Patterns of international tourism in Canada

Overview

Students retrieve data on the number of international tourists to Canada, analysing the seasonal patterns and long-term trends for each region in Canada.

Contributors: M. McLennan and P. Bertelsen, Queen's University, Faculty of Education

Objectives

• To introduce or review the components of a graph.
• To appreciate the effect of the seasons on the Canadian tourist industry.
• To analyse the trends in the number of international tourists to different regions.

Suggested grade levels and subject areas

Secondary
Business Studies, Economics, History, Geography.

Outcomes

Students will

• retrieve statistical data (CANSIM) from E-STAT; and
• explain the effect of seasonal patterns of tourism.

Vocabulary

Tourists — travellers who spend one or more nights in Canada.
Seasonal adjustment — a statistical adjustment to account for unusual seasonal factors, so that the data more accurately reflect underlying trends.

Materials

• Access to E-STAT. If computer access is limited, students can work from teacher-generated tables.
• Student worksheet 1
• Student worksheet 2

Classroom instructions

1. Review the components of a graph, introduce the concept of seasonal adjustment and explain the definition of tourists.
2. Students analyse the long-term trends in tourism and identify the strong seasonal patterns in Student worksheet 1.
3. Discuss the results of Student worksheet 1 and introduce Student worksheet 2 by asking students to speculate on the services required by tourists.
4. Assign groups of students to retrieve data for the provinces and territories.

Evaluation

• Grade answers to questions for completeness.

Enrichment

• Compare tourism data with climatic profiles for each region.
• Prepare a business plan for a tourism-related service or facility.

Please e-mail comments or examples of how you used this exercise in your class.

Recommend this page!