![](https://editlib-media.s3.amazonaws.com/sources/EDMEDIA_2018Jul10_1.png)
Impact Study of Tourism Destinations' eLearning: The Case of the Switzerland Travel Academy
PROCEEDING
Nicole Regazzoni, Nadzeya Kalbaska, Lorenzo Cantoni, Università della Svizzera italiana, Switzerland
EdMedia + Innovate Learning, in Amsterdam, Netherlands Publisher: Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE), Waynesville, NC
Abstract
Through the Internet, information about tourism destinations have multiplied and consumers are faced with many, and sometimes contradicting information from a number of different online sources. The figure of the travel professional is again gaining importance since consumers can rely on travel professionals to get access to the relevant information they need in order to plan their travel in the best way. For travel professionals, it is therefore of crucial importance to stay updated about what a destination has to offer. Switzerland Tourism, the national tourism board of Switzerland, has created an eLearning course about Switzerland in order to provide travel professionals with the quality information they need to sell the country to their potential clients. The aim of this study is to find out the level of effectiveness of the eLearning tool in terms of travel professionals’ satisfaction, confidence in selling Switzerland as a destination, and of the level of knowledge acquired from the offered eLearning tool. This was achieved by using an online survey built upon the Kirkpatrick’s model. Eventually, the response rate was satisfactory and the results demonstrate a positive feedback by travel agents to the eLearning tool both in terms of satisfaction and transfer of knowledge. Moreover, suggestions were collected for the implementation of future eLearning courses on tourism destinations.
Citation
Regazzoni, N., Kalbaska, N. & Cantoni, L. (2018). Impact Study of Tourism Destinations' eLearning: The Case of the Switzerland Travel Academy. In T. Bastiaens, J. Van Braak, M. Brown, L. Cantoni, M. Castro, R. Christensen, G. Davidson-Shivers, K. DePryck, M. Ebner, M. Fominykh, C. Fulford, S. Hatzipanagos, G. Knezek, K. Kreijns, G. Marks, E. Sointu, E. Korsgaard Sorensen, J. Viteli, J. Voogt, P. Weber, E. Weippl & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Proceedings of EdMedia: World Conference on Educational Media and Technology (pp. 333-343). Amsterdam, Netherlands: Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE). Retrieved August 31, 2024 from https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/184215/.
© 2018 Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE)
References
View References & Citations Map- Adukaite, A., Kalbaska, N. & Cantoni, L. (2014). E-learning on tourism destinations. The case of Ticino Switzerland Travel Specialist course. ELC Research Paper Series, 8, 27-34.
- Adukaite, A., Cantoni, L. & Kalbaska, N. (2016). Evaluation of formality and informality of the learning context. The case of online training courses about tourism destinations. Zeitschrift für Tourismuswissenschaft, 8/1, 95-111.
- Aguinis, H. & Kraiger, K. (2009). Benefits of training and development for individuals and teams, organizations, and society. Annual Review of Psychology, 60, pp. 451-474.
- Attwell, G. (ed.) (2006). Evaluating E-learning; a Guide to the Evaluation of E-learning. Evaluate Europe Handbook Series, 2, pp. 5-45.
- Buhalis, D. (2001). Tourism distribution channels: practices and processes. In D. Buhalis, & E. Laws (Eds.), Tourism Distribution Channels: Practices, Issues and Transformations (pp.7-32). London: Continuum.
- Cantoni, L., Kalbaska, N. & Inversini, A. (2009). ELearning in Tourism and Hospitality: A Map. Journal of Hospitality, Leisure, Sport& Tourism Education, 8(2), 148-156.
- Cantoni, L. & Kalbaska, N. (2010). ELearning Offers by Destination Management Organizations. In U. Gretzel, R. Law., & M. Fuchs (Eds.), Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism (pp.247-259). Wien-New York: Springer.
- Cheyne, J., Downes, M. & Legg, S. (2006). Travel agent vs internet: What influences travel consumer choices? Journal of Vacation Marketing, 12(1), 41-57.
- Curran, V.R. & Fleet L. (2005). A review of evaluation outcomes of web-based continuing medical education. Med Educ. 39(6), pp. 561-567.
- Ehlers, U.D. (2004). Quality in e-Learning from a Learner's Perspective. European Journal for Distance and Open Learning.
- Garbani-Nerini, E., Kalbaska, N. & Cantoni, L. (2018). Evaluating the development and impact of an eLearning Platform. The case of Switzerland Travel Academy. In B. Stangl & J. Pesonen (Eds.), Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism (pp.450-462). Wien-New York: Springer.
- Grohmann, A. & Kauffeld, S. (2013). Evaluating training programs: development and correlates of the Questionnaire for Professional Training Evaluation. International Journal of Training and Development, pp. 135-155.
- Kalbaska, N. (2012). Travel Agents and Destination Management Organizations: eLearning as a strategy to train tourism trade partners. Journal of Information Technology& Tourism, 13(1), 3-12
- Kalbaska, N., Lee, A., Cantoni, L. & Law, R. (2013). UK travel agents’ evaluation of eLearning courses offered by destinations: an exploratory study. Journal of Hospitality, Leisure, Sport& Tourism Education, 12(1), 7-14.
- Kalbaska, N. & Cantoni, L. (2018). The use of eLearning strategies among travel agents in the United Kingdom, India and New Zealand. Journal of Teaching in Travel& Tourism, 18(2), 138-158.
- Lin, J. & Cantoni, L. (2017) Assessing the Performance of a Tourism MOOC Using the Kirkpatrick Model: A Supplier’s Point of View. Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2017, Springer, Berlin– Heidelberg, 129-142
- Ozturan, M. & Kutlu, B. (2010). Employee satisfaction of corporate e-training programs. Procedia – Social and Behavioural Sciences, 2(2), pp. 5561-5565.
- Wang, G.G. & Wilcox, D. (2006). Training evaluation: knowing more than is practiced. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 8, pp. 528-539.
These references have been extracted automatically and may have some errors. Signed in users can suggest corrections to these mistakes.
Suggest Corrections to ReferencesSlides
- EdMedia_PPT_Impact_Study_on_Tourism_Destinations_eLearning_52869.pptx (Access with Subscription)