Evaluation of Turkish cuisine courses in gastronomy and culinary arts undergraduate programs in the framework of university-sector cooperation in the context of sector needs

This research aims to gather information about the Turkish Cuisine courses applied in the Gastronomy and Culinary Arts (GMS) departments of state and foundation universities operating under YÖK and the success of the Turkish Culinary Culture and Applications course program in meeting the needs of the sector, in order to discuss the subject and propose the Turkish Culinary Culture course curriculum that will meet the sector need for undergraduate education based on the opinions of experts. The primary problem of the research is whether the courses for Turkish Cuisine given in the Gastronomy and Culinary Arts departments of the universities and the methods and content of the courses followed in the Turkish Culinary Culture and Applications courses have integrity. Another problem of the research is whether the graduates working in the sector have sufficient technical knowledge and practical skills about Turkish Cuisine and the effect of their education on their success in this field. No research on this subject has been found in the literature review. For this reason, the study, which was planned as a qualitative research, was transformed into a mixed method due to the pandemic conditions in order to investigate the subject in more depth. Semi-structured interview technique was chosen from the qualitative research methods; Content analysis method was also used in the analysis of the data. Opinions of peers, who could not be reached due to pandemic conditions, were collected through prepared questionnaires. During the data collection phase, firstly, the experience and knowledge of the cooks who have more than 15 years of experience in Turkish Cuisine, the department heads, the lecturers who teach Turkish Culinary Culture and Applications, and the expert researchers who have published in the national and international field were consulted. Secondly, the curricula of the universities and the contents of the Turkish Cuisine were examined. Thirdly, the works written on Turkish Cuisine starting from the oldest available were examined. As a result; There is no unity in the courses for Turkish Cuisine and in the content of Turkish Culinary Culture and Applications lessons, each university, institution and organization follows different approaches, less time is allocated to practice lessons than theoretical lessons, there is not enough teaching staff to keep up with the rapid increase in the number of departments, most of the lecturers do not have experience in the sector and it was evaluated that most of the schools do not have technical equipment and materials. This situation negatively affects the scientific research of Turkish cuisine, the creation of an appropriate education environment, the development and promotion of the sector. It is thought that a basic course plan (syllabus) should be created in Turkish Cuisine education in order to eliminate these negativities. For this purpose, a 28-week Turkish Culinary Culture and Applications Undergraduate Course Syllabus proposal, covering two academic terms, which is considered to be applicable in GMS departments at the end of the thesis, was developed. The primary problem of the research; according to the data obtained about whether the graduates working in the sector have sufficient technical knowledge and practical skills about Turkish Cuisine and the effect of their education on their success in this field, it was evaluated that the graduates were insufficient to meet the needs of the sector. In order to address this problem, it is evaluated that the education program and the Turkish Cuisine Culture and Practices curriculum, which universities, institutions and private organizations will create by complying with this proposed template at the highest possible level within their own means, will contribute to the ability of graduates with technical knowledge and practical skills to meet the needs of the sector.