The Integrative-modular Approach in Design of Modern Educational Standards in the Tourism Sector

Abstract

The design of continuing professional education programs is one of the general trends in modern higher education. It concerns too the education in tourism that aims to provide the tourism industry with good-qualified professionals. The authors define the key principles of CPE: student-focused learning strategies, ability to team work, links between basic and different courses, cross discipline approach, activation of previous knowledge, achievement of understanding borders, ability to formulate problem questions, independent information research, interaction. Problem Based Learning (PBL) is regarded as the main approach in CPE. This approach to the organization of educational process suggests finding solutions to practical lifelike problems that stimulates students to study the theoretical information. The integrative-modular and competence-based approaches are used to complete the tasks in the continuing professional education. Modules are complete units of knowledge and skills, and include all the necessary educational components. The training material within a module is organized as a structural and organizational unit. The authors define the basic integrative terms of a modular program such as “project-based”, “innovative”, “student-centered”. This approach is used to provide the interaction between theoretical and action-oriented training in tourism, the integrity and the continuity of the educational process.