Name:Liang Gan  Student ID：b07157
Research paper supervisor:Dr.Seku Conde
Minzu University of China
2007-2008 Academic Year
 
     
 
Abstract: Through the current situation and development of Chinese tourism education (CTE) and Chinese tourism market (CTM), this paper focuses the study and research on the correlation between CTE and CTM. It is pointed out that CTE plays an important role in shaping a healthy and sound system of CTM in terms of multifunction of CTE. The key content of CTE has been redefined according to the Chinese mainstream culture. The influence of CTE on CTM is of great importance and as an attempt some ways and strategies in this aspect are also under discussion.
Key words: Chinese Tourism Education (CTE); Chinese Tourism Market (CTM); Chinese Tourism University Spirit
 
 
 
 
 
0 Introduction
0.1 Definition of tourism
“Tourism is the temporary short-term movement of people to destinations outside the places where they normally live and work, and activities during their stay at these destinations; it includes movement for all purposes, as well as day visits or excursions”.This definition was proposed by Institute of Tourism in Britain in 1976. [1]
This broader definition was reformulated slightly, without losing any of its simplicity, at the International Conference on the Leisure-Recreation-Tourism, organized by the by the AIEST and the tourism Society in Cardiff in 1981:
Tourism may be defined in terms of particular activities selected by choice and undertaken outside the home environment. Tourism may or may not involve overnight stay away from home.[1]
Finally, the following definition devised by the WTO was endorsed by the UN Statistical commission in1993 following an International government Conference held in Ottawa, Canada in 1991:
Tourism comprises the activities of persons traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more one consecutive year for leisure, business or other purposes.[1]
We find that each of the three definitions of tourism above is towards an agreed one to some extent.
 
 
0.2 Tourist
     “Perhaps the most accurate definition of a tourist is ‘someone who travels to see the something different, and then complaints when he finds things are not the same’!”[1]
    This definition of tourist is good to point out the significance of tourist as an individual who has the initiative when he or she makes a tour somewhere. Actually a tourist should have the right of seeing something different and enjoy his or her tour because this is his or her purpose and wish, and also a tourist has the right to complaint if he or she finds the service he or she pays for is no up to his or her expectation or even be cheated in one way or another.
0.3 Opportunity in Chinese tourism
During 10 years (1990- 2000), the total number of tourists in China
reaches from 2.75 millions to 8.35 millions, keeping an average increasing rate of 18% per year. In 2004 China has topped the fourth largest tourism destination in the world.[2][3]
In this chapter we will do some reviews on CTE and CTM as our topic required.
   First of all, as we know that, the Chinese tourism education, as part of Chinese education, shows its characteristics by cultivating special tourism personnel who have comprehensive knowledge of Chinese culture and good foreign language ability as well. Tourism industry is a young industry in China. With the development of Chinese tourism, more and more tourism personnel are needed in order to meet the need of tourism market in China. Therefore Chinese tourism education (CTE) is still at its early stage from the whole process. Yet through the following statistic number we can find that the fast development in CTE has been made. In 1990 there are 215 tourism colleges and schools in China, by contrast in 2000 the number increased to 1195 (Wang Lan: 2004).[4] Take  Guilin Institute of Tourism (GLIT桂林旅游高等专科学校) for an example. GLIT was established in1985 and up to now the number of present full-time students are nearly reaching 10 thousand . The employment rate of graduate students in this institute keeps nearly reaching 100% in successive four years of 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002. The future of tourism is relatively optimistic. [5]
 But CTE is facing opportunity as well as challenge.
 
 
0.4 Problems and challenge in Chinese tourism
    China is proud to be the fourth largest tourism country in the world. CIM is a large yet young market that needed to be cultivated in the future. Reviewing the whole situation of CTM we can also find many problems. Tourism service is unsatisfactory. The events of dishonesty and mistrust between guests and attendants occur from time to time in different parts of Chinese scenery spots. Furthermore there are cheating behaviors happening frequently. The service bond is not clear-cut or not on the service list, thus the satisfactory from tourism service is hard to achieve. The guests pay for their tourism but they don’t feel they benefit from the service provided by the tourism companies, tourism supervisors, tourism attendants and tourism guides. From the macro viewpoint China still lacks of a sound tourist protection law or system insuring the tourism service bond between service-takers and service-providers as in the western developed countries.
Up to now people will argue that questions on CTE and CTM. Why
 There are these questions confronting us? Is the present Chinese tourism market pessimistic or optimistic? Is the fast developing CTE satisfactory or unsatisfactory? What correlation doe CTE and CTM bear and share and how can CTE function and help solve these problems in CTM?
    Around these questions we will make a further research in the next following chapters in our paper.
   
 
1 Chinese Tourism Education (CTE)
Chinese higher tourism education begins with the establishment of Shanghai Institute of Tourism in 1978，and in 1982 the first tourism undergraduate major set up by the Economic Department of original Hangzhou University marks the being of CTE system. The development of CTE is characterized by the late-rising and fast speed. Up to the end of 2002， there are 407 tourism institutes and 157409 full-time students in total. At present there are 200 universities that can enroll tourism management major graduate, and 10 universities for doctor candidates of tourism management major.[6]
Chinese tourism education has made a great achievement since
China adopted the policy of opening to the outside world. In this part we don’t need to make a remark on this aspect. All we have to do is to redefine CTE according to the present situation and problems in CTM. For many are still at a loss as to what is CTE, the position and function of CTE, the key content and idea of CTE. It is no doubt that some are pessimistic while some optimistic when confronting all these problems in CTM. After a redefined definition and the following illustration you will have your answer.
     A redefined definition of CTE proposed by the present author is here: CTE is a special kind of education that aims to cultivate qualified tourism personnel who not only have a good knowledge of tourism, foreign language and good vocational ethics but also a profound knowledge of traditional Chinese culture, and at the same time a world view to learn the advanced management and experiences from any other countries.
 
1.1    Position of CTE
     According to above definition of CTE, we can understand the position of CTE in the network with other related elements, factors or departments. The interpretation of this redefined definition of CTE should vary individually. But more or less the common ground or the key content parts should be stable. That is, first of all CTE must be education. Secondly tourism should be the main form and parts of education contents. Thirdly other education contents of CTE should cover a vast range of aspects including foreign language and culture. Fourth the qualified tourism personnel should be successfully cultivated to be a citizen who has good vocational ethnics, tourism major knowledge and profound Chinese traditional culture since CTE is within the context of Chinese culture. From this point of view, the position of CTE is so special and so of great importance within its network. The following figure is a try to illustrate.

   Figure 1: relationship among tourism, education and Chinese culture
                    ( Liang Gan: 2008)
1.2 Function of CTE
Although CTE is so young a industry in China, the function of it is obvious. So far there are several aspects in which CTE can play important role. The first function is education. The second is culture function. The third is the creational function. The fourth is aesthetic function. The fifth is the economic function. Every year there are many graduates from tourism institutes and colleges. Luckily they find their suitable jobs and positions in the related areas and fields. Even some of the graduates have become VIP in tourism industry and tourism policy-makers. Some will choose tourist guides as their long life occupation or careers. CTE can not only bring up different kinds of social qualified tourism personnel but also promote the competitive ability of CTM. Each years the number of guests from abroad for tourism is soaring in a surprisingly rate.
 
1.3University spirit
     As a human being, we should have [...]

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