Do professional courses prepare hospitality students for efficient surplus food management? A self-evaluation of professional competence in food waste prevention

Purpose This study aims to examine Taiwanese hospitality students’ self-reported professional competence in surplus food management and assess the usefulness of their university training in this area. Using the importance-performance analysis (IPA) method, it is possible to obtain a clearer understanding of the priority order of the items that require improvement and to identify which surplus food management competence items should be strengthened in the school curriculum and which items should be enhanced by the students. Design/methodology/approach This study used the questionnaire survey method. It evaluated seven dimensions covering 29 items related to surplus food management competencies of the kitchen staff. The evaluation was done using IPA to determine the relationship between professional competence (performance level) and courses provided (importance level). The factor coordinates were completed according to the means of personal qualifications and courses provided. Findings According to students’ self-assessment, the dimensions of “Personal moral attitude,” “Food handling attitude,” “Education and training attitude” and “Culinary knowledge” were located in the “Keep up the good work” quadrant, meaning that the students think that their surplus food management competence is relatively high and the courses provided are sufficient. Thus, these items have better performance at the present and they hope to maintain the status. However, “Menu analysis” and “Sanitation knowledge” were found to have low importance and low level of performance. Therefore, these two dimensions require attention in the course design and educational training. Research limitations/implications The questionnaire responses were self-reported; this study assumed that all participants answered honestly. Future studies may include additional factors in the analysis, such as hospitality management, culinary skills, internship experience and work time that may affect the perceptions of students. Moreover, professional chefs could be surveyed to determine their professional competence and training needs. Originality/value The professional training that students receive determines, to a large extent, their performance in their jobs and the resulting stability of their employment. Therefore, improved competence gained through good-quality training can help students meet the demands of the hospitality industry.

Examining Virtual Classroom Platforms in Hospitality Education

Though hospitality education relies strongly on experiential learning, the COVID-19 pandemic has compelled all the higher educational institutions including the institute of hotel managements (IHMs) to restrict on-campus learning. As the only possible solution to deliver uninterrupted knowledge and skills to the students under these adverse circumstances, the management of these IHMs has quickly retorted to virtual classrooms. Many virtual platforms such as Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Cisco Webex, etc. emerged as the elixir for the institutions with customized features to fulfil the learning needs of the students. This necessitates the need to not only examine and compare the perceptions of these platforms based on virtual classroom service quality, perceived ease of use, and perceived usefulness but also to understand the impact of these perceptions on the future scope in terms of satisfaction and behavioral intentions of the hospitality students in IHMs.

Developing Quality Hospitality Students Through Simulation and Experiential Learning asa Guide for Hospitality Education

Objective - Teaching quality is more and more profoundly decisive for the achievement of higher educational institutions. On this background, Games-Based Learning (GBL) and Experiential-Based Learning (EBL) are the key teaching methodologies which are often used to enhance the teaching-learning quality by assisting both teachers and students gain their objectives. Teaching in the Age of Covid-19 is also another challenge for most of the Educators. Given the importance of the topic in university, the aim of this research is to present an organized review of the literature on the use of GBL as a tool to boost the distinction and the excellence of the teaching process in general, and, in particular, the teaching of hospitality management. Methodology/Technique - The work searched mainly the most appropriate literature on the application of gamification to educational contexts. The empirical analysis of a game-based project assigned to 27 players, who are Hospitality Students at FPT University Danang, has shown very significant results. Finding - One of the primary outcomes of this research is to describe theoretical approaches mainly to GBL, then EBL and provide a conceptual model that gathers the contribution of various studies and make way for in future deeper research. Another important finding is the gradual integration of various types of experiential learning activities into a hospitality and tourism management syllabus. Novelty - The significance of the research results shows that he best of both academic and reality world should be closely connected in purpose so as to make the teaching-learning more engaging, more fun and more efficient. Type of Paper - Empirical Keywords: Games-Based Learning; Simulation and Experiential Learning, PBLs, Learning in Covid-19 Age, Hospitality Education. JEL Classification: I23, A22,Z32

Aplikasi Web Commerce sebagai Ruang Praktik Mahasiswa dalam Berwirausaha

Entrepreneurship is one of the subjects that must be taken by students of Universitas Negeri Padang (UNP), including students from Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality. Students sometimes have less interest and motivate in taking entrepreneurship courses in practice because they still only use conventional methods. The purpose of this research is to create a web commerce application that will be used by students as an entrepreneurship practices space. The method that used in making this application is the waterfall model with the SLDC method or a simple software life flow approach. Web commerce application that produced then tested using black box to find out the success of the flow that has been designed, and the black box test results show that the application can run well. The result of this research is a dynamic web-based e-commerce application using the PHP programming language, osCommerce Content Management System (CMS), and MySQL database. This application can be a solution to the problems of conventional entrepreneurial methods and can make students who take entrepreneurship courses more interested in entrepreneurship practices.

An Assessment of Inventory Management Practices at the Hospitality Management Department of Takoradi Technical University

Inventory management encompasses a wide variety of tasks. These tasks differ depending on the organization. The study's main goal is to evaluate inventory management activities at Takoradi Technical University's hospitality management department. Non–experimental analysis was used to design the sample. The study's target population was hospitality students with sample sizes of 60 students. Purposive sampling was used to collect data for the analysis. The analysis relied on primary data. To collect data for the analysis, a structured questionnaire was created with both opened-ended and closed-ended questions. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and Microsoft Excel were used to analyze and process the information. Frequency distribution tables, pie charts, and bar charts were used to display the findings. According to the results, the department did a commendable job of resource management in order to provide supplies for the students' practical training. The department's inventory management process was purely commercial and the proper inventory management process was implemented. Regardless, it was recommended that the hospitality department strive to keep inventory under control. Evidence for inventory management and record documentation should also be handy at all times.

Developing Quality Hospitality Students Through Simulation and Experiential Learning - An Empirical Study at FPT University Danang

Teaching quality is more and more profoundly decisive for the achievement of higher educational institutions. In this background, Games-Based Learning (GBL) and Experiential-Based Learning (EBL) are the key teaching methodologies and its applications which are often used to enhance the teaching-learning quality by assisting both teachers and students gain their objectives. Teaching Students who take Bachelor of Hospitality and Tourism Management has been a considerable challenge while the facilities for practicing or demonstrating hospitality operations are limited or are not available in the classrooms of most of the Universities. Teaching in the Age of Covid-19 is also another challenge for most of the Educators. Keywords: Games-Based Learning; Simulation and Experiential Learning, PBLs, Learning in Covid-19 Age, Hospitality Education.

Understanding college students' e-loyalty to online practicum courses in hospitality programmes during COVID-19

This study aims to examine the students’ loyalty to an online practicum course for hospitality education during Covid-19 pandemic in Indonesia. Premised on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), we adopted a revised model consisting of Information System Success Model and Expectancy Confirmation Theory (ECT) to ascertain the students’ perceptions of the usefulness of the programme and their levels of satisfaction with, and e-loyalty to, the programme. This study utilized an online survey to obtain data from 309 participants. The partial least squares structural equation modelling method was employed in this study. The findings show that students’ perceptions of the usefulness of online learning were significantly influenced by information quality, system quality & system interaction which relate to satisfaction. Preliminary research provides the insight for stakeholders such as vocational institutions, teachers and practitioners of education to gain a better understanding the factors that contribute to hospitality students continued intentional use of online course. Keywords: e-learning, practicum courses, hospitality students, pandemic Covid-19, student satisfaction, e-loyalty