Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences , 9(34) Special 2015, Pages: 18-21 ISSN:1991-8178 Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences Journal home page: www.ajbasweb.com Critical Thinking Skills and Emotional Intelligence of Tourism Students in Manila Philippines 1Dr. Ralph A. Sabio, 2Mr. Jefferson De Roxas, 3Ms. Lotus N. Joson 1Chairperson, Business Management Department, School of Business, St. Scholastica’s College, Leon Guinto St.,Malate, Manila, 1011 Philippines, 2Chairperson – Department of Tourism Management, Institute of Tourism and Hospitality Management, University of the City of Manila (Pama ntasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila), Intramuros, Manila, Philippines 1011 3Chairperson – Department of Hospitality Management, Institute of Tourism and Hospitality Management, University of the City of Manila (Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila), Intramuros, Manila, Philippines 1011 ARTICLE INFO A B S T R A C T Article history: The paper is aimed at knowing the critical thinking skills and emotional intelligence of Received 3 October 2015 selected tourism students in Manila, Philippines. The findings of the study revealed that Accepted 10 October 2015 the respondents generally have high critical thinking skills and high level of em otional Published Online 13 November 2015 quotient. Based on the findings it can be infer that the students of the University of the City of Manila could be highly employable given the results of the study. Keywords: career, career plans, tourism, guidance © 2015 AENSI Publisher All rights reserved . ToCite ThisArticle: Dr. Ralph A. Sabio, Mr. Jefferson De Roxas,. Lotus N. Joson ., Critical Thinking Skills and Emotional Intelligence of Tourism Students in Manila Philippines. Aust. J. Basic & Appl. Sci., 9(34): 18-21, 2015 INTRODUCTION It is envisioned t o produce dynamic , morally & spiritually upright, productive professionals & Opening its doors in June 2001, the College of entrepreneurs; an industry shall preserve the cultural Tourism, Hotel and Travel Industry Management heritage and the people’s core values & traditions, in (CTHTIM) of the University of the City of Manila making every Filipino an effective ambassador of (Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila ) was originally goodwill. a department under the then-College of Arts and A totally service oriented College of Tourism, Sciences. It had an initial population of one hundred Hotel and Travel Industry Management dedicated to and sixteen (116) students; however, because of the quality education with a progressive program very strict retention policy of the college, only sensitive to the demands of world tourism. Further, seventy-nine (79) students are left out of the pioneer the program aims to achieve the following batch. Becoming immensely popular and appealing, objectives: CTHTIM’s population has grown through the years. 1. To provide the students with a knowledge The college aims to train students and equip concepts, principles, philosophies and practices them with skills to be employed in the tourism, hotel, applied to the travel and hospitality industry. and travel industry or to put up their own tourism 2. To inculcate among students the establishments. It also provides the students appreciation and the importanc e of the industry and knowledge in Informati on and Communication the vital role of the hotel and hospitality sector in Technology (ICT), environmental awareness, and the terms of contribution to economic, socio -cultural and business industry. What is most emphasized is environmental well-being of local, national and showcasing the cultural and tourist spots while global communities; appreciating the diversity brought about by 3. To develop the students proper perspective international travel. and attitude re quire in this industry, a dynamic, The main unique aspect of this course is the multi-disciplinary and multi-stakeholder system in college’s commitment to producing professionals the context of development and growth, global who are to be employed for a managerial position competetiveness and the ever changing environment, with emphasis on character and personality. As a thus enabling them to contribute to sustainable graduate of CTHTIM, the individual is not only tourism development in th e practice of their chosen professional and skilled in the three dis ciplines but career; morally and spiritually upright as well. Corresponding Author: Dr. Ralph A. Sabio, St. Scholastica’s College Manila, Leon Guinto St., Malate Manila, Philippines 1011. Mobile: (632) 917 -8860066; E-mail: [email protected] 19 Dr. Ralph A. Sabio et al , 2015 Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, 9(34) Special 2015, Pages: 18-21 4. To acquire the interrelated foundation of making room for new technologies and innovations, knowledge, skills and exposure through clustered these qualities may become increasingly important. general and professional courses in the specialized Considering critical thinking skills as a variable field of hotel and hospitality management. in this research draws basis from the studies of 5. To ensure student’s career path in the future Benson and Curtis et. Al. Specifically, Benson in with supervisory and managerial education and skills 1983 made a summary of the skills needed by the imbibed through the courses during their junior and student entering different professions. In his study, a senior years and; survey was made among 25 studies in business 6. To inculcate and nurture among our students journals. Results revealed the following: listening, the true “Filipino Brand of Service” that will make written communication, oral communication, PLM-CTHTIM the pioneer among academic motivation/persuasion, interpersonal skills, institutions in the country. informational interviewing, critical thinking skills This study is made to find out the critical and group problem solving. In the study of Curtis et. thinking skills of student and their level of emotional al. (1989) entitled: “Skills Needed to Obtain intelligence of selected students in Manila, Employment” which include 428 members of the Philippines. The reason for this is because most American Society of Personnel Administrators in the employers would require graduates with high level of United States, it revealed that verbal communication, critical thinking ability and high sense emotional listening, enthusiasm, written communication, critial preparedness especially in the working environment. thinking skills, technical competence and appearnce Most employers in the Philippines named these are the most important employment skills needed. attributes as the most important competencies needed The theoretial foundation of emotional by the students to effectively surived the challenges intelligence as used in this paper was based on the in the world of work. theory of Halonen & Santrock (1999) and Goleman. Critical thinking is defined as the ability to They identified four dimensions of emotional remove all emotion from an issue and observe the intelligence such as emotional self-awareness, facts objectively to make a logical decision. Critical managing emotions, reading emotion and thinking skills forces employees to look at a situation relationship management. The first one deals with and weigh all possible solutions before coming up the ability to recognize and understand one’s own with a final answer. It can be a long process that feelings from moment to moment. The second one requires input from different people within the which is management emotions deals with the ability organization. The benefits to critical thinking make it to control and check both negative emotions (such as a worthwhile practice as it forces employees and irritability, gloom, and anxiety) and positive managers to look beyond conventional solutions and emotions (such as excitement and ecstacy) resulting look for new ideas that can help to efficiently address from encounters or events. The third one deals with problems. reading emotion in other persons which is the extent Meanwhile,according to most theories relating to to which one is in tune with the subtle social signals emotional intelligence, or EQ, success is strongly that others display. The last one is the ability to influenced by personal qualities such as manage others’ emotions and to interact smoothly perseverance, self-control and skill in getting along with others. with others. Workers with high EQ are better able to Thus, a large number of studies suggested that work in teams, adjust to change and be flexible. No emotional intelligence can be taught and influenced matter how many degrees or other on-paper positively, that is, people can achive higher levels of qualifications a person has, if he or she doesn’t have emotional intelligence with careful teaching and certain emotional qualities, he or she is unlikely to training. The different competencies of emotional succeed. As the workplace continues to evolve, intelligence are presented in the figure below: Self (Personal Competence) Other (Social Competence) Recognition Self Awareness Social Awareness Emotional Self-Awareness Empathy Accurate Self-Assessment Service Orientation Self-Confidence Organizational Awareness Regulation Self-Management Relationship Management Emotional Self-control Developing others Trustworthiness Influence Conscientiousness Communication Adaptability Conflict management Achievement drive Visionary leadership Initiative Catalyzing change Building bonds Teamwork and collaboration Fig. 1: Emotional Intelligence Competencies 20 Dr. Ralph A.