CHAPTER

INTRODUCTION
This chapter introduces the study and provides a description of
the problem addressed as well as the theoretical framework that
supports the basis for the study regarding the evaluation of
hospitality management laboratory facilities as a basis for manual
development and recommendations.

Background of the Study

The program in Hospitality Management teaches with hands-on

experience and by participating in projects through laboratory
experience. Students are taught using the equipment available in
the lab for projects to learn how they would perform specific
functions in a job in the hospitality industry, so students will have
evidence to demonstrate when applying for employment that
they can carry out a task. The use of the lab (learning space) will
have an impact on the level at which students learn and whether
they are prepared for employment in the hospitality industry.
Garcia made it clear in 2022 that having equipment in the lab is
critical for students to gain skills for completing jobs like those
they would perform within the hospitality industry. The lab
facilities are more than rooms; they are also places to practice
and apply what the student has learned in the classroom.
Students apply the classroom knowledge in the lab to gain skills
in performing specific functions. Students will use the lab facilities
to develop their baking skills in the kitchen; serving drinks and
preparing for a bar; keeping guest rooms clean; and checking in
guests at a fake front desk. The lab facilities have the same type
of set up as hospitality operations to allow students to develop
and demonstrate their skills to potential employers. Students will
develop the following skills, how to perform specific functions,
work as part of a team, and follow the rules of the hospitality
industry. Therefore, their level of self-confidence increases and
their ability to perform their jobs after they graduate from college
increases as well. The physical condition of the lab facilities and
their design interest our students in ways that limit their potential
to develop new skills. Santos stated in 2023 that the location of
learning in a student’s learning environment influences how
motivated and comfortable they feel while doing laboratory tasks.
Also, how well any laboratory is managed has a large impact on
the overall efficiency of any laboratory.
Effective management of a laboratory includes maintaining and
organizing the facilities as well as the tools and equipment, which
increases the ability of the staff and instructors to work together
effectively. According to Atkin and Brooks in 2015 effective
management involves putting together people, processes and
resources to provide a workplace that is conducive to learning.
This relates to the management of the laboratory facilities to
ensure students can receive the maximum benefit from
experiential (hands-on) learning experiences in laboratory
facilities.
Considering these factors, it is necessary to evaluate the student
Hospitality Management laboratory facilities to establish their
condition; whether the facilities are adequate and whether they
are functioning properly. To assess the facilities, we will evaluate
how well they function, where they excel and where they require
improvements to essentially provide us with the potential to
enhance them. The results of this evaluation will contribute to the
development of a laboratory operations guide; a guide will create
standardization of procedures, improve safety, and provide better
laboratory management.
Primarily, the purpose of this project is to assist in the support of
teaching and learning in Hospitality Management. We wish to
ensure that the laboratory facilities meet the needs of students
and comply with accepted industry standards. Through providing
the results of the evaluation and recommendations to institutions,
it is expected that institutions will be able to create a more
effective, safer and sustainable learning/environments.

Statement of Problem
The primary purpose of this research is to evaluate the available
laboratory resources used in hospitality-related instruction and
use the findings to develop a user-friendly, standardized operating
procedure. The specific objectives that this study attempts to
achieve are as follows:

1. What is the current inventory status of tools, equipment, and

materials in terms of their availability and condition in the
following areas:
 ○ Front Office
 ○ Housekeeping
 ○ Food and Beverage Service
 ○ Food Production

2. What gaps exist between the available resources and the

required resources for each laboratory area?

3. Based on the results, what laboratory manual can be

developed to guide students and instructors in the proper
use of tools, equipment, and materials?

Theoretical Framework
The research study outlined below is based on several previously
established theories, which serve as the conceptual basis for this
research study. The Facility Management Theory was created by
Atkin and Brooks in 2015, focusing on managing facilities and
infrastructure strategically and systematically to improve the
effectiveness of the original mission of business. As such, the
Facility Management Theory will assist this research study in
evaluating how the Laboratory of Hospitality Managements
operates and that they are safe to work in, provide adequate
resources to be successful and are appropriately maintained so
that students will maximize their ability to learn efficiently.
Significance of the Study
This research study is made in may provide information and
knowledge regarding the chosen topic title from the respondents
and the findings of the study may be beneficial to the following
groups or entities.
Students - The study found out that many laboratory facilities do
not have space, modern equipment and regular maintenance. If
we fix these problems students will have laboratory conditions
and standard procedures that will help them learn by doing things
with their own hands. With more functional facilities students can
focus on learning new skills, become more confident when doing
tasks and get better training results that meet industry standards.
Instructors - report having trouble managing their lab work and
facilities due to a lack of clarity in their procedures and poor
maintenance of their facilities. Creating an operations manual will
give instructors a tool to help them manage their labs in an
organized manner while ensuring safety, thus giving them more
time to teach students rather than spend time fixing issues in
their labs.
Administrators - will also benefit from this report and it identifies
problems with facilities and how they are managed. The report
describes problems with equipment as well as maintenance
schedules and how all these factors create obstacles to providing
laboratory experiences for their students.
Administration can use the information in this report to improve
how they make decisions related to upgrading laboratory
facilities, developing budgets, and how to plan for maintaining the
facilities and equipment. Because the report is research based,
administration can allocate resources more efficiently to enhance
sustainability and provide greater benefit to the institution.

Curriculum - developers can use this report to improve training

methods for laboratory instructors and to develop curricula that
link the instructor's practical experience to the materials taught in
class. The lab operations manual will provide lab developers with
a tool that can be used in creating instructional materials and will
ensure that the labs are consistent, safe, and provide quality
learning experience for students. Because the operations manual
will link the practical experience of the instructor to the
theoretical material learned by the students, this will enable lab
instructors to perform better in their teaching activities.
Future Researchers—The findings in this study gives us a kind of
starting point to look over laboratory facilities in hospitality
education. Future researchers might use this as a reference, for
example for research tied to facility management and educational
infrastructure, you know, the more “how the system works” side
of it. It also gives a framework plus a method that can be applied
in institutions or even adjusted so they can explore new
directions. Like, sustainability practices through technology, or
just checking student satisfaction, since these things usually
connect together in real settings.

Scope and Limitation

This study is mainly about assessing the Hospitality Management
laboratory facilities. It involves 132 Hospitality Management
students, specifically 4th year BSHM students as the respondents.
The whole conduct is done inside the Hospitality Management
laboratories of a private academic institution, during this First
Semester of Academic Year 2025–2026. The goal here is to
produce data that can become a basis for making a laboratory
manual and recommending improvements, so the facilities can
work better and the management side can be enhanced. For
gathering data, the study uses survey questionnaires.

Definition of Terms
Facility Evaluation is basically a step-by-step way to check how
good, or how functional laboratory facilities are. We observe their
condition, whether they have enough space and the right
equipment, and whether the setups are safe. We also examine if
these facilities match the needs of students, and if they follow the
required rules or guidelines.

Laboratory Facilities, these are rooms, equipment, and learning

areas where students practice skills by doing. In hospitality
programs, these are used for training in kitchen operations,
housekeeping, front office, and bar management. Through these
facilities, students can apply what they learn in class into real-life
situations, like a rehearsal before work.

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

In this chapter, evaluating laboratory facilities in Hospitality
Management is kind vital, because it helps explain how the
equipment and the environment, plus management practices,
affect student learning and skill development. Since hands on
activities are central for training, past studies usually point to key
factors like facility adequacy, safety, and how things are properly
managed. The review below mostly summarizes studies that back
up the need for a more systematic assessment, and yes
improvement, of these laboratory environments.

Laboratory Facilities in Hospitality Education

Laboratory facilities are, genuinely, very important in hospitality
management education. This is where students get to do things
themselves, not just observe. They help other students connect
what they learned in class to real actions, like cooking and
housekeeping, even bartending and handling the front office
tasks. Garcia (2022) says that it is important to have equipment
that is working properly, so students can absorb and practice the
skills. Students get the chance to try out what they learned in
class. That practice shows up in cooking, housekeeping,
bartending, and front office operations. Also, modern tools, if used
well, help students rehearse industry-standard techniques more
effectively. When laboratories use updated materials and supplies,
students often become more confident and better prepared when
they go to real work settings.

At the same time, the physical environment of the laboratory

matters a lot too. Santos (2023) emphasizes that ventilation,
lighting, room layout, and design influence students’ motivation
and participation during practical activities. A well-arranged
laboratory can reduce crowding, improve the workflow, and
promote safety. In the end, this tends to create a productive
learning environment. On the other hand, poorly designed spaces
can lead to discomfort, restrict movement and negatively impact
performance. Overall, research indicates that both the equipment
and the general design of the environment are important, almost
equally, for how laboratories function and support learning.
Garcia (2022) emphasizes the need for modern tools, more or
less. Santos (2023) stresses the importance of a designed space
that helps students keep focus and work efficiently. When
evaluating Hospitality Management laboratories, you kinda have
to look at both what’s there and how it’s set up, meaning the
environment itself. In other words, the way the space is arranged
matters. So, in summary, laboratory facilities are not just “rooms”,
they are elements that shape students’ skills and their readiness
for the hospitality industry. That said, understanding the quality of
the equipment, and also the condition of the surrounding
environment, is essential to judge how effective the lab really is,
and to find places for improvement.

Facility Management and Maintenance Atkin and Brooks, in 2015,

said that good facility management is about bringing people,
processes, and technology together, so that learning spaces stay
safe and keep running smoothly. They also made it clear that
regular checks are really important , because things do not
improve by ignoring them. Atkin and Brooks further said that
taking care of equipment and systems before they break is
crucial. Following the rules is really important too, for Atkin and
Brooks. They believe all these steps are necessary to keep
learning spaces safe and running smoothly. In their view, good
facility management is, basically, about people and processes and
technology that work well together.

The Department of Education said in 2021 that schools need to

have a plan for taking care of things, including keeping places
clean, making sure equipment works properly, and checking for
safety problems. Some newer research, like what Villareal did in
2023, shows that schools that handle issues early before they
become problems tend to reduce accidents and students, well,
they feel happier overall.
Safety and Accessibility in Laboratory Use
According to OSHA in 2020 laboratories that are easy to get and
do not have hazards can reduce the number of accidents and help
students learn in a comfortable way. Dela Cruz found out in 2022
that laboratories that are not set up well and are too crowded can
really hurt how well students do their work in the laboratories. It
can also hurt whether students follow safety rules in the
laboratories. Mendoza discovered in 2024 that having programs
to teach people about safety in laboratories and putting up signs
to show where hazards are in the laboratories can make the
laboratories work better. This can also make the users of the
laboratories feel more confident when they are in the laboratories.
Laboratory activities are a part of learning science and are very
important for teachers nowadays. However, many public high
schools have time getting the things they need and using them
well which can hurt how well students do in school and limit their
chances to do hands on work. As Antonio said in 2018, laboratory
activities are necessary for students to really learn because they
help students go from watching to doing things and
understanding them deeply as Nuevo also found out in 2024.
Laboratory activities like these are important for laboratory
learning and laboratory work and teachers should try to make
sure students get to do laboratory activities as much as possible
because laboratory activities are key to laboratory education.
Gregorcic & Linder (2022) also mentioned that experimental
laboratory work is expected to improve learning in physics
education. Considering this, many studies focus on the impact of
experimental laboratory activities on students’ learning and on
what factors may affect the efficiency of laboratory work.
Manual Development in Educational Settings
Reyes (2021) points out that laboratory manuals help keep things
consistent, and in a way standardized for how teaching is
delivered, so there is less uncertainty for instructors and for
students too. More recent work, like Tan & Morales (2023), also
suggests that manuals tend to work best when they are updated
regularly— and matched with the facility evaluation data. When
that happens, the laboratory setting becomes more responsive,
more organized, and generally easier to manage.

Synthesis
According to the reviewed papers, well managed facilities that
have the right equipment, clear safety measures, and well
structured manuals seem to support better student learning. The
results basically back the idea that HM laboratories should be
evaluated as part of the overall manual development process.

Research Gap
There are only a few studies that directly look at HM laboratory
facilities in Philippine private institutions. Also, there is not much
research that links what the facility evaluation shows to how
manuals get developed. This study is meant to fill those gaps,
even if only partially at first, and make the connection more
visible.
This chapter explained how we did our study. We looked at the
research plan, who was in the study what we used to collect data
and how we made sure it was accurate. We also talked about how
we collected and analyzed the data to solve the problems we
found.

Research Design
We used a research plan that was based on numbers. This plan
worked well because we wanted to get facts about the Hospitality
Management lab facilities. We asked students to fill out a survey
to get their thoughts on using the labs. This approach helped us
understand how things are now and find out what needs to get
better. The results of our evaluation helped us make suggestions
and create a plan for running the labs. The study participants
were students. They gave responses regarding their experiences
and perceptions when using the laboratory facilities. The
laboratory facilities is where Hospitality Management students
practice and learn. The research instrument was a survey
questionnaire. The data collection and analysis procedures were
done to address the presented problems. The results served as
the basis for developing recommendations and, for the proposed
laboratory operations manual.

Data Processing and Analysis

The researchers began by looking at all the questionnaires they

collected to make sure the answers were complete, consistent
and valid. They had to exclude questionnaires with unclear
answers from the analysis. The good questionnaires were.
Prepared for statistical analysis.
Each item on the questionnaire was given a number, where 5
meant the person Strongly Agreed 4 meant they Agreed 3 meant
they were Neutral 2 meant they Disagreed and 1 meant they
Strongly Disagreed. This helped the researchers understand what
the respondents thought about the Hospitality Management
laboratory facilities.

The data was analyzed using statistical tools. The researchers

used frequency and percentage to show who the respondents
were and how long they had been working. They also used a
weighted means to see how much the respondents agreed or
disagreed about the laboratory facilities, including the space,
equipment, safety, accessibility and management.

The results were put into tables. Explained in Chapter 4. This

made it easy to see what the researchers found, which helped
them identify what was good and bad about the laboratory
facilities. It also helped them come up with recommendations and
a proposed manual for the laboratory.