Cultural Tourism Knowledge Management: Enhancing the Competency of Local Heritage Interpreters on Sightseeing Trams in Nakhon Phanom Province

Abstract

This research aimed to 1) examine the competency levels of elderly local interpreters on sightseeing trams in Nakhon Phanom Province, and 2) extract lessons learned regarding knowledge of being elderly local interpreters on sightseeing trams in Nakhon Phanom Province. The activity employed was a workshop on competency development for elderly local interpreters in Nakhon Phanom Province, organized as a short-term training course by Nakhon Phanom Municipality. The participants consisted of 40 elderly students from Nakhon Phanom Elderly School. The research instrument was a questionnaire, and the statistics used were percentage and mean. The findings revealed that 1) the competency levels of elderly local interpreters on sightseeing trams in Nakhon Phanom Province across nine aspects were as follows: knowledge of current tourism situations was at a high level, guidelines for tourism development in Nakhon Phanom Province was at a high level, knowledge of local tourist attractions in Nakhon Phanom Province was at the highest level, professional skills of local interpreters was at a high level, communication and tour guiding skills was at a moderate level, service psychology was at a moderate level, human relations in service was at a high level, roles and responsibilities of local interpreters on sightseeing trams was at a moderate level, and tourist care with service mind was at the highest level; and 2) the lessons learned indicated that elderly people possessed strong cultural capital and area-based knowledge, enabling them to narrate local stories vividly from their direct experiences. Their strengths included knowledge of local tourist attractions and service mind, while areas requiring further development were communication skills, tour guiding, and systematic understanding of the roles and responsibilities of local interpreters. The knowledge gained can be applied as guidelines for developing training programs for elderly local interpreters in other areas.