Exploring the integration of science into agricultural education

This three article dissertation explored the integration of science into agricultural education through three phases.The first phase investigated the science and animal science content knowledge of preservice teachers enrolled in Integrating Science in Agricultural Education. A one group pretest-posttest design was used to determine the science and animal science knowledge of the twenty participants. A paired samples t-test was utilized to compare the means of the scores on the pretests and posttests which indicated a significant difference in the mean of scores on the science pretest and posttest as well as the animal science pretest and posttest. Bivariate correlations found moderate correlations between preservice teachers’ grade point average and science pretest scores and science posttest scores; between the number of postsecondary core science credits a preservice teacher earned and science pretest scores and change in science test scores; as well as between the number of postsecondary animal science credits a preservice teacher earned and science posttest scores. Phase two was a qualitative case study focused on 20 preservice teachers enrolled in a course that focused on the integration of science in agricultural education. The course used the scope and sequence of a Curriculum for Agricultural Science Education (CASE) Institute thus providing the preservice teachers with the 65 hours of required professional development to be CASE certified. The Theory of Planned Behavior was used to explore the participants’ intentions for integrating science in agricultural education through the use of CASE curriculum. The three factors that Ajzen (1991) claims to impact a person’s intentions to perform a behavior were explored through classroom observations, preservice teachers’ journals, and one-on-one interviews. Participants showed a positive attitude toward science integration and the CASE curriculum. The participants had mixed opinions about how much science is currently being integrated in agricultural education and identified some barriers (mainly the expense of supplies and equipment needed to teach the CASE curriculum) that could impact their perceived behavioral control. The students had high intentions to integrate science in their instruction and to use CASE curriculum in the future. Phase three explored science teachers’ perceptions of the Principles of Agriculture – Animal curriculum developed by Curriculum for Agricultural Science Education (CASE). A convenience sample of Texas science teachers attending the Conference for the Advancement of Science Teaching resulted in collecting data from 119 participants. Participants agreed that CASE curriculum includes science concepts, applies scientific principles to real world concepts, and accurately teaches science concepts. They also agreed that an agriculture teacher could teach lessons in the CASE curriculum. The science teachers felt confident that they could teach the lessons, they have the equipment needed to teach the lessons, they would be willing to loan this equipment to agriculture teachers, they would be willing to co-teach this curriculum with an agriculture teacher, and they would be willing to assist agriculture teachers in preparing to teach this curriculum. They did not agree that their school would allocate funds for an agriculture class that is structured in the nature of the CASE curriculum. A correlation between the summated score for science teachers’ perceptions of implementing the CASE curriculum was found with whether or not the science teacher taught at a school that had an existing agricultural education program and their agriculture connectedness score.