Abstract

A short paper outlining personal experiences of how a recently completed PhD has influenced teaching in tourism in Higher Education. The paper outlines understanding of research-informed teaching as a concept and then uses the example of personal experiences of using research material gathered during the PhD for teaching purposes. It considers the various applications of research beyond personal study. PhD research does not just add to subject-based knowledge but also informs the way in which we, for example, structure lectures, organise seminars or interpret research methods. This is referred to by Griffiths (2004) as research-led and research-oriented teaching. Research can also act as the “bridge” into the study and teaching of tourism and in this case, the author’s background is not in tourism specifically, but geography, planning and environmental management. This is also discussed in the context of the wider study of tourism as an academic discipline.