideas might be to consider things like what makes the place special, why sustainability is important in the destination, how tourism will contribute to the development of the community. Whatever you decide to focus on, you need to explain why you have chosen to focus on these things.
Suggested steps in the process:
- Using a range of sources online and in the readings of this unit, decide as a group how best to structure an STDP for the destination you are writing the ToR for.
- In sub-sections, identify the key elements of the ToR and justify why you have chosen these elements so everyone understands why they are writing their section.
- Divide up the work into sections for each member of the group so each person is responsible for a set section. This should spread the work load for everyone. Decide on uniform formatting and approaches so you reduce editing work at the end.
- Draw everything together by collating and reading each others’ work and editing to achieve consistent style and communication.
- Collate the final action plan together based on the outcomes from each section.
Deliverable
Sustainable tourism development plan terms of reference addressing the following points:
Introduction
- Description of place
- Key points of attraction and advantage over competitors
- Why an STDP is needed
- What the STDP should aim to achieve
Structure and rationale
- What key elements the STDP should focus on
- Why you are focusing on these elements based on the specifics of the destination
- Why you are focusing on these elements based on existing guidelines or literature.
Key elements: (developed by the group)
- Could be principle based. Eg: Natural, Cultural, Economic & Social sustainable tourism development
- Could be based on the UNWTO's five pillars of sustainable tourism
- Could be outcomes based. Eg: Poverty alleviation, heritage preservation, ecological health
- Could be economically based. Eg. Principles of economic development (such as the US concept http://www.lgc.org/wordpress/docs/ahwahnee/economic_principles.pdf), and how these produce sustainable outcomes
- There are many ways to approach this. Think about what would be best for the destination you are looking at.
Consultation plan
- An explanation of how the consultation strategy should work for the plan to be completed.
Action plan
- What needs to be done to complete the sustainable tourism development plan.
Formatting guidelines
- As a guideline, the ToR should be around 5000 words, with the basic premise that everyone contributes around 1500 words each plus the consultation strategy and action plan. If however the key points are addressed clearly and concisely and the assessment criteria are met, a shorter plan will still mark well. Excessively long plans (more than 6000 words) will not mark as well.
- Text should be word-processed, with appropriate layout and use of headings/sub-headings.
- Diagrams should be used to illustrate specific aspects - a picture paints ten thousand words! (please ensure that you correctly cite/reference all sources of diagrams used, unless they are original and composed by you, since this is an important aspect of academic integrity).
- Please avoid images with very large file sizes, as this will make your plan too large to upload/download (save any images as lower resolution, to decrease the file size).
- Minimum of 8 academic references. The list of references should form the last page or two, at the end of the assessment. Referencing should be in a consistent APA format.
- Please save/upload your file in either a Word format (.doc or .docx).
Note: further support on writing, referencing, etc. is given on the Moodle site for this unit.
Distance students: Special instructions regarding the practicalities of group work will be discussed at the start of the unit.
Week 10 Monday (18 Sept 2017) 5:00 pm AEST
Week 12 Friday (6 Oct 2017)
Evidence of critical thought about what elements should be considered in the plan
Evidence of sustainable development theories in the rationale
Logical structure of the plan with key action points
Grammar and clarity of expression
Evidence of effective team work – a coherent document that is well presented
Applicability of the ideas to the destination chosen
- Analyse and critique a range of sustainable development theories.
- Critically examine the role of tourism in sustainable development.
- Knowledge
- Communication
- Cognitive, technical and creative skills
- Research
- Self-management
- Ethical and Professional Responsibility
- Leadership
2 Presentation
Details
The aim of this presentation is for you to assess the challenges for the tourism industry in achieving and managing sustainable development across a range of contexts and relate this back to what current literature is saying. This is an opportunity for you to formulate an educated opinion on whether and how tourism can be used as a strategy for development.
Reflecting on what you have learnt in the unit, consider the realities of tourism development from your personal perspective, and relate this back to what key literature is saying (draw from your lecture readings). Using some form of visual aid (eg. PowerPoint presentation, Prezi, Sway, Poster or other more creative device) share with the class what you think are three key dilemmas of using tourism as a tool for sustainable tourism development, and present your theory on the best way to move forward.
Deliverable
15 minute presentation, with visual aid. 5 minutes for questions.
Presentations made in class
Monday (18 Sept 2017)
Assessment criteria will be developed by the class in week 7.
- Evaluate tourism development strategies in the context of sustainable development theory and practice.
- Assess the challenges for the tourism industry in achieving and managing sustainable development across a range of contexts.
- Knowledge
- Communication
- Cognitive, technical and creative skills
- Research
- Self-management
- Ethical and Professional Responsibility
- Leadership
3 Practical and Written Assessment
Details
The process of planning for tourism as a strategy for sustainable development is usually highly political and fraught with tradeoffs between key stakeholders in the community, government authorities, investors, other industries, politicians and others. The aim of this assignment is to draw from both of your previous assessments to reflect on the process of developing a sustainable tourism industry in a destination within the UNWTO's five pillars of sustainable tourism (see resources below). You are welcome to use your material from Assessment 2 in this assignment if you wish.
The assignment is in two parts:
Part 1: Practical. Individually, reflect on how the group work process of creating the sustainable tourism development plan in assessment 1 worked in terms of generating an effective outcome. This will be assessed through observation and conversation during group work sessions in class.
Part 2: Written. Drawing on your experiences in the group work, theories presented in the class presentations, lectures and readings in the class, write a reflection on the process of planning for tourism as a strategy for sustainable development from a specific perspective (across contexts - not specifically related to the destination chosen in Assignment 1). It is important that you relate these observations to theories and best practice in the academic and grey literature (grey literature is non-academic, such as UNWTO reports). Key perspectives that could be considered are:
· The impact assessment process – environmental, social, economic, cultural
· Political influence and processes
· Funding and investment strategies
· Community consultation in planning tourism as a strategy for development
· Statutory/legislative processes and influences
Deliverable
Reflective, critical academic essay on the process of planning for tourism as a strategy for sustainable development. Structure should contain:
Introduction
- What the essay is about
- What perspective you are considering the process from and why this is important
- Definition of terms
- Structure of the essay
Literature
- Key literature the essay is drawing from.
- What the literature says and how this relates to the perspective you are looking from
Critical reflection
- Discussion about your observations (first person is ok) of the processes of planning for tourism as a strategy for sustainable development
- Discussion of how these observations fit with the literature you have read. Do these align with your observations or not? Why do you think this is the case?
Conclusion
- What has the essay shown?
- Outline of the main points covered and what you have said.
Formatting guidelines
- As a guideline, the essay should be around 3000 words, Excessively long essays (more than 4000 words) will not mark as well.
- Text should be word-processed, with appropriate layout and use of headings/sub-headings.
- Diagrams should be used to illustrate specific aspects - a picture paints ten thousand words! (please ensure that you correctly cite/reference all sources of diagrams used, unless they are original and composed by you, since this is an important aspect of academic integrity).
- Please avoid images with very large file sizes, as this will make your plan too large to upload/download (save any images as lower resolution, to decrease the file size).
- The list of references should form the last page or two, at the end of the assessment. Referencing should be in a consistent APA format.
- Minimum 6 academic references.
- Please save/upload your file in either a Word format (.doc or .docx)
Note: further support on writing, referencing, etc. is given on the Moodle site for this unit.
Week 11 Friday (29 Sept 2017) 3:00 pm AEST
Review/Exam Week Friday (13 Oct 2017)
Evidence of critical thought about the process of planning for tourism as a strategy for sustaianble development
Evidence of critically thinking about the unit readings
Logical structure of the essay
Grammar and clarity of expression
Referencing effectively and accurately
- Evaluate tourism development strategies in the context of sustainable development theory and practice.
- Knowledge
- Communication
- Cognitive, technical and creative skills
- Research
- Self-management
- Ethical and Professional Responsibility
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.