MINISTRY OF CULTURE, SPORTS AND TOURISM VIETNAM NATIONAL ADMINISTRATION OF TOURISM VIETNAM TOURISM OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS ON-SITE TOUR GUIDING Hanoi, 2015 VIETNAM TOURISM OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS: ON-SITE TOUR GUIDING ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Vietnam Tourism Occupational Standards for On-site Tour Guiding were developed by the EU-funded “Environmentally & Socially Responsible Tourism Capacity Development Programme” (ESRT Programme) on behalf of Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism/Vietnam National Administration of Tourism. The content was developed by a team of international and local experts with support from technical working groups, government departments, the tourism industry and local colleges. ESRT would sincerely like to thank all individuals and groups for their valued contributions to the development of these materials with special mention to the • Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) • Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) • Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) • Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) • Vietnam Tourism Certification Board (VTCB) • Hotel and Travel Associations and members • Delegation of the European Union to Vietnam © Environmentally & Socially Responsible Tourism Capacity Development Programme funded by the EU 5 VIETNAM TOURISM OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS: ON-SITE TOUR GUIDING GLOSSARY ITEM DEFINITION Assessment The process of making judgements about the extent to which a candidate’s work meets the assessment criteria for a qualification or unit, or part of a unit Assessment criteria Assessment criteria list the performance/skills and knowledge and understanding that need to be assessed Assessment methods VTOS allows a variety of assessment methods that are appropriate for different types of performance or knowledge Assessor An experienced person who is qualified to assess the performance of the candidate and usually from the same area of work, e. Front Office Supervisor Assessor guide A guide for assessors on how to assess the candidate and how to record and document the candidate performance and knowledge Attitudes/behaviours Attitudes and behaviours impact on the quality of work performance and so these are important aspects of ‘being competent.’ Attitudes and behaviours describe the general ways in which individuals go about achieving the outcomes Certification The award of a certificate or diploma to a candidate based on assessment of performance Competency Competency is the ability to apply specific skills, knowledge and behaviours/attitudes necessary to fulfil the job requirements satisfactorily Core units Core units include basic competencies that all employees must possess (e.
communication skills) Functional units Functional (technical/professional) units relate to the hospitality or tourism job itself Generic units Generic competencies are those competencies that are common to a group of jobs such as cookery or travel Management units These are the generic competencies for roles in an organization that involve managing, supervising or influencing the work of others in some way Standards Occupational standards define the knowledge, skills and attitudes/behaviours (competence) required for effective workplace performance Unit of competence A unit is the smallest part of a qualification can be certified individually VTOS Vietnam Tourism Occupational Standards © Environmentally & Socially Responsible Tourism Capacity Development Programme 6 funded by the EU VIETNAM TOURISM OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS: ON-SITE TOUR GUIDING CONTENTSI. 9 VTOS DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGY. 9 VTOS LEVELS AND QUALIFICATIONS. 10 VTOS COMPETENCY UNITS.
ON-SITE TOUR GUIDING OCCUPATIONS. 14 LIST OF UNITS OF COMPETENCE. 15 ON-SITE TOUR GUIDING QUALIFICATIONS. UNIT TITLE: PREPARE SELF FOR TOUR GUIDING.
UNIT TITLE: CONDUCT ORIENTATION ABOUT TOUR PROGRAMMES. UNIT TITLE: APPLY KNOWLEDGE OF VIETNAM TO TOUR GUIDE PREPARATION. UNIT TITLE: ACCOMPANY AND GUIDE VISITORS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE TOUR ITINERARY. UNIT TITLE: PREPARE RESPONSIBLE AND SUSTAINABLE TOURISM ACTIVITIES.
UNIT TITLE: PRESENT SPECIALIZED TOUR COMMENTARY TO CUSTOMERS. UNIT TITLE: PLAN AND DELIVER ON-SITE ENTERTAINMENT AND GUIDANCE. UNIT TITLE: PROVIDE PRACTICAL ASSISTANCE TO CUSTOMERS. UNIT TITLE: PRESENT CULTURAL AND HERITAGE ENVIRONMENT EXPERIENCE.
UNIT TITLE: PREPARE AND ORGANISE RESPONSIBLE AND SUSTAINABLE TOURISM ACTIVITIES. UNIT TITLE: PLAN AND IMPROVE SPECIALIZED TOUR COMMENTARY TO CUSTOMERS. UNIT TITLE: PLAN AND EVALUATE ON-SITE ENTERTAINMENT AND GUIDANCE. UNIT TITLE: BUILD, MAINTAIN AND DEVELOP RELATIONSHIPS WITH TOUR PROGRAMME STAKEHOLDERS.
UNIT TITLE: PREPARE CULTURAL AND HERITAGE ENVIRONMENT EXPERIENCE. UNIT TITLE: ASSESS AND IMPROVE RESPONSIBLE AND SUSTAINABLE TOURISM ACTIVITIES. UNIT TITLE: USE ENGLISH AT A BASIC OPERATIONAL LEVEL. UNIT TITLE: MAINTAIN INDUSTRY KNOWLEDGE.
UNIT TITLE: PROVIDE BASIC FIRST AID. UNIT TITLE: PROVIDE SAFETY AND SECURITY. UNIT TITLE: RESPOND TO EMERGENCIES. UNIT TITLE: RECEIVE AND RESOLVE COMPLAINTS.
63 © Environmentally & Socially Responsible Tourism Capacity Development Programme funded by the EU 7 VIETNAM TOURISM OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS: ON-SITE TOUR GUIDING GES9. UNIT TITLE: DEVELOP GUEST RELATIONSHIPS. UNIT TITLE: PREPARE AND PRESENT REPORTS. UNIT TITLE: APPLY RESPONSIBLE TOURISM PRINCIPLES.
70 © Environmentally & Socially Responsible Tourism Capacity Development Programme 8 funded by the EU VIETNAM TOURISM OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS: ON-SITE TOUR GUIDING I. INTRODUCTION With the aim to help meet the needs for a qualified workforce for the tourism industry in Vietnam, the EU-funded, Environmentally & Socially Responsible Tourism Capacity Development Programme (ESRT) was tasked to revise the Vietnam Tourism Occupational Skills Standards (VTOS) which were originally developed under the EU-funded Human Resource Development in Tourism Project (HRDT). The revised VTOS have been developed and benchmarked against international occupational standards and ASEAN Common Competency Standards for Tourism Professionals (ACCSTP) and will satisfy the requirements of the ASEAN Mutual Recognition Arrangement for Tourism Professionals (MRA-TP). Occupational Standards refer to the agreed minimum best practice for jobs in the tourism/hospitality industry, and include the statutory (legal, health, safety, security) requirements.
They specify what a person should know and do, as well as the way they do their work, in order to carry out the functions of a particular job in the context of the work environment. VTOS covers two major divisions within the tourism sector (hospitality and travel) with six key occupational areas in line with ASEAN: Hospitality Division (Front Office Operations, Housekeeping Operations, Food & Beverage Service, Food Preparation) and Travel Division (Travel & Tour Operations, Tour Guiding). VTOS also includes four specialist areas (Hotel Management, Small Accommodation Operations, On-site Tour Guiding, and Tourist Boat Service) to meet the unique requirements of Vietnam tourism industry. VTOS units of competence have been grouped to provide a range of industry-relevant qualifications/job titles from basic to advanced levels and also a number of diplomas suitable for college teaching, therefore making it relevant for the industry and the formal education sector.
VTOS can be used by: Hospitality and travel companies to set a standard for how the work of their employees should be completed. VTOS units can be used for training staff in the key skills and job functions for a range of skills. In addition VTOS can be used to assess the performance of staff against the standards. Organizations can arrange to register their staff with an assessment centre to formally recognise or assess their skills and gain a certificate.
Colleges and training organisations to design their hospitality or tourism curriculum. VTOS clearly specifies the skills, knowledge and behaviours required for particular jobs in the industry. VTOS units can be compiled to provide a curriculum for a range of education and training courses or programmes. VTOS DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGY VTOS was prepared by conducting a detailed functional analysis of hospitality and tourism jobs with a technical working group of industry experts to identify the key competencies needed for jobs for the tourism sector.
The functional analysis provides an accurate and detailed separation of the functions which have to be carried out in order to achieve the key purpose of the sector, occupation or area of work. A review of Vietnam tourism qualifications and occupational standards has been conducted via a national Training Needs Assessment (TNA). The outcome of the TNA identified areas of skills shortages and defined skills requirements and competencies that will be required of tourism professionals. Six occupational areas identified by ASEAN and the previous Vietnam Tourism Occupational Skills Standards were then used as a baseline to verify the findings of the functional analysis, and the competencies identified by the Technical Working Groups were then benchmarked against international standards to ensure any gaps were filled.
The VTOS were then developed using an international occupational standards approach which developed the contents of the standards as competencies in a format compatible with ASEAN. The units of competence include a unit title, the performance criteria, knowledge requirements, conditions of performance and variables, assessment criteria, assessment methods and references to ACCSTP. These competencies were then grouped into levels according to the ASEAN definition. VTOS units of competence were prepared by a team of international and Vietnamese subject experts.
The units were reviewed by Technical Working Groups comprising industry practitioners and vocational trainers from local institutions. Feedback from these consultations have been incorporated, revised into the standards, and a selection of units have been piloted with trainees to ensure the level and content was appropriate for the job areas identified. © Environmentally & Socially Responsible Tourism Capacity Development Programme funded by the EU 9 VIETNAM TOURISM OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS: ON-SITE TOUR GUIDING VTOS LEVELS AND QUALIFICATIONS VTOS consists of five qualification levels in six key occupational areas Level 5 (Advanced Diploma 5) Sophisticated, broad and specialised competence with senior management skills; Technical, creative, conceptual or managerial applications built around competencies of either a broad or specialised base and related to a broader organisational focus. Level 4 (Diploma 4) Specialised competence with managerial skills; Assumes a greater theoretical base and consists of specialised, technical or managerial competencies used to plan, carry out and evaluate work of self and/or team.
Level 3 (Certificate 3) Greater technical competence with supervisory skills; More sophisticated technical applications involving competencies requiring increased theoretical knowledge, applied in a non-routine environment and which may involve team leadership and increased responsibility for outcomes. Level 2 (Certificate 2) Broad range of skills in more varied context with more responsibilities; Skilled operator who applies a broad range of competencies within a more varied work context and capable for working in groups, working independently in some cases and taking a significant responsibility for their own work results and products. Level 1 (Certificate 1) Basic, routine skills in a defined context; A base operational qualification that encompasses a range of functions/activities requiring fundamental operational knowledge and limited practical skills in a defined context. © Environmentally & Socially Responsible Tourism Capacity Development Programme 10 funded by the EU VIETNAM TOURISM OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS: ON-SITE TOUR GUIDING VTOS COMPETENCY UNITS VTOS is structured in units of competence using a modular format so that it is flexible and easily adapted for different jobs, personnel and qualifications.
It is suitable for use in small to medium enterprises, large hotels, tour operator and travel companies, as well as for use in colleges and educational institutions. It can be used as the basis for curriculum in colleges. In addition, VTOS includes units on Responsible Tourism suitable for a range of jobs from all occupations. In this way, VTOS has been developed with the flexibility required for a fast-growing tourism industry as well as the breadth required for a range of technical and highly professional jobs at a number of levels from entry level up to Senior Management level.
VTOS consists of a range of units of competence that specify particular skills, knowledge and behaviours/attitudes necessary to fulfil the job requirements satisfactorily. Each job will consist of a blend of functional, core and generic units. • Functional (technical/professional) competencies are specific to roles or jobs within the tourism industry, and include the specific skills and knowledge (know-how) to perform effectively (e. food service, tour guiding etc.
• Core (common) competencies include the basic skills that most employees should possess (e., working with others, language and IT skills). These competencies are essential for anyone to do their job competently. • Generic (job related) competencies are those competencies that are common to a group of jobs. They often include general job competencies that are required in a number of occupations (e., health & safety), as well as job specific competencies that apply to certain occupations more than others (e., close the shift).
• Management competencies are the generic competencies for roles in an organization that involve managing, supervising or influencing the work of others in some way.