Chinese Learners' Perceptions of Blended Learning in a Hospitality and Tourism Management Program

Abstract

A Confucian tradition still permeates the delivery of higher education in Greater China, leading to passive learning and a teacher-centred approach. This paper describes how one hospitality course from a Hong Kong university was transformed into a student-centred, blended learning programme using independent and group learning methods to engage and motivate students, and to evaluate the success of this approach. The study suggests Chinese students value the active learning approach, but that changes to teaching and learning methods need to be introduced over time, and across the whole curriculum, to become acceptable to most students.