The thesis explores the problem of formation of professional competence of hotel and restaurant business bachelor program students by means of innovative training technologies. The author analyzes the relevant scientific literature on the problem of interest as well as discusses the competence approach used in modern education and the content and structure of the proposed definitions.
The author considers different aspects of formation of professional competence of hotel and restaurant business bachelor program students and the use of innovative technologies in their training.
The theoretically substantiated and experimentally tested pedagogical conditions for the formation of professional competence of hotel and restaurant business bachelor program students by means of innovative training technologies have been found to include students' motivated involvement in communicative interaction in order to develop their professional competence, promotion of students' active thinking and creative activity during their professional training, active use of innovative training technologies in order to make students' training practice-oriented, and the use of a comprehensive self-education program for the development of students' professional competence.
To the author's mind, the concept «professional competence of hotel and restaurant business bachelor program students» can be defined as an inherent personal quality which is made up their professional knowledge, skills and experience that ensure successful professional activity, professional development, continuous self-education and self-improvement. Professional competence of hotel and restaurant business bachelor program students includes motivational, cognitive, and operational components and it can be assessed according to the motivational-value, knowledge, and behavioral-reflexive criteria. Professional competence of hotel and restaurant business bachelor program students is also made up of students' general cultural, general scientific, professional, and social-personal competences (indicators), which can be at high, sufficient, satisfactory, and low levels.
The model of hotel and restaurant business bachelor program students' professional competence formation by means of innovative training technologies, which is offered by the author, reflects the interrelations between; the objectives of experimental work; the innovative training technologies, forms, methods, and means of experimental work; pedagogical conditions for the formation of students' professional competence; stages and results of formation, components, indicators, and levels students' professional competence, which implies students' ability to work independently using the developed knowledge, skills, experience and values.
The author has carried out a three-stage experimental training (preparatory, basic, and integrative), which was based on the principles of goal setting, educational orientation, communication, group interaction, partnership, practical implementation, independence, innovation, computerization, and activity.
The experimental training brought about positive changes in the hotel and restaurant business bachelor program student's professional competence: the number of students with high and sufficient professional competence increased from 10,67% and 30,67% before the training to 24, 67% and 44,00% after the training respectively, while the number of students with satisfactory and low levels decreased from 42,66% and 16,00% before the training to 24,00% and 7,33% after the training respectively. The obtained data, whose reliability was confirmed using mathematical statistics, proved the effectiveness of innovative technologies in developing hotel and restaurant business bachelor program students' professional competence.
