The Development of the Competency of “Cultural Awareness and Expressions” Using Movie-Induced Tourism as a Didactic Resource

Abstract

Competence in “Cultural awareness and expressions” requires very stimulating activities for its development, and cinema can be used as an interesting enhancer of educational action. The educational potential of the so-called movie-induced tourism, which has increased in recent years thanks to the impact of major productions such as The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars or Game of Thrones, could bring extra motivation when developing any competency including the aforementioned one. This article aims to suggest some keys on film tourism as a didactic resource and how destinations might capitalize on it through entrepreneurship. In doing so, educational establishments located within film destinations can carry out projects in this sense to work on the competence of “Cultural awareness and expressions”. Thus, an example of didactic programming will be offered based on the creation of new tourist businesses to take advantage of Lord of the Rings saga filming in San Juan de Gaztelugatxe (Vizcaya, Basque Country, Spain).

1. Introduction

The Spanish education legislation Ley Orgánica 2/2006, de 3 de mayo, de Educación [1] included for the first time in the Spanish education system the development of basic competencies to work at the primary, secondary and baccalaureate levels, following the recommendations of the OECD’s “Definition and Selection of Competencies” project [2]. Subsequently, “Ley Orgánica 8/2013, de 9 de diciembre, para la mejora de la calidad educativa” [3] reformulated the basic competencies, reducing their numbers from eight to seven, leaving the following remaining: Linguistic communication; Mathematical competency and basic competencies in science and technology; Digital competency; Learning to learn; Social and civic competencies; Sense of initiative and entrepreneurship; and Cultural awareness and expressions. More specifically, an approach on how to develop this last competency is addressed in the article. “Cultural awareness and expressions” is a key competency closely related to all cultural manifestations, including the seventh art.

Since its birth at the end of the 19th century, cinema has been used as a didactic tool to reinforce content, to boost creativity or to introduce students to audio-visuals, among other aspects [4]. Thus, it becomes a magnificent tool for working on a competency that is so closely related to visual and cultural manifestations. If we add tourism to these educational options offered by cinema, the teaching–learning process is enriched and provides great alternatives for teachers and students to focus on this competency.

For this reason, in this academic article we present the possibilities of using this new aspect of tourism, based on the use of the large film productions that have been shot in certain places, as a didactic-creative resource in order to make the most of it within the school environment.

To achieve this, the objectives of this article are defined, followed by a theoretical foundation in which we will describe what the competency of “Cultural awareness and expressions” consists of and how it might be developed. This article also refers to movie-induced tourism, its growth in recent years and how it can be used in education to work on competencies. Finally, a proposal of a didactic programme is presented in which the competency of “Cultural awareness and expressions” is addressed through movie-induced tourism.

2. Objectives

The main objective of this work is to expose the didactic-creative possibilities of movie-induced tourism to work on “Cultural awareness and expressions”. Thus, this main objective can be broken down into the following objectives that are more specific:

• − To define the competency of “Cultural Awareness and expressions” and how it might be developed.
• − To situate the concept of movie-induced tourism from different perspectives.
• − To use film tourism for didactic purposes through the creation of a didactic programme to work on the competency of “Cultural Awareness and expressions”.

3. Methodology

The methodology is based on the analysis of experiences and the evaluation of training programmes. Bibliographic research is used in order to establish a state-of-the-art didactic resource using both film tourism and cinema. From this point, the information is used to articulate a didactic programme contributing to work on the competency of “Cultural awareness and expressions” through film tourism.

The research questions for the article are as follows:

• Is movie-induced tourism valued in the academic field?
• Can movie-induced tourism be a good resource for working on competencies in education?
• Are there any educational experiences in which movie-induced tourism has been used?

4. Theoretical Background

4.1. The Competency of “Cultural Awareness and Expressions”

According to the Spanish educational legislation “Orden ECD/65/2015, de 21 de enero” describing the relationships between the competencies, the contents and evaluation criteria of primary education, compulsory secondary education and baccalaureate education, the competency of “Cultural awareness and expressions” implies knowing, understanding, appreciating and valuing, with a critical spirit and an open and respectful attitude, different cultural and artistic manifestations, using them as a source of personal enrichment and enjoyment and considering them as part of the wealth and heritage of peoples [5]. In addition, this competency also incorporates an expressive component referring to one’s own aesthetic and creative capacity and to the mastery of those skills related to the different artistic and cultural codes, using them as a means of communication and personal expression. It also implies showing interest in participating in cultural life and in contributing to conservations of cultural and artistic heritage, both of your own community and of other communities [5].

Therefore, this competency entails cultural manifestation development contributing to the preservation of our history and heritage. Moreover, authors such as Sánchez Arjona et al. [6] work on this competency to educate in values; specifically, they carried out a project to stop the rejection of Arab descent students after the Islamist attacks in Paris. On the other hand, Naranjo López [7] used the website of the Prado Museum in Madrid to develop this competency. Through the contribution of foreign travelers, Salido and Salido [8] used travel literature to analyse and present its didactic possibilities for working on the competency of “Cultural awareness and expressions”. Moreover, Rodríguez Torres [9] talks about the need to propose new meanings and approaches when working on the competency in cultural awareness and expression in teacher training.

Therefore, the competency of “Cultural awareness and expressions” is a key and necessary competence to develop in children and adolescents. Consequently, film tourism, due to its attractiveness for the new generations, contributes to the development of this competency from a motivating and creative approach.

4.2. Movie-Induced Tourism

The new tourism trend based on visiting places or locations where a cult series or film was shot has been called “movie-induced tourism” [10]. González Conde et al. [11] define this term as the tourism that follows the success of a film or series in the place where it was filmed. This typology arose at the end of the 20th century due to people’s interest in finding out where their favourite film was shot. “Movie-induced tourism” as an emerging tourism product should be understood as a typology of popular cultural tourism, as it responds to a phenomenon usually caused by the commercial success of films or series [12].

The bidirectional relationships between landscapes, locations, film and tourism have been addressed from different academic disciplines [13]. Rodríguez Campo et al. [14] include movie-induced tourism as an emerging typology of cultural tourism, which becomes an important factor in achieving good online reviews of tourism services and destination evaluation [15].

Busby and Klug [16] point out a series of types and characteristics that define movie-induced tourism: (a) Film location as a tourism attraction on its own right. On the one hand, there are places not considered as tourist destinations until they were seen on screen, while others were already perceived as such. (b) Movie-induced tourism as part of a mainstream holiday. Some tourists will visit the place that appears on TV or in the cinema or book a film tour while on holiday, without prior knowledge of the place. (c) Movie-induced tourism, which occurs as the sole and main purpose outside of special interests. This is the booking of a holiday to a specific destination as a direct result of screening. (d) Movie-induced tourism packages developed by the private sector: Bus companies and tour operators build specific packages. Icons serving on movie-induced tourism considered by tourists as key attractions of their visits might be natural scenery, historical background, actors, symbolic content and human relationships. (e) Movie-induced tourism at locations where filming is believed to have taken place. Visitors come to the locations even if the film depicts a different real-life setting. (f) Movie-induced tourism as part of the romantic gaze. Romantic tourists tend to focus on places that have been constructed and reinforced by television and film in solitude and privacy, establishing a semi-spiritual relationship with the place being shown. (g) Movie-induced tourism for reasons of pilgrimage, nostalgia and escape. This type of tourism takes the visitor away from the mundane reality of everyday life. The movie sites of films such as Field of Dreams (1989) and Steel Magnolias (1989) became pilgrimage sites in their own right.

Many authors have been studying this phenomenon in recent years, praising the possibilities from different countries [17,18]. In this sense, Pereira and Moraes [19] conducted interesting research with film students and the vision offered by Brazilian national cinema about the northwest region of the country and its repercussions on tourism. Figueira et al. [20] observed something similar with the Portuguese region of Alentejo. Soares Da Mata Nunes [21] focused on analysing the influence of cinema and television on the positioning and image of some places and to what extent they contribute to choose a tourist destination [22]. Millán et al. [23] carried out a study to evaluate the effects of a film route based on the Spanish movie Amanece, que no es poco to analyse the benefits both in terms of the number of visitors and the economic aspect.

Another example of the economic repercussions of a film for a locality is shown by Torres-Romay et al. [24] with the case study of the small Cantabrian town of Comillas, where the film Primos (Sánchez Arévalo, 2011), a Spanish feature film with the highest revenue in the year of its release, is mostly located. Aersten [25] pointed out that by analysing a specific film text, different narrative strategies can be established through which it acquires the function of a promotional text for a specific tourist destination. In the case of his research, it was the city of Barcelona through Woody Allen’s film Vicky, Cristina, Barcelona (2008).

With respect to film festivals, they also attract a large amount of tourism to the localities hosting them. Thus, Flores Ruiz [26] analysed the case of the Huelva Ibero-American Film Festival, concluding that the economic benefits of organising this event outweigh the costs.

Notwithstanding, other terms related to movie-induced tourism have also emerged, such as “city placement”. This refers to the placement of cities, regions, monuments, tourist sites and accommodation and catering businesses in an audiovisual production in exchange for help in the funding, filming or promotion of the film, and with a view to promoting tourism, improving its image abroad or the economic benefits that any filming entails [27].

Cádiz is also a highly visited city for its culture and beaches, but also as a film location, as Grande-López [28] points out. To conclude this overview of the studies carried out on film tourism, we will look at two experiences that focus on the Andalusian town of Osuna and the impact of filming the Game of Thrones series. On the one hand, Seño Asencio [29] pointed out the growth that a town such as Osuna, which had already been a filming location for other films and series, noticed an increase in tourist arrivals after filming the HBO blockbuster. It is remarkable to point out that previous productions did not reach the same effect. Ramos Lobo and Pedregal Mateos [30] used big data to analyse the tourist trend generated by the announcement in 2014 that Osuna would be one of the filming destinations for Game of Thrones. They probed that the trend of Google searches for terms related to the town and the filming of the series led to an increase in tourist visits to this Andalusian town.

Film tourism is booming thanks to the love of series and blockbusters. Teenagers and children feel identified with them and, therefore, it can become a very motivating resource to work in education and, specifically, to work on “Cultural awareness and expressions”.

4.3. Movie-Induced Tourism and Competency Education

After defining the competency of “Cultural awareness and expressions” and introducing movie-induced tourism trend, we focus on the combination of both aspects to point out the didactic-creative possibilities that movie-induced tourism can offer to work in education.

It should be mentioned that tourism and education have a consolidated relationship [31,32,33]. It is also important to highlight the need for teachers, who are going to implement these experiences, to have a highly developed digital competence [34,35].

In this sense, we can start from previous experiences such as those already mentioned, where the competency was developed from different approaches [6,7,8]. Nevertheless, in this article we specifically focus on how to develop competencies through movie-induced tourism.

Although there are few previous experiences found in literature, we highlight the contribution of Pérez García [4] based on the repercussions that Game of Thrones had in the town of Osuna to develop an educational activity for the fourth year of Compulsory Secondary Education. It had the approach of an Integrated Didactic Unit entitled “Game of Thrones” based on the creation of businesses focus on monetizing film tourism in Osuna. In doing so, the areas of “Initiation to Entrepreneurship and Business Activity”, “Plastic, Visual and Audiovisual Education” and “Economics” were integrated in a holistic approach within the activity.

Fernández Pérez [36] researched the curious case of Júzcar, “the Smurf village”, a town in Malaga that used the attraction of the children’s series “The Smurfs” to paint the whole town blue and turn it into a large theme park dedicated to these characters. Many educational establishments made experiences in this town through film tourism.

Therefore, movie-induced tourism can be an excellent didactic tool for working on educational skills due to its visual power, its up-to-date nature, its global approach, its capacity to confront the past and the future or its relationship with one of the main hobbies of children and adolescents. All these reasons explain why using active methodologies makes it much more motivating and attractive for students.

Finally, we make a proposal for a didactic programme serving as a practical example to develop “Cultural awareness and expressions” through movie-induced tourism.

5. Proposal for a Didactic Project The Lord of the Rings

One of the objectives in this article was sharing a proposal for a didactic project based on the development of the competency of “Cultural awareness and expressions” through activities related to film tourism. Firstly, a definition of a didactic programme is presented. Classroom planning is the third and last step within the curricular concretion and refers to the planning of the didactic action throughout the school year addressing the following curricular aspects: “what to teach”, “how to teach” and “what, when and how to evaluate”. It must be adapted to the group of students and the academic year. Therefore, it refers to the annual planning that the teacher carries out at the beginning of the academic year to establish the fundamental aspects of the teaching–learning process. Thus, his or her didactic action will be based respecting the academic year particularities in which he or she is teaching.

In cases where the teacher bases his or her planning and classroom action based on a textbook for each subject area, it is the textbook (and the publisher) which determines the guidelines for classroom planning. The opposite situation arises when the teacher himself/herself draws up his/her own lesson plan. In this case, regardless of the option chosen for planning (whether didactic units, projects, etc.), the planning will be carried out according to the needs and characteristics of the students in his or her group. Classroom planning brings together the set of integrated teaching units, work projects, research projects, etc., designed by a specific teacher. Therefore, the integrated teaching unit, work project or research project will be the specific element of classroom planning for a given time and subject sequence. The different curricular elements will be planned according to the central task of the chosen planning unit in order to achieve the assessment criteria through the development of content and the competencies achievements. The role of the assessment criteria is fundamental in the programming in order to evaluate the degree of acquisition of the key competencies and the objectives achievement. Based on them, the assessment indicators are set.

This project has not yet been carried out, so we have no results. Therefore, what is presented below is a proposal based on the experience of many years working under the PBL (Project Based Learning) methodology. We have searched for other similar projects, in order to establish comparisons, but we have only found the research by Pérez García [4]. We have found works on the use of film as a resource for working on history and heritage, including Muñoz García and Jiménez Pablo [37], Novillo [38] and an interesting experience on archaeology and heritage seen from the comic [39].

The programme presented is entitled “The Lord of the Rings” and is aimed at Secondary Education. Specifically, it will be carried out in the fourth year of Compulsory Secondary Education in a public secondary school in the town of San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, in Vizcaya, Basque Country. The school has three lines in Secondary Education with a total of 60 students who will carry out the project. The programme will consist of the creation of a tourist company to take advantage of the success of J.R.R. Tolkien’s saga in this town, where some scenes of the film were shot.

In this sense, the selection of assessment criteria will be based on official education legislation [40]. This legislation proposes designing a business project in the classroom describing the internal characteristics and its relationship with the environment as well as its social function, identifying the structuring elements and its logistics network such as suppliers, customers, production, storage and marketing systems. Students need to define how production is carried out and specific marketing activities for the company must be defined through applying communication and teamwork techniques. They also need to describe the different types of companies and the legal forms of companies, their capital requirements and the legal responsibilities of their owners and managers as well as the interrelationships of companies with other stakeholders. Other tasks would require analysing the main characteristics of the production process; making creative compositions from codes used in each audiovisual language, showing interest in the technological advances linked to these languages; identifying the different elements making up audio-visual basic narrative and expressive structure and multimedia language; correctly describing the necessary steps for the production of an audio-visual message; and valuing teamwork.

With regard to the elements to be tackled in this programme, the following would be considered: (a) the idea of the company project; (b) the environment; (c) the social role of the company; (d) the elements and structure of the company; (e) the business plan; (f) the commercial and marketing structure; (g) the aid and support for the creation of companies; (h) the types of companies, legal forms, functions and objectives; (i) the production process and production factors; (j) sources of funding; (k) income, costs and profits; and (l) the tax obligations of companies.

Finally, learning standards to be assessed include the following criteria:

(a)

business project proposal opportunity and relevance;

(b)

the relationship of the business project with its sector, its organisational structure and the functions of each department identifying the working procedures in the development of the productive or commercial process;

(c)

creating materials for the dissemination and advertising the company project products and/or services, including an online communication plan and social networks applying marketing principles;

(d)

explaining the possibilities of the day-to-day financing of companies, differentiating between external and internal, short- and long-term financing, as well as the company’s running costs;

(e)

distinguishing the different legal forms of companies and relating them to the capital requirements for their constitutional and legal responsibilities for each type;

(f)

assessing the most appropriate legal forms of companies in each case according to the specific characteristics applying the reasoning on the classification of companies;

(g)

identifying the different types of companies and entrepreneurs operating in their environment as well as the way of interrelating with stakeholders considering social and environmental effects;

(h)

producing digital images using different computer drawing programmes;

(i)

designing advertising using the different elements of the graphic-plastic language;

(j)

following the outline of the creation process.

The main key competencies defined in the Spanish educational legislation [5] that could be acquired in this work project are: “Cultural awareness and expressions”, “Linguistic communication”, “Social and civic competencies”, “Digital competency” and “Sense of initiative and entrepreneurship”.

Regarding the tasks to work on these curricular aspects, a final project could be proposed related to making a promotional video to increase tourism in the town of San Juan de Gaztelugatxe aiming to promote the company created by the students.

Considering the specific learning activities, they will all be included in a gamified narrative such as The Lord of the Rings saga as main plot. This will be highly motivating, since, as Lauret and Bayram-Jacobs [41] point out, new methods need to be introduced to engage learners in the aftermath of the pandemic. The outcome to be achieved includes devising a tourism promotion strategy; studying the tourism potential of the town of San Juan de Gaztelugatxe; structuring market studies; scriptwriting, recording and editing audiovisual outcomes; and critical analyses of advertisements. This would also take advantage of the use of ICT to work on tourism [42].

Finally, the didactic programme would end with the evaluation carried out by means of an analytical rubric including all the evaluation criteria previously mentioned. In addition, a continuous evaluation approach will be apply taking advantage of gamification including several rewards, rankings and badges throughout the project.

6. Conclusions

Since the enactment of the latest legislation in 2015 [5], the competencies development approach has been consolidated in the Spanish education system following OECD recommendations. The competency of “Cultural awareness and expressions” has a certain complexity when it comes to being tackled within the class as it requires active, attractive and motivating methodologies for students to comprehensively develop it. This competency focusses on the appreciation of culture, history and traditions; consequently, it finds a great didactic resource in cultural tourism. Moreover, the large development of film tourism attracts many tourists including young people and teenagers. Thus, we have combined successful elements in a useful educational tool to develop this competence. The main objective of this article was to expose the didactic-creative possibilities of film tourism to work on this competency considering several perspectives [6,7,8,9]. The concept of film tourism has also been situated from the vision of different authors [11,12,16,19,20]. Finally, the design of a didactic programme to work on the competency of “Cultural awareness and expressions” was presented based on Pérez García’s [4] approach.

Thus, the article proposed the articulation of a didactic programme considering different forms such us integrated teaching units, work projects and integrated tasks. In doing so, students might find motivation during the learning process encouraging audio-visual project outcomes and entrepreneurship from a constructivist perspective.

Regarding whether film tourism is valued in academia, it has been seen throughout this article that more and more articles are highlighting this field [12,15,17,18,28].

We also questioned whether film tourism could be a good resource for working on skills in education. The design and implementation of the educational project on The Lord of the Rings shows that it can be a very positive resource due to its didactic-creative potential. Finally, we investigated whether there are many projects of this type, and just a few were found, increasing usefulness of our contribution.

The implementation of educational programmes related to film tourism in schools within destinations offering well-known filming sites will help students to learn more about their own history and culture as well as to value and respect their heritage. It will also contribute to the promotion of their municipalities from the creation of audio-visual outcomes while achieving higher competency in “Cultural awareness and expressions”.

The article has explored the great didactic and creative possibilities of using film tourism in the educational sphere to develop competencies. Moreover, proposals for the future related to the subject have also arisen. Considering the great negative impact that tourism sector has suffered due to the pandemic, the creation of new businesses focusing on enhancing film tourism for educational purposes may be one additional leverage to face the future economic development.