ABSTRACT
Within the field of tourism and hospitality education, there is a current discussion on promoting a curriculum that aims to promote a balance between satisfying the demands of business and those of wider society (e.g. Dredge et al., 2012; Tribe, 2002). Accordingly, tourism students should develop knowledge and competencies that enable them to work in the tourism industry while at the same time acknowledging their role in constructing a better tourism world (Fidgeon, 2010; Tribe, 2002). The purpose of the curriculum is not only to train students for the labour market, but to equip them with qualities such as breadth of disciplinary knowledge; the ability to distinguish among contested ideologies; an appreciation of the dialogue between knowledge and values; and an ability to connect ideas and information (Dredge et al., 2012: 2156). This means that curriculum development and delivery is not simply about including critical tourism topics such as social equality, justice, ethics and sustainability, but using these topics to rethink our notions of tourism and hospitality education, learning and our professional identities (cf. Cunliffe, 2002).
