Cartographic training for bachelors of tourism in the context of professional competence

The article theoretically and practically substantiates the necessity of teaching Mapping for Bachelors of Tour- ism. The cartographic competence of future professionals is closely connected with their professional skills. The specific feature of the cartographic method is that it allows one to visualize the geographic space or any simulated space for studying. Consequently it develops the student’s spatial thinking, and makes both cerebral hemispheres be active. It is known that the right cerebral hemisphere is responsible for the creative feature of the human nature, and the left cerebral hemisphere is responsible for the logic. The essence of the cartographic method is that in the process of researching the reality an intermediate element appears. And the intermediate element is a map the role of which is of two kinds: it is a research tool and the subject of research presented as a model, a prototype of the reality at the same time. The symbolic figurative language of a map develops the abstract thinking about the real prototype. It should be emphasized that maps help specialists to establish new patterns in location and intercon- nection of phenomena. Understanding of the graphic image of the structure of the geographical space, highlighting the peculiarities of the tourist and recreational component, administrating the tourist and recreational space, designing a regional project for the development of tourism, creating package tours - all these professional skills are immediately related to students’ intellectual-graphic activities, to their abilities to visualize the geospace, to be good at Mapping. In the final part of the article the cartographic competence is defined as an element of the culture of a competent specialist in tourism’s personality.