Learning about the real-world in MICE education: The case of exhibition learning from Thailand

Abstract

The use of experiential learning in tourism and hospitality education is well-documented in literature. Experiential learning studies in this field may include, for example, internship experiences, field trip perceptions, conferences, and social events. However, there is still insufficient literature to understand students’ learning and their real-world experience in MICE education, especially in the exhibition sector. This study, therefore, addresses this gap by reporting the experiential learning of graduate students in an event course with the objectives to investigate student perceptions on academic learning experiences and the development of work-related skills by carrying out the exhibition project. Students are challenged to perform a complicated task as a real exhibition organizer, and to deal with other stakeholders of the exhibition industry (e.g., exhibition venue, exhibitors, contractors, and visitors). The experiential learning method is discussed through the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) process. The results indicate that students not only gained in-depth learning about the exhibition industry, but also developed important work skills (e.g., teamwork, planning, and coordinating skills). Moreover, classroom learning, industry visits, and real-world experience are found to be the important factors contributing to exhibition learning. The current study contributes to the limited exhibition learning literature and provides event educators new insights into the teaching and learning of exhibition-based projects in regard to how students plan, learn and carry out the exhibition event through the case of Thailand. Other similar courses may apply the learning processes and results of this study to develop effective experiential learning in MICE education.     

Service Skills and Service Quality

ABSTRACT

Though various types of service skills and knowledge have been suggested for inclusion in service training programs that are designed to improve the competence of frontline service providers, there has been no empirical work to investigate the structural relationships among various types of service skill. In this study, a total of twelve types of service skill are identified. A measurement model for service skills is developed accordingly and tested with the use of hotel service. The results of confirmatory factor analysis reveal acceptable model fit, suggesting that these twelve types of service skill can be classified into two categories: technical versus functional. Performance on technical skills is found to have greater impact on service quality.     

Why Do Some New Hospitality College Grads Lack Management Skills?

Abstract

Practicing hospitality managers have been anecdotally heard to denigrate the management training provided by institutions of higher learning. This may be valid commentary, as graduates of hospitality management programs may possess merely an abstract conception of theoretical constructs lacking the competence to synthesize them into managerial practice.

In this article, the author posits a model to describe a learning process that may be applied to the education of hospitality and tourism students in academic courses related to the practice of management in organizations. The premise of the model is found in the academic disciplines of science and philosophy as they relate to management and learning theories. The author concludes the article with examples to support the application of the model in practical settings.     

Tourism Crisis Management and Organizational Learning

SUMMARY

To date limited attention has been provided on the review stage of the crisis management framework, despite the importance of organizational learning for developing effective tourism crisis strategies. Using the concepts of double loop learning (Argyris and Schon, 1996), doubting (Blackman and Henderson, 2004) and Preskill and Torres (1999) core processes of evaluative enquiry, the paper discusses the possible application of critical evaluative inquiry and managed reflection by DMOs. The paper recommends that DMOs question their existing knowledge, assumptions and beliefs through reflection and dialogue with stakeholders and collect and analyse information, not just related to confirming the success of crisis strategies, but to assesses the likely impact of alternatives. Challenging existing mental models and capturing this emergent knowledge should enable DMOs to develop even better tourism crisis communication strategies in the future.     

Affective learning in short-term educational travel abroad: An exploratory mixed-method study

Employing an exploratory mixed-method approach, this research explores young adults' affective learning outcomes derived from their short-term educational travel abroad experiences. Different from previous travel research mostly focusing on the educational benefits of cognitive knowledge and technical skills, the current research highlights the prominent effect of educational travel on young adults' personal growth and attitudinal/emotional development by investigating the understudied domain of affective learning and how it manifests among college students having short-term study abroad experiences. Through a systematic review and a follow-up survey-based comparison study, five salient affective learning variables were identified—perspectives on global interdependence, intercultural attitudes, openness to diversity and challenge, environmental attitudes, and general self-efficacy. Furthermore, this research found that travelers’ lower-order affective learning shows significant progress after the short-term educational overseas travel. This study contributes to a niche topic in tourism research and provides implications to promote educational travel as an effective transformative learning approach.     

VONNA(HBP)

ABSTRACT

In this paper, a new learning package, VONNA(HBP), which provides an interactive and online environment for novices to study and practice hotel budget planning, is introduced. Its design philosophy will be discussed thoughtfully with special focus on how to make use of the multimedia and Internet. According to literatures, learning packages are faced to be more effective in delivering teaching material. Researchers indicate that students using a self-paced learning package score higher than in a traditional classroom setting. Moreover, the learning package provides different scenarios for students to explore themselves in a practical environment and is more cost effective and systematic than lectures. Currently, most learning packages in hotel education are not implemented using multimedia with Internet access. Our paper describes a new learning package that fills the gaps.

VONNA(HBP) requires participants to investigate operational budgets on various areas such as sales levels, payroll, inventory level, promotion strategies, and facilities planning, etc. Eventually, the students/novices are required to practice their skills in a comprehensive case about a hypothetical hotel. They need to solve managerial problems by a combination of budgetary planning on human resources, staff training programmes, facilities' maintenance and replacement, or promotion schemes. Analytical tools are available for students/novices to judge an appropriate decision in handling constrained resources.     

Collaborative Approach to Multimedia Courseware Design and Development

Abstract

This paper reports on a collaborative multimedia project between the Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management and the College of Education at the University of Houston. The conceptual framework that supports this approach is based on action learning theory and constructivist philosophy. Graduate students in the instructional technology program in the College of Education worked in collaborative design teams with a client, a faculty member from the College of Hotel and Restaurant Management, to design and develop four modules of Internet-based courseware for an actual instructional context in an undergraduate class in human resource management. The course instructor from the College of Education served as a facilitator and project manager. Data was gathered from both the students and the client-faculty member through a variety of methods that included pre- and post-course surveys, participant interviews, journals, and observations. Students expressed satisfaction with working on an actual project with a real client and noted that the skills learned through the collaborative process were frequently used after the course in job-related situations. In the beginning of the development period, there was some confusion and uncertainty about individual and team roles as well as expectations about the client-faculty member feedback and participation. Team building skills were noted as a needed addition to the curriculum. At the end of the development phase, both the students and the client-faculty member expressed a strong satisfaction with the process of combining both technical skills and practice in an authentic context.     

Experience care: efficacy of service-learning in fostering perspective transformation in tourism education

ABSTRACT

This article presents the findings of a study, which explores the benefits of a service-learning (SL) approach from the perspective of students. The SL approach employed in this study combines theoretical discourse in human relations and personal development with active engagement in community projects. We collected 61 reflective essays from undergraduate students at an Austrian university about their impressions of the lecture and of the two community service projects they participated in. The thematic analysis of the textual data revealed that the SL approach adopted in our course largely benefitted the students. Challenge, positive emotions, affiliation, and learning are the four key dimensions which characterise the students’ experiences. Amongst the learning outcomes reported by the students, SL facilitated self-awareness, self-confidence, self-esteem, stress-resistance, enhanced communication, and problem-solving skills. Despite some challenges, SL proves to be a promising experiential pedagogical approach, which, we argue, is highly relevant to tourism management students.     

Characteristics of a Meeting Planner

ABSTRACT

This is an exploratory research project about meeting planning professionals. Survey responses were collected from 288 meeting professionals in an Internet based survey. The results found a significant difference in perception of minority representation in the industry. The study also found that career counselors are not making students in high school or college aware of meeting planning as a profession, so therefore, they are not studying it in college. People instead are finding out about it in nontraditional ways, such as learning on the job, friends and co-workers. As a result, top skills listed that are needed to succeed included personality or character traits rather than skills that could be learned.     

Active Learning

ABSTRACT

Active learning means students learn by doing something. It can help students become lifelong learners; however, it's not easy to implement. The following guidelines provide some considerations and ideas for implementing active learning in your classroom.     

Learning and Ability to Pay

Summary

The decision whether to use time series or econometric methods to forecast demand is not clear. The literature reviewed only indicates that models should be simple and ideally be able to evolve over time. In 1997 two models were proposed to forecast the numbers from Britain skiing in Europe. The first used a learning curve approach and forecast a stationary market, whilst the second used a Varying Coefficient Model linking sales and ability to pay and forecast a gradually expanding market. This paper reviews the outcomes 1996-2000, the forecast performance of the two models and the stability of the structure of both when updated. It unequivocally suggests that the learning curve approach produced better forecasts. In the penultimate section a model that attempts to combine both approaches is developed. In this context the role of “historic” data is discussed. The paper concludes that the best forecasting approach will depend upon whether the market is stable and that the weight given to data must reflect the information content of that data.     

Providing a More Successful Education Experience for Asian Hospitality Management Students Studying in Australia

ABSTRACT

Economic necessity and political influence has resulted in many western universities striving to increase the number of international students choosing their institution. The consequences of increased numbers of international students has implications for teaching staff and domestic students. This research is focused on international students from Asia studying the Bachelor of Business (Hospitality Management) at The University of Queensland and is set in the context of those students' learning experience. Focusing on issues of teaching and learning styles, the research is based on the suggestion that Asian students have to make a substantial adjustment in terms of their learning styles in order to succeed in a Western University.

The empirical research focuses on Asian students' motivation, choices and expectations of their learning experience in Australia and identifies difficulties those students have experienced. Insights of staff within the School of Tourism and Leisure Management at the University of Queensland are also discussed, particularly focusing on cultural issues.

This article concludes with several recommendations concerning strategies that could be, and are being adopted by The University, academic staff and Asian students.     

Tourism Education and the Internet

Abstract

Using the Internet in the teaching and learning environment assists tourism students in achieving two criteria increasingly being expected by employers. These are an understanding of the applications of the Internet to the industry, and a set of operational Internet skills.

In this paper the benefits and challenges of integrating the Internet into the teaching and learning environment are discussed. In addition, the results of a small-scale survey of tourism academics are reported.     

Development of Computer-Mediated Teaching Resources for Tourism Distance Education

ABSTRACT

This article presents a qualitative account of the development of computer-mediated tourism distance learning resources. A distance learning model was developed at the Centre for Tourism, University of Otago (New Zealand) in 1998-1999. The article reviews the development of this Internet-based learning resource explaining the design and development of Programme links (providing study information for students) and Paper links (course material and learning features). The design of course material is reviewed with emphasis given to consistency of presentation between papers. The template for course material is described and illustrated and the article concludes with an overview of important design considerations.     

Learning Provision,the Labour Market and Skills Needs of the Tourism and Related Sectors in Wales

Abstract

This paper reports results of a project commissioned by the Tourism Training Forum for Wales to assess the labour market, learning provision and skills needs of the tourism and related sectors in Wales, in light of the establishment of People 1st, one of 22 employer-led Sector Skills Councils under the umbrella of the Sector Skills Development Agency, which represents a new approach to skills development in the United Kingdom. Standard industrial classification codes do not map well onto the sector footprint and are insufficiently fine grained which makes it impossible to construct a complete picture from official statistics. Employers report skills gaps amongst a range of staff and a lack of “soft” skills amongst job applicants. Learning provision across Wales was deemed to be sufficient, but it does not necessarily reflect the needs of industry. The paper concludes that despite a consensus on the need to upgrade skills, improve professionalism and to nurture a training culture, there is an absence of an integrated approach to delivering learning and training that is designed to ensure the quality standards which will ensure destination competitiveness.     

Ecotourism in Antarctica. The role of the naturalist‐guide in presenting places of natural interest

Tourism in Antarctica has seen rapid development over the last ten years, based mainly on the American market, and on special interest environmental discovery tours. This report discusses the key role of the naturalist‐guide in Antarctic tourism, and the importance of leadership, scientific knowledge, conservation and social skills in the work of a guide. The report suggests that the profession needs greater recognition: they have a critical role to play in developing sustainable tourism in environmentally fragile areas.     

Developing a CD-ROM as a Teaching and Learning Tool in Food and Beverage Management

ABSTRACT

Food and Beverage Management is the traditional core of hospitality education but, in its laboratory manifestation, has come under increasing pressure in recent years. It is an area that, arguably, presents the greatest challenges in adaptation to contemporary learning technologies but, at the same time, stands to benefit most from the potential of the Web. This paper addresses the design and development of a CD-ROM learning resource for food and beverage. It is a learning resource which is designed to integrate with rather than to replace existing conventional classroom and laboratory learning methods and, thus, compensate for the decline in the resource base faced in food and beverage education in recent years. The paper includes illustrative material drawn from the CD-ROM which demonstrates its use in teaching and learning.     

Implementing Flexible Learning Practices in Tourism Courses

ABSTRACT

The design and delivery of quality tourist experiences will be the key focus for tourism and hospitality professionals throughout the 21st Century. This outcome will be promoted through educational design and delivery that meet the needs of a diverse range of tourism students. Aspiring towards this aim, a process for introducing flexible learning practices in the development of tourism courses is outlined. This process is then applied to the redevelopment of a tourism project course. To conclude, the utility of flexible learning practices and information and communication technology for delivering quality learning outcomes to students separated by geographic distances is critically appraised with reference to tourism course development.     

Are students customers? Tourism and hospitality students’ evaluation of their higher education experience

ABSTRACT

Research has suggested that higher education students assume multiple roles during their studies. Moreover, the student-as-customer model has been discussed for years and needs more in-depth discussions than other roles. Few studies have investigated education experiences from this perspective. This research contains two studies. Study one investigates faculty members’ perceptions on students’ roles in higher education and found students should not be considered purely as customers. Other roles were found. Study two investigates students’ perception of their roles in university education and how the education experiences influence their satisfaction towards university choice. A majority of the students see themselves as the “recipient of knowledge”. The six dimensions of higher education experience include “student-centred service” (SCS), “diversity and global citizenship” (DGC), “coproduction of learning experience”, “reliance on teachers” (ROT), “responsibility”, and “whole person development” (WPL). SCS, DGC, ROT, and WPL were found to have significant impact on student satisfaction.     

Issues Surrounding Asian Students Hospitality Management in Australia

ABSTRACT

Similar to many western nations, the education of international students by Australian universities has developed into a major industry. Since 1994, the number of international students studying for an Australian qualification has risen by 146% (IDP Education, 2001). The majority of these international students come from the traditional South East Asian countries of Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Indonesia mainly to study Business and Economics programs. Growth in international student demand is forecast to continue to rise with countries such as China demonstrating significant growth (IDP Education, 2001).

This paper attempts to present an analysis of the major issues surrounding the education of Asian students. While mention is made of the predictable problems that all international students face when studying in a foreign country, the focus of this paper concentrates on Asian students' learning approaches and styles and associated problems. This paper evaluates research conducted among all Asian students studying in Australia; however, the focus of this paper is those Asian students who are studying Hospitality and Tourism Management at undergraduate level.

The paper identifies both positive and negative images of Asian students and highlights several misperceptions regarding Asian students that are commonly held by western academics. Finally, the paper presents an overview of what strategies might be adopted by western academics in order to make Asian students' experiences at western universities more enjoyable and successful.