Harnessing a Nation’s linguistic competence

Abstract

This paper reports the findings of a research project aimed to (a) identify the foreign language and cross-cultural skill needs of workers in the tourism and hospitality industry in Australia, and to (b) develop foreign language competencies for use in industry training packages. A representative sample of work sites was visited to develop a detailed profile of the language and cross-cultural skills/levels and job requirements. The resulting competency standards were subsequently included in the industry training packages (Tourism Training Australia, 2002). This paper gives empirical evidence for the need for foreign language skills in the industry and gives account of the methodology used for identifying these needs and translating them into foreign language competencies. The outcomes of this research, the competency standards, bear twofold significance. On the one hand, they provide a tool for recognising the existing linguistic and cultural skills of those Australians who work in the industry (these are mainly Australians from non-English speaking background, NESB), on the other hand they provide a tool for motivating foreign language learning by those who seek a career in the industry, by giving recognition for their foreign language skills as part of the wider training program. This research was commissioned by Tourism Training Australia, Sydney and funded by the Department of Industry, Science & Resources.