Understanding Characteristics, Uses, Perceptions, and Barriers Related to School Farms in Oregon

Abstract

The relevance of experiential learning and opportunities a school farm can provide, along with the acknowledgment of potential barriers and the current deficit of research on school farms in Oregon make this study useful as a starting point in this line of exploration and in the preparation of teacher candidates. This study intended to gather descriptive data concerning school farms to gain a better understanding of the characteristics, uses, perceptions, and barriers to utilizing school farms as an experiential learning tool for students. Williams and McCarthy (1985) indicated utilizing school farms as a teaching-learning resource could benefit agricultural education programs, and Rose (2004) suggested we begin to reconsider how the school and workplace are connected. Approximately half of the agricultural education teachers in Oregon have access to a school farm. The primary facilities available on Oregon school farms were for equipment and tool storage and animal projects, with SAE and laboratory instruction being the main uses for students. Factors and barriers consist of the condition of the school farm, facilities, finances, and the ability of the teacher to oversee and to engage all students in the activity.

Agricultural Technical Skills Needed by Entry Level Agriculture Teachers: A Modified Delphi Study

“…Upon being hired, a new teacher could immediately be asked by an assuming administrator to manage and teach a technical skill or lab in which their experience may be inadequate. A recent assessment of Oregon agriculture teacher's use of school farms called for teacher educators to better educate preservice teachers in agricultural laboratory settings to guide intentions and behaviors (Lambert et al, 2018). Teacher education programs strive to provide a foundation for preservice SBAE teachers to move beyond the initial stage of teacher survival and disillusionment (Kagan, 1992) However, therein lies the problem.…”

“…Agricultural educators are required to have both subject specific and technical knowledge requiring an appropriate amount of knowledge and skill to be considered an expert while constantly adapting to new technologies and practices in the field (Roberts & Ball 2009). New SBAE teachers will find themselves needing technical skills to manage and teach, skills that are also required for the management of one or more teaching facilities beyond the classroom including but not limited to a land lab/farm, greenhouse, shop, livestock facilities (Lambert, Stewart, & Claflin, 2018). Rice and Kitchel (2016) stress the need for pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) in agricultural education.…”

What Is a School Farm? Results of a Scoping Review

“…Consistent topics across school farm curricula included farm management [ 40 , 51 , 53 , 58 , 59 , 62 , 67 , 72 , 83 , 86 , 91 , 99 , 105 , 106 ], farm accounting and business [ 40 , 54 , 59 , 66 , 107 ], and environmental conservation [ 39 , 42 , 53 , 57 , 71 , 73 , 91 , 97 , 100 , 108 ]. Historically, school farms were described as being a mechanism for building and contributing to the local community through resource-sharing and financial opportunities for students [ 3 , 11 , 13 , 22 , 27 , 31 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 44 , 58 , 59 , 68 , 71 ].…”

“…Similar to earlier publications, literature on school farms from 2000–2019 described programs that mainly addressed animal husbandry [ 80 , 109 , 110 ] and crop production [ 78 , 80 , 111 , 112 ]. Although the literature still discussed vocational agricultural training, we found that recent literature after 1999 focused more on interdisciplinary learning [ 35 , 43 ], experiential education [ 20 , 22 , 26 , 32 , 33 , 77 , 109 , 113 , 114 ] and an expansion of interdisciplinary subjects to include writing [ 77 , 79 , 113 ] and technological education [ 77 ].…”

“…School farms use experiential learning pedagogies to contribute to food literacy and support food education to ultimately build community food security [ 10 ]. According to recent literature in the 21st century, school farms are also known to engage students who may be marginalized in their communities [ 20 , 21 , 22 ] because the programs offer a venue for students from different backgrounds and cultures to find purpose, connection, and skills in an educational environment outside the traditional classroom setting [ 12 ].…”