Evaluation of Gastronomy and Culinary Arts practice courses according to distance education: An experimental design suggestion

The aim of this study is to determine the academic achievement of students in gastronomy and culinary arts departments after a practical course is conducted through distance education. In the mixed methods research applied for this purpose, quantitative hypotheses about students' academic achievement, flipped learning readiness, self-directed learning readiness and course attitudes were formed and measurements were made with a quasi-experimental design. In the qualitative part of the study, students were followed up with performance observations and focus group interviews were used to determine the extent to which quantitative data were confirmed. At the end of the data collection process, the findings obtained simultaneously were combined and common inferences were made. In line with the results of the study, it was concluded that the academic achievement levels of the students in both experimental groups were the same before and after the application. In addition, the retention levels of students' learning were similar between the groups. In addition, there was no significant difference between the performance observation achievement scores of the students in the experimental and control groups. For these reasons, after careful lesson planning and a comprehensive preliminary preparation phase, it was determined that a practical kitchen course taught by distance education is not different from a face-to-face course. In this direction, it is among the results of the research that the academic achievement tests offered to the students, especially in the measurement and evaluation phase of the practical courses, play a role in increasing learning. Within the scope of the study, regression analyses were also conducted to investigate the effect of self-directed learning readiness and flipped learning readiness on course attitude. As a result of the related regression analyses, a significant regression can be mentioned in the effect of two variables on course attitude at the same time. However, when these variables were evaluated one by one, it was concluded that while self-directed learning readiness was related to course attitude, which was the dependent variable, flipped learning readiness was not related to course attitude alone in the equation. The flipped learning model, which is realized as a sub-objective within the scope of the research and presented as a method of teaching the courses, is seen as a useful model for the practical courses of both face-to-face and distance education students. In this direction, it was concluded that the flipped learning model is an advantageous and effective learning model compared to traditional learning in practical courses. In line with the results obtained, recommendations have been made at various levels that can be included in global education-oriented research, researchers, instructors who teach a practical course and Turkey's strategic development plans.