Interfacing management information systems with practical restaurants in UK hospitality degree programmes

Abstract

The use of practical teaching restaurants as experiential learning resources is widely practised in UK institutions offering hospitality management programmes at undergraduate degree level. Surveys the extent to which students are permitted to make management decisions in such teaching restaurants. While some institutions give students considerable freedom to manage their restaurants, others give little opportunity to experience a realistic work environment. The use of computerized management information systems (MIS) to support decision making is widespread, but there are still many unpursued opportunities open to institutions. Concludes that unless students are given the opportunity to manage their teaching restaurants and also are provided with the information systems to help guide their decisions, teaching restaurants are not fulfilling their potential as an experiential learning resource.

Closing the Gap between Education and Industry: Skills' and Competencies' Requirements for Food Service Internships in Switzerland

“…The latter result suggests that their supervisors have very high expectations of the hotel school trainees; in only two of the areas (shaded in Table 1), Positive attitude towards customers and positive attitude towards colleagues, did the trainees exceed the supervisors' average performance expectations, underpinning the quality of the Swiss system in developing people skills but also stressing the need for, and value of, the practical training as recommended by Morrison and Laffin (1995). No individual trainee's performance was rated outstanding in the initial stages of the internship by any of the supervisors in any of the areas.…”

“…Morrison and Laffin (1995) questioned the value of practical teaching restaurants as experiential learning resources due to the limited extent to which most students are empowered to make management decisions in an 'unrealistic work environment' . Therefore, the experiences gained by interns in the work place are of great importance to them in gaining permanent employment.…”

Reassessing the core of hospitality management education: The continuing importance of training restaurants

“…Some authors in the area make reference to the traditional facility that is (or was) found in hospitality academic departments. Morrison and Laffin (1995, p. 26), while not referring directly to any traditional approach, emphasise that teaching restaurants and kitchens have 'long been established' as experiential learning forums, while Morrison (2003) states that in-house facilities are dominated by the 'traditional' training restaurant and kitchen configuration. Dutton and Farbrother (2005) discuss the closure of 'traditional training restaurants ' and Baker (1995, p. 21) continues to highlight the problems of credibility and cost associated with a 'production kitchen and public teaching restaurant'.…”

“…Research on institutions by Baker et al (1995) highlights the labour intensity and the call on departmental resources as negative aspects of operating training facilities. Morrison and Laffin (1995) Other options available to HE providers have been to outsource the operational element to further education providers (Baker et al, 1995). While there are advantages to this approach (highlighted by Baker et al), principally in terms of cost, there are also disadvantages both in terms of a loss of control and quality of teaching.…”

“…It may also be the case that each side (practical/hands on vs theoretical/intellectual) has more in common than they realise and that neither position is fully defensible in isolation. The future is unclear but in the recent past Morrison and Laffin (1995) stated that 'teaching facilities should not be viewed merely as teaching laboratories wherein students may learn the basics of food production and service' (Morrison & Laffin, 1995, p. 26). Aside from the lack of academic rigour, problems also exist in regard to a lack of research output from this area of hospitality programmes.…”