Yearbook

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  ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT COOPERATION IN AZERBAIJAN TOURISM INDUSTRY

  The aim of this article is to investigate the university-industry cooperation influence on further tourism personnel potential development in Azerbaijan. Although tourism in Azerbaijan continues to grow it faces considerable challenges in the field of personnel potential. It is well-known that tourism industry has criticised tourism education for ... The aim of this article is to investigate the university-industry cooperation influence on further tourism personnel potential development in Azerbaijan. Although tourism in Azerbaijan continues to grow it faces considerable challenges in the field of personnel potential. It is well-known that tourism industry has criticised tourism education for not adequately training people for employment in the industry. Unfortunately today the majority of workforce in the tourism industry of Azerbaijan consists of foreigners and this proves that there is a gap between tourism education and industry in Azerbaijan. If there is a gap between the outcomes expected in the tourism industry and tourism education, sustainable development is impossible to be achieved in that sphere. In order to understand the reasons leading to that gap, the article analyzes the infrastructure of the existing tourism educational establishments in Azerbaijan and recommends that cooperation between education and industry be created. The survey involves tourism industry and education as well as the attitudes of students and tourism employees towards such a partnership. Students who study at tourism-related establishments and employees who work in the tourism sector were surveyed and their opinions and needs regarding the collaboration were analysed. The survey was conducted for both university students and tourism firms in order to obtain data and make a comparable analysis. The study shows that limited research in Azerbaijan, however, has systematically explored what the tourism industry needs, and the extent to which tourism higher education meets these needs. Consequently, the graduates and tourism industry representatives suggested that there should be a close collaboration between the educators and the industries. Representatives of the survey made suggestions related to cooperation such as relations between industry representatives and tourism enterprises, which have to be consultative, exchange programmes have to be implemented, and independent tourism awards have to be established.

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  THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL ASPECTS OF USING INTERACTIVE METHODS IN THE CONTINUING EDUCATION AT D. A. TSENOV ACADEMY OF ECONOMICS

  Nowadays the importance of vocational education and training is becoming increasingly important for improving the quality of human resources and their successful realization on the labour market. The purpose of this paper is to study and analyze the conditions under which the interactive methods are applied in the continuing education at D. A. ... Nowadays the importance of vocational education and training is becoming increasingly important for improving the quality of human resources and their successful realization on the labour market. The purpose of this paper is to study and analyze the conditions under which the interactive methods are applied in the continuing education at D. A. Tsenov Academy of Economics, and to formulate recommendations for its improvement. To accomplish this goal, the following tasks are set: to present the framework and the main objectives of vocational education and training; to develop a survey methodology; to explore and critically analyze good practices of applying interactive teaching methods in continuing education in Bulgaria and abroad, and to approbate some of them in the Academy; to summarize and draw conclusions. The study proves the research thesis that the use of interactive teaching methods in the continuing education at D. A. Tsenov Academy of Economics makes the study material more accessible and understandable for the learners, and stimulates their activity and creativity. As a result, this leads to better consumer satisfaction, increased quality of the overall training process and high efficiency for the training organization. The study concludes that the interactive teaching methods should be intensively developed and creatively applied (according to the specific discipline, course, and subject matter), and become a top priority for lecturers, heads of centres and higher education institutions, as a whole.