Subject Overview

Tourism at high school is a vocational course that is intended to give learners a broad spectrum understanding of the tourism industry and an introduction to a career in the industry. For this reason we pay close attention to organisational skills, behaviour and work ethic. By the end of Matric learners should have a good idea of proper office etiquette and of the responsibilities of getting work done. It is considered a practical subject as we learn by doing. Projects and research assignments are an important part of course. We concentrate on the South African tourism industry, its components and how they work together as well as study the aspects that make South Africa unique. We will also touch on international tourism markets and attractions.

Grade 11 Tourism
SADC Fair
At the beginning of this year I took over the Tourism department which has been an interesting and challenging undertaking. I have had the pleasure of working with a dynamic group of learners who have responded enthusiastically to a range of activities and tasks. As part of our study on global events and Southern Africa, learners were asked to put together a Southern African Development Community (SADC) trade fair to showcase the tourism potential in our region. In small groups they randomly chose a country and set about preparing a display table and fact sheet for their allocated country. The trade fair was held in the tourism class and teachers and learners were invited. After much activity and organising all of the tables were ready and we had our first visitors. The class was awash with colour and a wide variety of display items. Energy and atmosphere was completed with the rhythm of drums. Teachers and learners who visited us took a genuine interest in the countries and hopefully learnt something about our neighbours. Thank you to everyone who visited and participated to make this a fun and interesting learning event.


Grade 12 Tourism
De Wildt Cheetah & Wildlife Centre And Maropeng
By Jennavieve Cromie

On Friday the 20th of July Grade 12 Travel & Tourism learners had an early start from school and headed off to North West Province and a full day itinerary. First stop was De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife centre where we were introduced to a variety of animals. Starting with Jedi the Anatolian sheep dog and including normally coloured as well as an albino honey badger. From there we went onto one of the many cheetah enclosures and had opportunity to ask questions and learn about these beautiful animals. In addition to huge conservation and breeding success with cheetah, De Wildt has managed to breed wild Dog also known as Cape Hunting Dogs or painted wolves. The pack was excited to see us as they knew that a snack of whole chickens was waiting for them. Other animals that we learnt about were the African Wild Cat, Caracal as well as a variety of vultures. We were surprised and interested to discover how important the vultures are to the ecosystem. At the end of the tour we had an opportunity to touch and have a photo taken with Byron, who is and ambassador cheetah, which was exciting. Everyone was asked to write a poem about their visit and we were complimented on the quality of our writing. Our second destination was Maropeng in the Cradle of Humankind. The first thing that greeted us was a sign “beware of the snakes” – everyone jumped off the grass very quickly. Our tour guide gave us a brief history of evolution and where Mrs. Ples was found. Then we took off on our tour which started with the four elements of water, fire, earth and wind after which we went of a boat ride to experience all of these elements. After the boat ride we moved into a large room where there were a variety of displays that we could look at, touch & listen to. I enjoyed the dodo telling his story through a telephone. Our guide showed us how caves and the continents were formed. Then we had time to experiment with electricity and use our senses to experience all of the displays. There was so much to see and do. The whole day was a fun filled adventure and experience. Most of the learners fell asleep on the bus on the way home. Once we arrived at school we were all verbal chatter boxes about the trip.




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