On December 22, 2016, a hotel English training for employees working in family inns operating in the area of Zhangjiajie UNESCO Global Geopark was held in Zhangjiajie State Guest Hotel, which is located in the center of the geopark. The training was attended by employees from 42 family inns and staffs of the office of the Zhangjiajie UNESCO Global Geopark Administrative Committee.
This specialized hotel English training for family inn employees was co-organized by the Office of Zhangjiajie UNESCO Global Geopark Administrative Committee, the Joint Research Center for Zhangjiajie Geomorphology (JRCZG), the People¡¯s Government of Wulingyuan District, and the Geopark Management Office of Zhangjiajie City. The purpose of this training is to implement UNESCO¡¯s requirement for global geoparks on focusing on the economic and ecological sustainability of local communities around global geoparks and allowing local communities to share and benefit from the development of global geoparks.
In recent years, with the tourism growth in Zhangjiajie UNESCO Global Geopark, the number of foreign tourists increases annually and family inns in the geopark has been undergoing fast expansion. Yet due to the language barrier, a lot of inconveniences have been encountered during receiving foreign tourists. In order to cater to the need of family inns, it is of great urgency to improve their employees¡¯ oral English.
During the training, a senior IELTS speaking teacher from Changsha New Oriental Training School conducted detailed step-by-step teaching through speaking practice in groups, role assignment and real-scenario reception simulation, covering everyday conversation needed from the arrival to departure of foreign tourists. In addition, the staff of the Joint Research Center for Zhangjiajie Geomorphology also presented popularized scientific knowledge on landscape evolution of Zhangjiajie UNESCO Global Geoparks and introduced related materials and posters in a temporary exhibition area so as to deepen the attendees¡¯ knowledge on the development of global geoparks and to arouse their consciousness on geoheritage protection.