Effectiveness of Teaching Methods in Hotel Management Colleges

“A Study on The Effectiveness of Teaching Methods Followed in Hotel Management Colleges”
Sunder Srinivasan#1
Assistant Professor, AISSMS College of Hotel management and catering Technology
(Affiliated to Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune)
55-56, Shivajinagar, Pune – 411 005
sun3105@gmail.com
Dr. Hemraj Narhar Patil#2
Assistant Professor, AISSMS College of Hotel management and catering Technology
(Affiliated to Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune)
55-56, Shivajinagar, Pune – 411 005
hemrajnarhar@gmail.com
Abstract
The Indian education sector has seen a drastic change in the 21st
century especially with the use of
ICT enabled technology. The hotel management institutes have also evolved using these new
methods of teaching. These hotel management institutes have teachers who still believe that the
conventional teaching methods are the best and are hesitant to move towards conceptual teaching
methods. This study aims to find out about the preference of conventional and conceptual teaching
methods by hotel management students. It further investigates on how effective these teaching
methods are in the learning process. The students are aware of the conventional and conceptual
teaching methods used in their institutes and have a strong preference for learning through the
conceptual method of teaching. These students also prefer the hotel management institutes use a
combination of conventional and conceptual teaching methods by their teachers in the teaching-
learning process.
Key Words:
Higher Education, Hotel Management, Quality Education, Technical Education, Hospitality
Education
Journal of Interdisciplinary Cycle Research
Volume XIII, Issue V, May/2021
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1593

Introduction
India is long known as an education hub and has produced numerous quality students from various
prestigious institutions who are performing on very high levels throughout the world. This is
completely owing to the kind of education provided at the school level and further in the higher
education institutes. Over the last couple of decades India is seeing a dramatic increase in the
number of higher education institutes mushrooming in every corner of the country. Well one would
say that this is something very nice that is happening but I believe in this bargain the control over
quality of education was dwindled. Of course, this has caught the eye of the top educational bodies
of India and are paving way to reduce this effect and bring in better control in the quality of
education that is being imparted at various levels in the education sector.
This brings us to the methods that are used at the higher education institutions to impart education
to students. Coming more specifically to the hotel management institutes, until the technology
found its way into the methods of teaching the most popular method of teaching was the chalk-n-
board method. Many old school teachers till today still believe that no method can substitute this
one. There were some other methods being practices by the teachers which included case studies,
group discussions and on-site visits.
Technology in teaching introduced an array of conventional teaching methods in the hotel
management institutes which started with an overhead projector to a liquid crystal display
popularly known as LCD and now to smart classrooms. This has paved way for students to benefit
from the various teaching methods that are being utilized by the teachers to educate the students.
The teachers are looking constantly to add a different teaching method in their kitty to keep the
students engaged.
‘Traditional education, also known as back-to-basics, conventional education or customary
education, refers to long-established customs that society traditionally used in schools. Some forms
of education reform promote the adoption of progressive education practices, a more holistic
approach which focuses on individual students' needs and self-control. In the eyes of reformers,
traditional teacher-centered methods focused on rote learning and memorization must be
abandoned in favour of student-centred and task-based approaches to
learning.’(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traditional_education).
“By education I mean an all-round drawing out of the best, in child and man — body, mind and
spirit.” – M. K. Gandhi. This is almost exactly what we would look at conventional education.
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1594

The conventional methods would use various methods r combination of methods as well to not
only impart bookish knowledge but would involve developing the student in a holistic way.
The students today can really feel and tell the difference between conventional and conceptual
methods used in the hotel management institutes. Students of hotel management institute have
more of practice based subjects where they are able to gather hands-on experience to a certain
extent. This study aims to find the teaching methods that are used in various hotel management
institutes and which teaching methods are preferred by the students of hotel management institutes.
Review of Literature
Collins AB (2002) in his study “Are We Teaching What We Should? Dilemmas and Problems in
Tourism and Hotel Management Education” mentions that there has been a growing demand for
trained an educated staff in the Hotel Management & Tourism sector worldwide. His study reveals
that there has been an mounting need for university recognition for specialization due to the
constant change in technology and consumer maturation. The study also mentions that there is also
an increase in the need for an improved mix between the academic and practical experiences and
additional language inadequacies were highlighted.
Dr. Saravanakumar AR (2014) in his research “Present Scenario and Future Prospects of Higher
Education in India” mentions that education being the instrumental factor in shaping the
development of any country needs to be dynamic and with time it should be reframed and
rephrased. Teachers should be given opportunities to play an active role when reforms are being
framed for the higher education sector. This will also help in making the system of higher
education more innovative, dynamic and futuristic to face the changing scenario of the modern
education society.
Dr. Saravanakumar AR and Dr. Padmini Devi KR (2020) in their research “Indian Higher
Education: Issues and Opportunities” critically reviewed that higher education is bleak when the
question of quality is raised up. Higher education today is finding it very difficult to meet due to
many factors like unplanned expansion, uneven growth, commercialization, monetary
involvement, teacher burn out, educated unemployment, creativity Vs conformity etc. Teachers
being the base for all the outputs of education institutes, they ought to be trained to the best and
with the best and this can be possible only there is quality assured programs. This will ensure the
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1595

professionals who are educated are competent enough for their jobs. They stress that time and
again the education system must be visited and improvements need to be made.
Dr. Singh J D (2011) in his article “Higher Education in India – Issues, Challenges and
Suggestions” suggests that there have been several challenges in the higher education system and
that there needs to be a significant change brought about in this. He mentions the role of HEI’s and
Universities will have to shape up the purpose of education and research on how people learn.
Further the author also envisions that India needs to have educated people who will be the force to
drive the economy further and institutions and organizations in the education sector need to draw
in a system and bring excellence in various educational fields.
Fevzi O and Kevin W in their study “A Critical Review and Evaluation of Teaching Methods of
Strategic Management in Tourism and Hospitality Schools” mention that strategic management
must be involved as a subject in hospitality management as it will enable to develop a holistic
management approach for students. They further mention that although conducting a lecture and
using case studies are some of the common teaching methods, one cannot single out a particular
teaching method that could achieve the objectives. They suggest the use of combining various
teaching methods to have better outcomes and provide students with required skills and up-to-date
knowledge. Also, changing teaching methods may not be an easy task as adapting to new methods
may take time for adaptation and may not be easy.
Fuller J (1983) in hi research “Hotel Management Education” states that there is a need of better
integration between educational institutes and hospitality industry and one should consider to have
top hotel personnel as a part of educational committees to get the inputs from the point of view of
hospitality industry as well. He further suggests that the teachers also need to update themselves
with practical work of the industry time and again to gain more insight on the happenings in the
industry. By doing this they will be able update and integrate their academic knowledge which can
reflect in their teaching methods.
Hemraj P et al (2014) in their research “A Study of Students' Perception About Entrepreneurship
in Hospitality Industry & The Role of Hospitality Colleges in Developing their Entrepreneurial
Skills with Special Reference to Pune City” state that most students venture into the hospitality
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1596

field looking at the glamor and believing in earning quick earnings and later on due to long working
hours they tend to shift their career focus to allied areas. To cater to this the educators and
educational institutes need to develop and teach entrepreneurial skills by using teaching methods
involving field visits, training programs, organizing successful entrepreneurs meet to have better
exposure for students benefit.
Mohinder C (2008) in his research “Managers' Perception of Hotel Management Curricula in India:
An Exploratory Study” states that education in hotel management has seen a drastic change in a
couple of decades and the syllabi is more market driven and has seen influence of the industry
professionals as well. The study also reveals that the core subjects are more valued and the relative
or other subjects are not valued as much. The study also guides on the teaching methods that need
to be adopted, modified and planned to prepare the students successfully for the hotel industry
which is changing for better.
Morrison A and Barry G (2003) in their study “The liberation of hospitality management
education” mention that knowledge about hospitality has been drawn from the industry rather than
from generating enquiries in other fields or disciplines. In the late 1990’s there was a drastic change
in the education of hospitality field where the shift saw this vocational field shifting to a broader
sector with more liberal base being introduced into the curricula at various universities.
Sharma P and Pandher JS (2018) in their study “Quality of teachers in technical higher education
institutions in India” stress that quality of teachers will demonstrate the quality n teaching. Their
study was able to identify the quality of faculty in technical institutions of Punjab and further were
able to point out the difference between the quality of faculty in public and private technical
institutions. The authors stressed upon the lack of competent teachers in institutions hence
resulting in poor quality of teachers
Shirani Bidabadi (2016) et al in their study “Effective Teaching Methods in Higher Education:
Requirements and Barriers” mention that the beast way to approach teaching in higher education
is combining student-centered and teacher-centered methods with the inclusion of planning and
readiness. Although there are some minor barriers that could persist one of which may include the
behavior and outlook of the teacher. They also mention about major barriers that could be
associated in the teachers operations and some may be related to laws and regulations.
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1597

Syed ZA, et al (2018) in their study “An evaluation of teaching methods of entrepreneurship in
hospitality and tourism programs” mention that there are various challenges in the hospitality and
tourism programs when it comes to teaching entrepreneurship. Using the regular lecturing,
tutorials and case study has been the traditional way of teaching in this area but one cannot possibly
point out at a single method of teaching being adequate to achieve the objectives of any course. In
hospitality and tourism programs theory and practice must go hand in hand along with using the
right combination of teaching methods to provide students with optimum knowledge and skills.
Objectives
• To find most preferred teaching method for hotel management students.
• To determine effectiveness of teaching methods for hotel management students.
• To know the preference between conceptual, conventional and their combination method of
teaching for hotel management students.
Research Methodology
Data collection: The primary data required for the research was collected using the following
techniques:
Personal interviews: The researcher conducted personal interview with students of various hotel
management colleges to understand by which methods of teaching they are able to understand
the subject content better.
Questionnaire: A questionnaire with straight forward and relevant questions was drafted and
students of hotel management colleges from different cities were asked to respond to the same.
Sample technique: This study was conducted with responses of more than 400 respondents
between the age group of above 17 to 21 years.
All the samples were selected randomly from the various hotel management colleges in and
around Pune city.
Apart from the above mentioned tools the relevant secondary data for the research was collected
from journals, books and internet.
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1598

79%
80%
77%
88%
70%
72%
74%
76%
78%
80%
82%
84%
86%
88%
90%
Chalk & Board Reading from book
/ notes
Memorizing and
reciting / answering
Power point
presentations
Percentage
of
preference
Teaching Methods
Preference of conventional method of teahcing
Analysis & Discussion
The data collected was analyzed and represented in charts for better understanding. The
respondents were students from hotel management institutes from different cities of India.
Preference of Conventional Teaching Methods:
Figure – 1
Figure one shows that the students of hotel management institutes have a lesser preference for the
chalk & board and memorizing & answering method of teaching. Power point presentations is
preferred more than other methods of teaching. Although power point presentation is a
technological method but since it is an integral part of most hotel management institutes and very
commonly used it is considered under conventional method of teaching.
Even today there are teachers in hotel management institutes who still teach the way they were
taught in their college days since their teacher may not have tried to move to other teaching
methods. Students feel that in this method is pretty boring since after the teacher explains anything
they do not want to write down anything as notes since a lot of it available for them on the internet.
They lose concentration or are distracted when the teacher is writing anything on the board and
feel that it should not be compulsory to write down notes. Memorizing answers becomes important
and compulsory since the type of curriculum and examinations demand so. Power point
presentations are pictorial, colorful and attractive so they tend to pay more attention and are able
to grasp the topics better.
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1599

88%
88%
82%
86%
83%
88%
90%
76% 78% 80% 82% 84% 86% 88% 90% 92%
Discussions
Field trips / visits
Guest lectures
Group activities
Case studies
Demonstrations
Videos
Percentage of preference
Teaching
Methods
Prefernce of conceptual method of teaching
Figure – 2
Figure two clearly indicates the shift of students of hotel management institutes preference to
conceptual methods where watching educational videos grabs more of their attention and prefer to
learn most using this particular method. They also have higher preference for demonstrations,
discussions, field / industrial visits since these methods help them to open up to the current trend
and status of the industry. Having group activities helps students to share their knowledge and
understanding and also makes them do research and studies before having such activities. When it
comes to case studies and guest lectures as teaching methods the students preference for these as
teaching methods starts to dip down.
Since the last decade or so has seen a lot of shift towards the use of technology in education at the
same time student centric teaching methods have also evolved and put into use. Advancement of
ICT has enabled teaching methods as well like a teacher could use certain applications or use web
based learning techniques and technology. Teachers have started to get students to work towards
finding solutions during their classroom sessions rather than just dictate and recite. Since students
are closely connected with technology it is vital that we are seeing a paradigm shift amongst the
teaching methods adopted by teachers as well.
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1600

92%
88%
82%
87%
85%
89%
89%
87%
79%
82%
80%
70% 75% 80% 85% 90% 95%
Videos
Demonstrations
Case studies
Group activities
Guest lectures
Field trips / visits
Discussions
Power point presentations
Memorizing & reciting / answering
Reading from book / notes
Chalk & Board
Percentage
Teaching
Methods
Preferred effective teaching methods in students learning
Figure – 3
Figure three shows the students’ preference on which teaching method do they find most effective
for learning. It is very clearly understandable that where pictorial representation is involved there
is a higher preference of the method being effective, by seeing educational videos and use of power
point presentation. The students of hotel management institutes also feel that visiting the industry
in actual to see its operations, to have a chat with the personnel from the industry during
demonstrations gives them a better understanding of the topic to be learnt or understood. They also
feel that group discussions and activities boosts them to do self-study of the topics and the guidance
from the teachers enables them to grasp things better.
One can clearly note that students would always prefer to learn through conceptual methods but
they do not want to let go off the conventional methods as well. It is important to understand that
the role of students and teachers are changing in the classroom today. Certain key changes need to
be applied to enable such changes. The teacher now need to play the role of a ‘facilitator’ than just
being a teacher. The teacher has to now share the decision making with the students wherein in the
process of learning the teacher alone may not decide everything. The teaching shall inculcate
critical thinking, self-learning awareness and problem solving thinking methods. The traditional
teaching methods used forced learning methods or even memorizing methods where the pressure
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1601

0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
Conventional Method Conceptual Method Comibnation of both
3% 7%
90%
Percentage
Most preferred method in learning process
on teacher’s performance was more than that of student’s performance. This must change to
making students what and how they want to learn, basically make students understand their
responsibility of learning. Evaluation practices should be changed from being only teacher marked
score but should include different parameters like self-assessment tests where the student will
know for themselves on how much of learning is being done by themselves.
Figure – 4
Figure four clearly indicated that the students of hotel management institutes do not want to let go
the conventional teaching methods and they prefer learning through a combination of both
conventional and conceptual methods of learning.
The students feel that it is very important that the teacher is present in the class and during the
conventional teaching the teacher is able to have a personal connect with the students. The teacher
is able to share more information and is able to clear doubts and questions in a face to face
environment. They also feel that the teacher is able share their personal experiences and have better
explanations of certain concepts which they have faced actually in the industry. Teachers are able
to create a very good environment when they are able to use blended learning methods.
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1602

Conclusion
There has been a huge shift from the use of conventional teaching methods to conceptual teaching
methods and hotel management institutes are not left behind in this change. Teachers are including
the new and modern teaching methods to get their ideas across to the students. The students of
hotel management institutes preference shows a stark deviation towards the conceptual teaching
methods as against conventional teaching methods at the same time when it comes to most
preferred method they do not want to let go off the conventional teaching methods and still prefer
to learn using some of the conventional teaching methods. The students of hotel management
institutes feel that teaching methods which involves pictorial representation, videos, actual on-site
visits and having direct talk with industry professionals gives them a better chance of
understanding and learning various topics. They want to have classroom session where the teacher
is present in the classroom as they feel that there is a personal connect with teachers in the class.
Teachers are able to be a guiding force whenever they are in a lost situation. Teachers are also able
to give positive motivation to students in their classroom sessions along with pep talks.
References
Andrew Kevin Jenkins (2001) Making a career of it? Hospitality students’ future perspectives:
an Anglo-Dutch study, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 0959-
6119, Vol. 13 Issue 1 pp.13-20, https://doi.org/10.1108/09596110110365599
Breiter D. (1991) Recruitment and retaining entry level employees—the need for strategic
change, Hospitality and Tourism Educator, Vol. 3 Issue 3 pp 44–47,
https://doi.org/10.1080/23298758.1991.10685427
Collins A.B. (2002) Are We Teaching What We Should? Dilemmas and Problems in Tourism
and Hotel Management Education, Tourism Analysis, Vol. 7 Issue 2 pp 151-163,
https://doi.org/10.3727/108354202108750013, by: Cognizant Communication Corporation
Doherty L, Guerrier Y, Jamieson S, Lashley C and Lockwood A (2001) Getting ahead: Graduate
careers in hospitality management, London: Council for Hospitality Management Education /
Higher Education Funding Council for England
Dr. A R. Saravanakumar (2014) Present Scenario and Future Prospects of Higher Education in
India, Proceeding of the Social Sciences Research ICSSR, 978-967-11768-7-0 pp 9-10, , Kota
Kinabalu, Sabah, MALAYSIA, by http://WorldConferences.net
Dr. A R. Saravanakumar, Dr. K. R. Padmini Devi (2020) Indian Higher Education: Issues and
Opportunities, Journal of Critical Reviews, 2394-5125 Vol. 7 Issue 2 pp 542-545
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1603

Dr. J D Singh (2011) Higher Education in India – Issues, Challenges and Suggestions, Higher
Education, LAMBERT Academic Publishing, Germany, 978-3-8465-1753-6 pp 93-103
Fevzi Okumus , Kevin Wong (2013) A Critical Review and Evaluation of Teaching Methods of
Strategic Management in Tourism and Hospitality Schools, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism
Education, Vol. 16 Issue 2 pp 22-33, https://doi.org/10.1080/10963758.2004.10696790
Fuller J (1983) The Management of Hospitality, Pergamon Press Ltd, Oxford, UK, 802-8-.1079
pp 95-122, Record Number : 19841811741
Getz D. (1994) Students' work experiences, perceptions and attitudes towards careers in
hospitality and tourism: A longitudinal case study in Spey Valley, Scotland, International
Journal of Hospitality Management, Vol 13 Issue 1 pp 25–37, https://doi.org/10.1016/0278-
4319(94)90057-4
Giri Jogaratnam, Polly Buchanan (2004) Balancing the demands of school and work: stress and
employed hospitality students, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management,
Vol. 16 Issue 4, pp 237-245, DOI:10.1108/09596110410537397
Hemraj N. Patil, Milind A. Peshave, Dr. Rajashree Gujarathi (2014) A Study of Students'
Perception About Entrepreneurship in Hospitality Industry & The Role of Hospitality Colleges in
Developing their Entrepreneurial Skills with Special Reference to Pune City, International
Journal of Management, IT and Engineering, 2249-0558 Vol. 4 Issue 6 pp 402-434
Hyland T., 2001 Vocationalism, work and the future of higher education, Journal of Vocational
Education and Training, 1363-6820, Vol. 53 Issue 4: 677–684,
https://doi.org/10.1080/13636820100200184
Joshi Sarika, Tyagi Honey (2019) A Study on Students Perception about Internship Program and
Its Impact on Their Personality, With Reference to Hotel Management Students of Pune Region,
Atithya: a Journal of Hospitality, 2394 – 6644, Vol. 5 Issue 2 pp 67-74
Matt Casado (2000) Teaching Methods in Higher Education: A Student Perspective, Journal of
Hospitality & Tourism Education, 12:2, 65-70, doi: 10.1080/10963758.2000.10685283
Mohinder C (2008) Managers' Perception of Hotel Management Curricula in India: An
Exploratory Study, Journal of Tourism, Vol. 9 Issue 2 pp 99-116
Morrison A, Barry O’Mahony G (2003) The liberation of hospitality management education,
International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, Vol. 15 Issue 1 pp 38-
44, https://doi.org/10.1108/09596110310458972
Pol Rajeshree, Karmarkar Anuradha (2019) A Study of Inclination of Students Pursuing Hotel
Management Course Towards Opting Niche Hospitality Career, Atithya: a Journal of
Hospitality, 2394 – 6644, Vol. 5 Issue 1 pp 47-65
Sharma P, Pandher JS (2018) Quality of teachers in technical higher education institutions in
India, Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning, Vol. 8 Issue 4 pp 511-526,
https://doi.org/10.1108/HESWBL-10-2017-0080
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1604

Shirani Bidabadi N, Nasr Isfahani A, Rouhollahi A, Khalili R (2016) Effective Teaching
Methods in Higher Education: Requirements and Barriers, Journal of advances in medical
education & professionalism, 2322-3561 Vol. 4 Issue 4 pp 170-178, PMID: 27795967; PMCID:
PMC5065908
Srinivasan Sunder, Karmarkar Anuradha, (2014) Changing perception of students towards Hotel
Management Course while pursuing the course, International Journal of Informative & Futuristic
Research, 2347-1697, Vol. 1 Issue 9 pp 101-114
Syed Zamberi Ahmad, Abdul Rahim Abu Bakar, Norita Ahmad (2018) An evaluation of
teaching methods of entrepreneurship in hospitality and tourism programs, The International
Journal of Management Education, Vol. 16 Issue 1 pp 14-25,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijme.2017.11.002
UKEssays. (November 2018). Impact Of Teaching Methods On Student Satisfaction. Retrieved
from https://www.ukessays.com/essays/education/impact-of-various-teaching-methods-on-
student-satisfaction-education-essay.php?vref=
Waryszak R., Morda R., Kapsalakis A. (1999) Student perceptions of cooperative education
placements in hospitality and tourism industries: Theoretical framework, Proceedings of the
Ninth Australian Tourism & Hospitality Research Conference (pp. 131-140)
ISSN NO: 0022-1945
Page No: 1605

Effectiveness of Teaching Methods in Hotel Management Colleges

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

What's hot

What's hot (20)

Similar to Effectiveness of Teaching Methods in Hotel Management Colleges

Similar to Effectiveness of Teaching Methods in Hotel Management Colleges (20)

More from aissmsblogs

More from aissmsblogs (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (20)

Effectiveness of Teaching Methods in Hotel Management Colleges