Stupid Textbooks
This textbook I am using for my Intro to Hospitality class is ridiculously out of date. The authors seem to have no idea that the 21st century has in fact arrived, as the information is only current up to 1999. Five or six years have gone by without them updating the information in their book. Our class has well noted this, but it was never so apparent as in the chapter we're on now, on the tourism industry. We have to write our own thoughts on each chapter that we read on index cards, which the teacher calls "focus cards." Here's what I wrote on my focus card for this chapter:
"When I started reading this chapter, I thought, 'I'm going to refrain from making any comments about this book being out of date and Sept. 11, because I'm sure that EVERYONE will want to comment on that.' However, as I read, I realized what a HUGE injustice it was to the students reading this text to not update their book sometime during the last 3 1/2 years they've had. What they are describing in travel trends through the first decade of the 21st century is a fantasy world that no longer exists, without taking into account this world-changing event that altered the face of tourism as we know it. These writers can be called nothing short of negligent as far as this section is concerned, and reading the book now seems to be a waste of time."
The book shows predictions of airline travel trends up to 2010, which now seem to be rendered bogus without taking the damage that Sept. 11 caused into account. Nothing is said about security or terrorism anywhere and how it now affects how people travel. I just wonder if we'll actually be tested on this garbage.
Well, anyways. End rant. Time to stop thinking about school for now and go watch my new DVD, "Finding Neverland." Yay.
Labels: school
posted by Kristi at 11:20 PM
9 Comments:
I can't believe that your instructor wouldn't have some sort of contigency plan concerning this chapter. That seems like total bullshit to me. I'd place just as much blame with your instructor if he/she isn't preparing you all like he/she should...
That being said, you know how I told you that I was going to get to watch "The Incredibles" AND "Finding Neverland" tonight?? Yeah, that didn't happen. Dammit. So it looks like I'll probably get to watch those with you after all. :) And I'm dying to show Panama Jackass the easter egg with Jack Jack, but since he hasn't seen the movie, I don't want to spoil anything for him. So I didn't even get to see that.
On the flip side...don't you think it's at least a little valuable? I mean, everyone knows that 9/11 really impacted tourism. HOWEVER, most of us don't see it from the industry point of view. We don't know what people were forecasting for the industry 6 years ago. I think that - even though this is an outdated text - it does provide some invaluable information regarding the way things "ought" to have been...
Jeremy - I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for a fair review of a Johnny Depp movie from Kristi. Or Tracie. Or me, for that matter. However, I think this one was a critical success. Rotten Tomatoes gave it an 84% FRESH rating...
And yeah, I'm definitely jonesing for an "Incredibles" fix...geez.
Tanya: I see your point, but what good is it to teach a group of students going into the industry about the way things "ought" to have been? There is no contingency plan for this chapter, and we are going to be tested over these bogus predictions, as the teacher said today. She said she'd look into getting a new updated book for the next group of students that take the class, but what good does that do us? This book isn't really good for anything other than going in a time capsule.
Steph: I'm really glad you didn't watch "Finding Neverland" with Larry, because now that I've seen it again, I can watch it with you and WARN you of the clown scene. Yes, there's a clown scene. But now I know when to tell you not to look. :)
Jeremy: It's a really cute movie, especially if you have a fondness for children. Although you may not be as drawn to it as the female population, for obvious reasons. :)
Well, "ought" was a bad choice of words. I think that at the very least, perhaps it's good for a snapshot of the direction the industry was headed in, what they saw as important, and (now that we live in a post-9/11 society): perhaps something to learn from along the way.
But like you said - probably best suited for a time capsule. :)
Yeah, I agree that it might have been good as a little sidenote, like "BTW, this is how things WOULD'VE been had 9/11 not happened," and then compared it against the reality of the present time. That would've been cool. But not when the reality is the part that's lacking...
Wow Kristi...I totally agree with everything you have said. Did you or anyone else bring this up to the teacher in class? What's an even bigger crime is the fact that the book probably cost $150 or something. There's no need for you to study predictions of the industry that were made 7 years ago and which have since been proven wrong. It's not like you are study the History of the Travel industry or the Deductive Science of travel where hypotheses are made in a perfect world. Having said all that, have all of the trends been completely reversed or affected by 9/11 or is any of it still of value?
-Ryan C.
And now for something random.
What do Swedish Pirates themselves have to say? (by AtariAmarok on Tuesday March 22, @04:39PM)
I veell seenk yuoor sheep und ploonder yuoor buuty und peellege-a yuoor vumee. Avast, yuoor feelleges und buets veell feer. Hurty flurty schnipp schnipp! Arrrghh. I vurk vurk vurk und em keelhaul zee scuoorge-a ooff zee ooceuns. Um gesh dee vork vork vork!
No, this really doesn't have anything to do with anything.
Ryan: Well, sort of. They said the global standard of living is rising, enabling people to travel more, and it seemed to allude that the trend was to visit more exotic destinations. Plus, it said that travel to the US from other countries was increasing. Now, since 9/11, less people have been wanting to visit the US, the economy took a huge hit with that event and probably affected the world as well, and US travelers have been wanting to stay closer to home (they've even called this trend "cocooning," meaning people want to do everything at home or close to home). Caribbean cruises made a faster comeback than travel to overseas nations, because it's not that far. So basically, I don't trust anything the book says in terms of travel trends. And who knows if airline travel is really going to reach the trillion mark by the year 2010 like the book predicts. And yeah, the book was like $100 or something. Argh.
Craig: You're right, that has nothing to do with anything, but that's pretty damn funny! :)
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