The online training is designed to provide VET teachers with the basic skills they will need to teach accessible tourism to their students and thus lay the foundation to reduce the training gap within tourism VET schools about accessible tourism issues.
It also aims at introducing teachers to the use of edutainment approaches and tools.
The training activity on Accessible Tourism is developed according to the following 4 Learning Modules.
1st LEARNING MODULE:
"Accessible Tourism/Tourism for All, its history and the business case"
- 8 hours online
- 4 hours face-to-face
The module aims to provide the trainers with the basic knowledge about Accessible Tourism, also known as “Tourism for All”. It begins by examining “megatrends”, which refer to significant, globally relevant, social, economic, political, environmental and technological changes over the long-term, which impact on tourism. It introduces the concept of Accessible Tourism, based on comprehensive and shared experience and data emerging from recent studies of the supply and the demand.
It also covers the historical background of Accessible Tourism, referring to the campaigns and efforts of organisations of persons with disabilities and the accessibility movement, and the recognition of the rights of people with disabilities, which has led to achievements in the legislative framework at European and international levels.
The concepts of Design for All and Universal Design are also explained as approaches and tools for achieving inclusion by mainstreaming accessibility in the tourism sector.
(Learning Units 1, 2, 3, 4)
2nd LEARNING MODULE:
“The Access Requirements of Tourists and Customer Care”
- 9 hours online
- 8 hours face-to-face
The module aims to give the learner knowledge about the access requirements of tourists with different types of disabilities and those of other groups, such as older people, families with small children, etc. and the appropriate services or products which tourism suppliers can offer according to their specific needs.
Moreover, the module describes how to achieve effective of communication between the tourism operators and customers with specific access requirements. The trainers will study the accessible tourism etiquette, learning how to behave towards these customers and, also, how to prepare for and handle unforeseen situations.
(Learning Units 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
3rd LEARNING MODULE:
“The Accessibility Assessments”
- 6 hours online
- 8 hours face-to-face
The module aims to give trainers an understanding of the purpose and uses of accessibility assessments and the technical skills to carry out an access audit.
They will learn how to complete an Access Statement with objective information on the accessibility and usability of tourism facilities and services for all customers, including those with specific access requirements.
It presents instruments to collect information along the entire “accessibility chain” (physical access of the built environment, service design and customer support, information and ICT, transportation).
Moreover, it explains the correct measurement techniques and the use of data collection tools and protocols.
(Learning Units 11, 12, 13)
4th LEARNING MODULE:
“Information and communication”
- 5 hours online
- 4 hours face-to-face
This module explains how to organise and present the collected accessibility data according to the requirements of specific customer groups and how to deliver accurate and reliable information in a simple and clear way.
The trainers will also learn about the different communication channels (social media, internet websites, portals and market-places, phone, advertising, publications) which can be used to target various user groups, at all the different stages of the visitor journey – when booking, arriving and during their visit – and how to obtain feedback related to the customer’s experience and service satisfaction.
(Learning Units 14, 15, 16)
Each of the four Learning Modules on Accessible Tourism comprises several Learning Units, giving a total of 16 Learning Units.
Each Learning Unit (LU) is described in terms of objectives and contents and includes a slide presentation, the handout and links to in-depth online materials (videos and documents) which will allow the participants to understand the basic principles of the LU. All training materials are also available for download within the Intellectual Outputs in the “Results” section of this website.
Besides English, they are available in the other languages of the partnership: Italian, Romanian and Spanish.
The LU duration refers to the estimated workload required to become acquainted with its training contents.
A self-assessment test is provided at the end of each Learning Module, aiming to allow the participants to evaluate their degree of learning of the topics dealt with.
The online training is complemented by a final Learning Unit on Edutainment that illustrates its main elements: Storytelling, Game-based Learning and Gamification.