Is Mathematics Required for Cooking? An Interdisciplinary Approach to Integrating Computational Thinking in a Culinary and Restaurant Management Course

Abstract

In recent years, with the flourishing of the catering economy and the trends in computer technology, restaurant operators have increasingly relied on employees with computational and information skills. Breaking through the traditional teaching method of mere lecturing, the study conducts a teaching demonstration by integrating the computational thinking concept and a Microsoft Excel computational system on the school’s E-learning platform into the teaching of a Culinary and Restaurant Management course. A non-equivalent control group pretest–posttest study with a quasi-experimental design is adopted for the assignment of experimental participants and the design of the course. The results show that a curriculum design with computational thinking significantly improves the effectiveness of students’ learning in digital technology and is especially helpful for the cultivation of the key capabilities of menu design and cost planning among restaurant management skills. The study makes the following contributions: during the Culinary and Restaurant Management course, the use of the E-learning platform and computing programs such as Microsoft Excel is associated with greater learning effectiveness than traditional teaching methods. The research results can serve as a reference for promoting an E-catering business model and a sustainable educational model in the future.

Ammatillista opetusta etäällä ja lähellä. Inklusiivinen hybridipedagogiikka ja opettajan osaaminen koronapandemian jäljiltä

“…Monessa artikkelissa opetuksen lähtökohta oli työelämälähtöinen ammatillinen koulutus (Callan, Johnston & Poulsen 2015;Chang ym. 2014;Chen, Tsui & Lee 2021;Lambert 2019;Mielikäinen 2021). Substanssiosaamiseen sisältyivät hyvät tieto-ja viestintätekniikan käyttötaidot omaan ammattialaan suhteutettuna (Callan ym.…”

Incorporating Multimedia Teaching Methods and Computational Thinking into the Baking Dessert Course

“…The problemsolving skills and methods that are developed through computer science are often viewed as generalizable and applicable to various other disciplines, making it a key field of study [14]. In fact, there is evidence that computational thinking-based educational methods significantly improve students' learning outcomes [15]. The use of media (e.g., images, animations, videos, music) in teaching alongside vibrant, substantive content also boosts students' motivation to learn in addition to creating unique, interesting learning experiences [16][17][18][19].…”