Teaching Applied Biology In Secondary Agriculture: Effects On Student Achievement And Attitudes

Abstract

Secondary school agricultural education may well be in its most tenuous position since its inception more than half a century ago. For example, total secondary vocational agriculture enrollment in Illinois has gone from 29,502 in 1979 to 15,385 in 19% (Witt, 1987). The educational reform movement of the 1980s has received much of the blame for this situation. A tangible result has been the increased requirement for academic credit for high school graduation and college entrance in many states (Burton, 1986; Case, 19%). Underlying factors, such as the questionable contribution of vocational education to job success (Warmbrod, 1983) and the perceived inadequacies of the traditional agriculture curriculum (Russell, 1986), may also be contributing to the decline. One strategy for solving this curricular dilemma is summarized by the National Commission on Secondary Vocational Education (1984):