High School Students’ Perceptions of Agriculture and Agricultural Careers as Delineated by Presence of an Agriculture Program and RuralUrban Categorization

1 Running Head: Agricultural Perceptions High School Students’ Perceptions of Agriculture and Agricultural Careers as Delineated by Presence of an Agriculture Program and Rural/Urban Categorization Erin Smith, Undergraduate Research Honors, Cornell University Travis Park, Professor, Cornell University Agricultural Perceptions Abstract Eleventh grade students (n = 1,953) in 17 public schools across New York State were surveyed regarding their agricultural perceptions and stereotypes Four types of schools were targeted for this study: rural and urban schools with agriculture programs, and rural and urban schools without agriculture programs The purpose of this study was to determine perceptions among high school students about agriculture and careers in agriculture Results indicated a lack of understanding regarding the importance of a college education for agricultural careers The agricultural perception scores of students attending a school with an agriculture program but not enrolled in an agriculture course were similar to the scores of students attending schools without agriculture programs; only the students enrolled in agricultural education courses had significantly higher perception scores The demographics from the rural schools without agriculture programs indicated an opportunity may exist to expand agriculture programs within these areas The majority of the population believed no specific individual, media, and/or environment influenced their perception; however those who indicated an influence held more positive perceptions of the field of agriculture Introduction In 2000, the field of agriculture employed 22 million Americans, making it the largest employer within the United States Twenty-two million Americans were involved in processing food from the farm to the table (Farm Facts Book, 2000) It was predicted that each year between 2005 and 2010, 52,000 agriculture jobs would be available, but only 49,300 qualified college graduates would be present to fill them (Goecker, Gilmore, Smith & Smith, 2005) With the agricultural job demand remaining unmet, attention has shifted towards collegiate and high school agriculture programming and coursework Agricultural Perceptions Unfortunately, collegiate agriculture programs are shrinking and colleges are encountering increased difficulty in recruiting agriculture majors From 1998 to 2005, the number of agriculture and natural resources students awarded bachelor’s degrees decreased by 1.2%; however the total number of degrees awarded increased by 22.7% (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2007) This decrease in agriculture program size at a time of increased college attendance may be a result of less exposure to the field of agriculture in the formative years Agricultural work and labor has disappeared from the average American’s daily routine as a result of technological advances in productivity As children mature, they rarely encounter agriculture directly; instead they learn through peers and media outlets (Swortzel & Taylor, 2006) One potential remedy for the decline in the number of agriculture students is to provide students with more exposure to agricultural programs These programs have been shown to increase agricultural understanding and stimulate positive agricultural perceptions (Wagler, Rusk, Blomeke, Talbert, Richert, & Latour, 2007; Pense, Leising, Portillo & Igo, 2005) Unfortunately, opportunities to enroll in agricultural science classes are decreasing In 2001, more than 35 high school agriculture programs closed because no qualified teachers could be found (National FFA Organization, 2007) In 2008, only 174 out of the more than 7,000 high schools in New York State had agricultural education programs (NYSED, 2008) In order to maximize the efficacy of the existing programs, reach a broader range of students, and increase recruitment into agricultural majors and careers, an increased understanding of the origin of agricultural perceptions is needed Two elements integral to these developing agricultural perceptions are the school curriculum and community environment Agricultural Perceptions Theoretical Framework The school and community environments are two specific domains in which perceptions are created and fostered Urie Brofenbrenner’s ecological systems theory (1962) supports the influence of the environment and the interacting ecosystems on a child’s cognitive development Brofenbrenner proposed the existence of five different systems that influence a child’s learning; from the microsystem (what directly influences the child, i.e school), to the macrosystem (the larger social-cultural context) According to Bronfenbrenner’s theory, the teacher’s tone, body language, and curriculum leave an impact on the impressionable youth, as the community’s economy and population size (ex a small town primarily employed in agriculture vs a large one employed by IBM) It only requires one unusual encounter with an uncommon group member to create a stereotype (Risen, Gilovich, & Dunning, 2007) A school’s setting and curriculum further define what is common and who the students come into contact with The social learning theories of Albert Bandura (1964) and Lev Vygotsky (1979) support the role of social interactions in shaping learning and thought After years of age, children spend the majority of their day in the classroom setting The activities encouraged, the tone used, and even the body language displayed by the teacher leave an impact on the impressionable youth The agricultural stereotypes held by the teacher can influence his or her students The community environment also provides numerous opportunities for social interaction A community that is centered on its local farming and agricultural industry could promote very different agricultural perceptions than a community thriving on a computer manufacturing industry The theories proposed by these scholars suggest the school and community environments are important ingredients in the formation of perceptions in a child’s mind Agricultural Perceptions The school and community environments and social interactions can influence a youth’s budding interest in future career fields According to status attainment theory, bias, discrimination, cultural expectations, societal attitudes, and stereotypes work to shape career aspirations (Hotchkiss & Borow, 1996) Such societal and cultural values vary from one teacher, classroom, and community to another Super’s developmental self-concept theory (1990) further supports the influential role of a child’s environment on their developing career interests Super posits that career development occurs in a succession of exploratory stages—beginning with fantasies and ending with the development of a self-concept Super proposes that this process can be guided through school intervention Status attainment theory and developmental self-concept theory provide the theoretical underpinnings to this studies assumption that the school and community environments directly influence later career outcomes Previous Research Education and Perceptions Previous studies have concluded that agricultural literacy influences a student’s agricultural perceptions A study evaluating the effectiveness of a swine education program found that the curriculum positively increased the students’ attitudes towards the pork industry This effect was seen less dramatically among the students in the class who had an agricultural background; as would be expected from a population who had a higher beginning knowledge base (Wagler, Rusk, Blomeke, Talbert, Richert, & Latour, 2007) A study conducted in rural Missouri found a weak positive correlation between agricultural literacy and a positive perception towards agriculture (Wright, Stewart, & Birkenholz, 1994) The more educated an individual, the fewer negative stereotypes the individual developed about agriculture Agricultural Perceptions A teacher’s agricultural literacy and agricultural perceptions can influence their classroom environment A study conducted among primary school teachers in Chicago found that their perception of nature influenced whether or not their students were given the chance to experience natural areas (Simmons, 1998) Another study conducted in Iowa found that when teachers held relatively high perception scores of sustainable agriculture, their students did as well (Williams & Wise, 1997) Thus, a teacher’s agricultural knowledge base, stereotypes, and background can influence what their students learn as well as contribute/hinder agricultural stereotype development Differing levels of agricultural knowledge and stereotypes have been found within schools with agricultural education courses and those without A pilot study conducted by Smith and Park (2009) compared the differences in agricultural literacy and stereotypes among students based on location (rural versus urban) and education (whether or not the school had an agriculture program) Contrary to what one would expect, the pilot study found the presence of an agriculture program to be associated with more traditional stereotypes about agriculture (which are often perceived as negative) as well as a derogatory opinion of individual farmers (Smith, Park & Sutton, 2009) In another study, students in schools with agriculture programs were compared to those without programs The results from this study were what one would expect; students in schools with agricultural programs had a higher knowledge score than students in schools without an agricultural science program (Wright, Stewart, & Birkenholz, 1994.) School Setting and Perceptions Varying levels of agricultural stereotypes and knowledge have been found among students from different school settings A study comprising Illinois twelfth grade students found Agricultural Perceptions more agricultural knowledge among students living in rural areas (versus urban) and among students enrolled in agriculture programs (versus those who were not enrolled in these programs) Nonetheless, the researchers found the general population to be agriculturally illiterate (Pense, Beebe, Leising, Wakefield, & Steffen, 2006) A pilot study conducted in rural and urban high schools in Indiana and Michigan found all the students had positive perceptions of agriculture However, the rural students did score significantly higher in two of the seven concept areas (Frick, Birkenholz, Gardner, & Machtmes, 1995) A study in Iowa utilized focus groups to assess the middle-school students’ agricultural perceptions The researchers concluded that both rural and urban students held the perception that farmers are old men, wearing bib overalls and chewing on straw (Holz-Clause & Jost, 1995) These negative perceptions discourage people from considering agriculture as a valid career option Overall, there is a lack of consensus among the literature over the influence of school setting (whether or not a school is rural or urban) and education (whether or not a school offers agricultural education) on students’ agricultural perceptions Much of the existing work is also outdated No studies were found analyzing the influence of agriculture programs on the perception of agriculture among the entire school population and community This study attempts to fill the gap in the literature and address the influence of both the school environment (rural vs urban) and the education offered (agriculture program vs non) on the students’ agricultural perceptions Purpose / Objectives The purpose of this survey was to analyze the agricultural perceptions and stereotypes present in eleventh grade populations at four representative schools The schools are: (a) rural schools with agricultural education programs [Rural-Ag], (b) urban schools with agricultural Agricultural Perceptions education programs [Urban-Ag], (c) rural schools without agricultural education programs [Rural-NonAg], and, (d) urban schools without agricultural education programs [UrbanNonAg]) The specific objectives were: To compare the perceptions of agriculture held by New York State eleventh grade students from four different school environments, To ascertain the proportional influence garnered by the school setting and agricultural education courses on students’ perceptions, and To identify which factors contribute most to students’ perceptions of agriculture Methods / Procedures Participants A stratified sample of eleventh1 grade students from seventeen schools across New York State was surveyed The schools selected fit into four categories: four rural schools with an agriculture program, four rural schools without, four urban schools with an agriculture program, and five urban schools without The definition of urbanized area and urbanized cluster proposed by the U.S Census Bureau2 was used in locating ‘urban areas’ for this study (US Census Bureau, 2002) The schools with agriculture programs were selected from a New York State Agricultural education listing (CALS, 2007) and the majority were contacted through their agriculture teachers Within each category, the schools selected represented different regions of the state The urban schools without agriculture programs were the only schools that were located in close proximity to one another; two of the four schools in this category were located in New York City In total, 1953 students were surveyed (757 Urban-NonAg, 576 Urban-Ag, 338 Rural-NonAg, Eleventh grade students were targeted to control for years in school and knowledge base They were also an easier population to gain school permission to survey due to their less rigorous state exam schedule The Census Bureau classifies as “urban” all territory, population, and housing units located with an urbanized area (UA) or an urban cluster (UC) It delineates UA and UC boundaries to encompass densely settled territory which consists of : 1.) core census block groups or blocks that have a population density of at least 1,000 people per square mile and 2.) surrounding census blocks that have an overall density of at least 500 people per square mile Agricultural Perceptions 282 Rural-Ag) All students attending the specified eleventh grade class on the day of the questionnaires administration were asked to participate by completing a questionnaire No teachers indicated that any students failed to complete the questionnaire In total, 68.2% of the overall population expected to be in school3 were captured (Rural-Ag 75.9%, Rural-NonAg 85.7%, Urban-Ag 70.4%, Urban-NonAg 59.2%) Materials & Design The researcher-developed questionnaire consisted of questions to capture the students’ perceptions of agriculture and the origin of those perceptions The survey contained a total of 30 questions and utilized closed-ended, multiple choice questions.4 The content of the questionnaire was developed utilizing the results of a pilot study conducted by the researchers (Smith & Park, 2009) The pilot study included an open-ended question designed to capture the students’ perceptions of agriculture Frequent responses were tabulated (i.e man, redneck, cow, poor) and used in creating the stereotypical, negative perceptions for this survey instrument The questions were structured as scales with anchors/mid-points (i.e.: Question: Do you believe that individuals interested in agriculture need to attend college to be successful? Answers: Yes, Don’t Know, No.) and scales without (i.e Question: Agriculture is… Answers: A broad career field; Only farming) To establish face and content validity, the survey was reviewed by a panel of experts consisting of a professional evaluator, the Executive Director of the New York State Rural Schools Association, an agricultural education Professor, and a high school agricultural education teacher Inter-item reliability was assessed for the concepts of agricultural perceptions The expected population was found using the New York State Testing and Accountability Reporting Tool (New York State Department of Education, 2008) The number of eleventh grade students attending each school was found and multiplied by the each school’s attendance rate to produce an average daily population The students’ responses were limited in order to utilize scantrons, eliminate entry error, and permit a larger study population Agricultural Perceptions 10 through a post-hoc reliability test (α=.69) The data was analyzed using SPSS version 13.0 Descriptive statistics, correlations, t-tests, and one-way ANOVAs were used in the analysis Procedure Data was collected over a three month period The study was administered by way of a modified survey design of teacher-administered questionnaires as outlined by Dillman (2002) The school administrators were contacted, permission to conduct the study was secured, and packets containing questionnaires, bubble sheets, and teacher instructions were distributed The study was conducted anonymously and approval was received from the Cornell University Institutional Review Board The surveys were primarily distributed through the eleventh grade history department Two schools distributed the survey during the eleventh grade homerooms and two others distributed the surveys through the eleventh grade English department In total, 89.2% of the respondents were in the targeted eleventh grade Each teacher distributing the survey received a letter of instruction explaining the questionnaire and providing distribution instructions Results / Findings Demographics Fifty-two percent of the participants were female and 48% were male (Table 1) The highest percentage of students that lived on a farm (13.0%) attended Rural-NonAg schools Rural-Ag schools also contained the largest percentage of students with a family that has lived on a farm (58.5%), a family that has worked on a farm (28.7%), and a family that has worked in an agricultural industry (21.4%) Urban-Ag schools had the highest participation in agriculturally related clubs involving nearly 14% of the student population Over a quarter of the students within Rural-Ag and Urban-Ag schools had enrolled in agricultural courses Agricultural Perceptions 15 attending Ag Schools and enrolled in Agricultural education classes had the highest overall perception score (20.21) Those attending Ag Schools but not enrolled in Agricultural education courses had a high mean score of 19.92 A one-way ANOVA test found the agricultural perceptions of students’ differed, though not statistically significant, across school type at a significance level of p=.09, F (3, 1765) = 2.14 Table Summated Means of Agricultural perceptions of Students Agricultural Perceptions Number Mean S.D Non-Ag School Rural Urban 338 757 19.77 19.85 2.38 2.55 Ag School Rural Urban Enrolled in an Ag Class Not Enrolled in an Ag Class 282 576 221 618 19.89 20.21 20.73 19.92 2.96 2.33 2.35 2.60 Objective 2: Identify Influence of School Setting & Agricultural education A significant negative correlation (-.10) was found between school setting (0=urban, 1=rural) and the statement individuals interested in agriculture need to attend college to be successful (Table 6) This correlation indicates urban students were more likely to agree with this statement and rural students were more likely to disagree with it The presence of an agriculture program was significantly correlated with participation in an agriculture club, enrollment in an agriculture course, and the students considering a career in the field of agriculture The presence of an agriculture program also showed a significant correlation (+.55) with a high agricultural perception score Overall, the results in Table indicate that an agriculture program is associated with higher participation in agriculture programs and more positive perceptions Agricultural Perceptions 16 Table Correlations between Agricultural Beliefs, School Setting and Presence of an Agricultural Education Program School setting Presence of an (0 = urban, = rural) agriculture program (0 = no, = yes) Participated in an agriculture club Enrolled in an agriculture course Most farmers in New York State work only on their farm Most farmers in New York State get the majority of their income from the farm Individuals interested in agriculture need to attend college to be successful Consider a career in the field of agriculture Agricultural Perceptions * 030 014 019 179* 193* -.048* 046* -.025* -.104* 082* -.007 138* -.032 055* α = 05 Further analysis noted the difference of agricultural perception between urban and rural schools was not statistically significant (Table 7) Table T-test of General Agricultural perceptions by Rural versus Urban Students Urban Rural (n = 1333) (n = 620) M s.d M s.d t df p 95% Confidence Interval Agriculture 20.00 (-.42, 07) 2.46 19.83 2.66 1.39 1128 165 The agricultural perceptions of students attending a school with an agriculture program were significantly higher (p=.046) than those attending a school without an agriculture program (Table 8) Agricultural Perceptions 17 Table T-test of General Agricultural perceptions by Schools with an Agriculture Program versus Non Agriculture No Agriculture Program Program (n = 858) (n = 1095) 95% Confidence M s.d M s.d t df p Interval Agriculture 20.10 2.56 19.82 2.50 2.42 1951 016* (.05, 50) No significant difference in perception score was found between those attending schools without agriculture programs and those attending schools with agriculture programs but not enrolled in agriculture classes (Table 9) Table T-test of General Agricultural perceptions of Students Attending Ag Schools but not Enrolled in Ag Education versus Students Attending Non-Ag Schools Ag School, Not Enrolled in Ag No Agriculture Education Program (n = 618) (n = 1095) 95% Confidence M s.d M s.d t df p Interval Agriculture 19.92 2.60 19.82 2.50 770 1711 442 (-.15, 35) Objective 3: Identify Influencing Factors on Students Agricultural Perceptions Nearly 50% of the student population indicated no individual and no media influenced their agricultural perceptions (Table 10) Television was the second most influential media source Friends and relatives were found to have the second and third largest influence on students About a third of the students indicated no environment influenced their perceptions Between 22% and 35% of the students indicated the school and home environment influenced their agricultural perceptions Agricultural Perceptions 18 Table 10 Influences on Perceptions of Agriculture Urban-NonAg (n = 757) Rank (%) Urban-Ag (n = 576) Rank (%) Rural-NonAg (n = 338) Rank (%) Rural-Ag (n = 282) Rank (%) (17%) (24%) (19%) (15%) (23%) (10%) (27%) (21%) (26%) (19%) (21%) (17%) (47%) (43%) (48%) (19%) (32%) (17%) (13%) (41%) (23%) (32%) (16%) (10%) (47%) (15%) (25%) (16%) (09%) (60%) (22%) (38%) (19%) (05%) (35%) (35%) (20%) (31%) (02%) (32%) (30%) (27%) (29%) (06%) (37%) Who… …friends (23%) …teachers (17%) …relatives (23%) …immediate (18%) family …no one (47%) What media …movies (31%) …television (36%) …newspapers (17%) …magazines (11%) …none (42%) Where have you developed your perceptions of agriculture? …home (30%) …school (27%) …community (27%) …clubs (03%) …no place (37%) Table 11 indicates students who believe a person, a type of media, and/or a specific environment influences their agricultural perceptions have a higher agricultural perception score than the students that believe no person, media, and/or environment influence their perceptions Students that indicated a clear idea of the influencing factors on their perception also had a smaller standard deviation on their perception score Overall, Table 11 indicates that students who are more aware of the way their perceptions are influenced were more consistent in their perception score and held more positive perceptions Agricultural Perceptions 19 Table 11 Summated Means of Agricultural perception Scores According to Influence of Person, Media, and/or Environment Agricultural Perceptions Influencers Mean S.D Significance Yes, friends, teachers, relatives, and/or immediate family influence me No, no people influence me Yes, movies, television, newspapers, and/or magazines influence me No, no media influences me Yes, the home, school, community, and/or club environment influences me No, no environment influences me 20.49 2.32 19.37 2.64 20.22 2.42 19.71 2.66 20.32 2.44 19.30 2.63 p=.00, df = 1741.2 p=.00, df = 1712.7 p=.00, df = 1224.9 Conclusions/ Discussion The agriculturally related demographic data from the four types of schools differed from what was expected Rural-NonAg had the highest portion of students that lived on a farm, had family that lived on a farm, had family that worked on a farm, and/or had family that worked in an agricultural industry Based on the high level of agricultural connections among these populations, opportunities for more agricultural education programs may exist in rural areas in which the population has many agricultural connections The families, community members, and teachers in these areas may welcome and support the opportunity to educate in an industry highly relevant to their region The overall agricultural perception scores of the students were more positive than negative The average perception score of the sample population was 19.95 out of 24 The students attending the urban schools with agriculture programs had the highest mean perception Agricultural Perceptions 20 score out of the four different types of schools However, the difference in perception score between the rural and urban students was not found to be statistically significant; nor was the difference found between the students attending schools without agriculture programs and those attending schools with agriculture programs but not enrolled in agricultural education Only the students enrolled in agricultural education courses and attending a school with an agriculture program held significantly higher perception scores However, what practical significance does less than one point (out of 24) bear? Should we expect agricultural education programs to foster more of a difference in their youth? Should we expect agriculture programs to promote more positive agricultural perceptions within a school community? Bronfenbrenner’s erotological systems (1962) theory is not fully supported by the results of this study According to the data, the school climate (urban vs rural, presence of an agriculture program vs non) did not appear to have a significant impact on the students’ agricultural perceptions One possible interpretation of these results are that the role of school setting and school course offerings on students’ agricultural perceptions is minor; and thus this study did not find a significant impact Another possible interpretation is that this study did not capture the domains in which a difference would be found There could be variation in specific perception domains (career, industry, environmental, etc.) based on school climate Further research is needed to understand the role of the environment on student’s agricultural perceptions On average, 60% of each school believed no college education was necessary for a career in the agricultural field A significant correlation indicated urban students were more likely to disagree with this statement than rural students The presence of an agriculture program was also significantly correlated with students disagreeing with this statement However, over half of the students in each school type still believed a college education to be unnecessary for a career in Agricultural Perceptions 21 agriculture Many renowned universities have agriculture programs, and yet students not believe that a college education in agriculture is necessary for an agriculturally-related career This is a major obstacle that needs to be overcome The majority of students from each of the schools indicated no specific person, media, or environment influenced their agricultural perceptions The second and third most common responses in each category were television and movies, friends and relatives, and school and home The students that indicated a type of person, media, or environment influenced their perceptions had noticeably higher perception scores than those who believed no person, media, or environment influenced them One interpretation of this trend is that the students with higher agricultural perception scores have connections to agriculture through family and friends, agriculture education programs, and through educational television channels and movies This interpretation would support the social learning theories of Bandura (1964) and Vygostky (1979) It is also important to note that the proportion of students’ who believed no person, media or environment influenced their perceptions was consistent across school type; this indicates there are other important variables in the school environment which influence agricultural perceptions Agricultural connections and influences in the students’ lives encouraged positive agricultural perceptions and actions Agricultural education classes and agriculturally related clubs were significantly correlated with a high agricultural perception score and the students considering a career in the field of agriculture This finding provides further support for Super’s developmental self-concept theory (1990) and Hotchkiss and Borow’s status attainment theory (1996) A student living on a farm, having a family member that lived on a farm, having a family member that worked on a farm, and/or having a family member that worked in the agriculture industry was also significantly correlated with the students considering a career in Agricultural Perceptions 22 agriculture This finding supports the social learning theories of Bandura (1964) and Vygotsky (1979) Overall, involvement in an agriculture course, club, or school, and/or presence of agriculturally-related family connections were associated with the students considering a career in agriculture The difference in means was significant; however there is room for growth A few limitations are apparent in the design of the study The study is not a representative sample and thus the results cannot be generalized A large sample was collected to attempt to guarantee a level of reliability; however the findings of this study are not representative of New York State This study also lacks a controlled environment; thus the data may by influenced by environmental ‘noise.’ Some schools required a more formal process (i.e letters sent home, parental permission, school board approval) and others only required the principal’s approval Each school presented different obstacles, and so there were subtle differences in the distribution process in a few of the schools The validity and reliability of the survey instrument could be improved upon A pilot test of the instrument among the target population would have strengthened the instrument reliability It also would have allowed the researchers to analyze the questions aimed to measure agricultural perceptions and improve the internal consistency of the measure (Cronbach’s Alpha=.69) The study’s validity would have been strengthened if the researchers had been better able to capture the sample non-response error Due to the age of the population, no personal information about the participants could be collected In order to compensate for this, the researchers could have collected more demographic information from the students (i.e race, parental income, etc.) and included surveys for the teachers about nonparticipants This information would have allowed the researchers to better compare the respondents with the target population and to gather Agricultural Perceptions 23 teacher’s opinions on who the survey did not represent Thus, these limitations should be taken into consideration when reading this manuscript and using any of the data or findings Recommendations for Future Research The findings from this study present recommendations for further research First, it is not especially interesting that students attending schools where a secondary agricultural science program exists have more positive perceptions of agriculture What is interesting is that this difference is only statistically significant and not practically significant This leads one to question the impact that our current agricultural science programs have on the agricultural perceptions of students in their own schools Future studies should address how specific agricultural science course offerings and activities influence students to think positively about agriculture and careers in the food and fiber industry Which activities and curriculum have the greatest impact on these perceptions? Future studies should also address how these programs are influencing the rest of the school community Are some programs better than others at broadcasting the importance of agriculture and stimulating positive agricultural perceptions? Implications for Future Practice Although agricultural programs were found to foster significantly more positive agricultural perceptions among participants, the actual difference was not great Two possible reasons for this could be financial constraints and/or the types of courses offered Agriculture education is expensive due to the resource-rich labs and the travel required to visit professionals The financial constraints faced by teachers can effectively reduce the experiential learning opportunities for their students The field of agriculture is also a constantly evolving field New technology and information is always on the horizon Schools may not be adequately equipped to represent the reality of the current broad field of agriculture Schools and teachers should explore Agricultural Perceptions 24 the possibility of how instructional method and course of study influence their students perceptions Several other recommendations arise out of this work The possibility of creating new agriculture programs should be further explored Although the programs not have as a great an impact as could be expected, they are still an effective means of increasing agricultural perceptions and creating a larger pool from which to recruit youth into the field of agriculture The growth of agriculturally-related clubs and organizations, such as FFA and 4-H, should also be encouraged and supported by colleges, universities, and professional agriculture organizations Agriculture educators should address issues invisible within their community through their course curriculum For example, the majority of students attending rural schools with agriculture programs believed most farmers not work only on their farm, while the majority of students attending urban schools with agriculture programs were unsure whether this statement was true or false The urban students have no visible means through which to observe this information; therefore their teachers should teach a curriculum specially fitted to the needs of their environment The importance of a college education in the field of agriculture needs to be broadcast to youth They need to learn about the numerous career options available within the field and how integral these careers are to our present society Professors in the field of agriculture need to extend a hand to local schools and encourage field trips to their labs or lecture halls Agricultural outreach is not a new concept, but a renewed vigor is necessary Agricultural Perceptions 25 References Bandura, A., & Walters, R H (1964) Social learning and personality development NY: Holt, Rinehart and Winston Brofenbenner, U (1979) The ecology of human development: by nature and design Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press CALS (November 2007) Secondary Agriculture Educators Retrieved May 28, 2008, from Cornell University Agricultural Outreach and Education Website: http://www.nyaged.org/Directory/Secondary%20Teachers%20by%20school%20November%202007.pdf Dillman, D A (2000) Mail and Internet surveys: The tailored design method NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc Frick, M J., Birkenholz, R J., Gardner, H., & Machtmes, K (1995) Rural and urban inner-city high school student knowledge and perception of agriculture Journal of Agricultural Education, 36, 1-9 Goecker, A D., Gilmore, J L., Smith, E., & Smith, P G (2005) Employment opportunities for college graduates in the U.S food, agricultural, and natural resources system: 2005-2010 (CSREES Publication) West Lafayette: U.S Department of Agriculture and Purdue University Holtz-Claus, J., & Jost, M (1995) Using focus groups to check youth perceptions of agriculture Journal of Extension [Online], 33(3) Available: http://www.joe.org/joe/1995june/a3.html Hotchkiss, L., & Borow, H (1996) Sociological perspectives on work and career development In D Brown & L Brooks (Ed.), Career choice and development (pp 281–334) San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass National FFA Organization (2007) FFA & agriculture statistics Retrieved May 28, 2008, from National FFA Organization Web site: http://www.ffa.org/index.cfm?method=c_about.stats Agricultural Perceptions 26 New York State Education Department (2008) NYStart: New York State testing and accountability reporting tool Retrieved from https://www.nystart.gov/ Pense, S L., Beebe, J D., Leising, J G., Wakefield, D B., & Steffen, R W (2006) The agricultural literacy of urban/suburban and rural twelfth grade students in five illinois high schools: An ex post facto study Journal of Southern Agricultural Education Research 56, 5-15 Pense, S L., Leising, J G., Portillo, M T., & Igo, C G (2005) Comparative assessment of student agricultural literacy in selected agriculture in the classroom programs Journal of Agricultural Education 46, 107-118 Risen, J L., Gilovich, T., & Dunning, D (2007) One-shot illusory correlations and stereotype formation Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 33(11), 1492-1502 Simmons, D (1998) ‘Using natural settings for environmental education: perceived benefits and barriers’, Journal of Environmental Education, 29(3), 23–31 Smith, E., Park, T., & Sutton, M (2009) Effect of location and education on perceptions and knowledge about agriculture NACTA Journal 53(3), 17-23 Super, D E (1990) A life-span, life-space approach to career development In D Brown & L Brooks (Eds.), Career choice and development: Applying contemporary approaches to practice (pp 192-239) San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Swortzel, K A., Deeds, J P., & Taylor, W N (2006) Sources for learning about information technology careers and personal influences on the use of information technologies of high school students: A longitudinal trend study Journal of Southern Agricultural Education Research 56, 114-124 Agricultural Perceptions 27 U.S Census Bureau, (August, 23 2002) Census 2000 urbanized area and urban cluster information Retrieved May 28, 2008, from US Census Bureau Web site: http://www.census.gov/geo/www/ua/uaucinfo.html United States Department of Agriculture (2002) 2002 census of agriculture: Table 1: Historical highlights: 2002 and earlier census years USDA Retrieved October 28, 2006, from www.nass.usda.gov/census/census02/volume1/ny/index1.htm U.S Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (2007) The Condition of Education 2007 (NCES 2007-064) Washington, DC: U.S Government Printing Office Vygotsky, L S (1962) Thought and language (E Hanfmann & G Vakar, Trans.), The MIT Press, Cambridge, MA Wagler, S E., Rusk, C P., Blomeke, C R., Talbert, B A., Richert, B T., & Latour, M A (2007) An evaluation of attitude change by participation in an elementary educational swine curriculum 51, 38-43.Williams, D.L and Wise, K.L (1997) ‘Perceptions of Iowa secondary school agricultural education teachers and students regarding sustainable agriculture’, Journal of Agricultural Education, 38, 2, 15–20 Wright, D., Stewart, B R., & Birkenholz, R J (1994) Agricultural awareness of eleventh grade students in rural schools Journal of Agricultural Education, 35(4), 55-60 NYSED (2008) About SUNY and the state education department Retrieved May 28, 2008, from University of the State of NY state education department Web site: http://usny.nysed.gov/aboutusny.html Agricultural Perceptions 28 Appendix Agriculture in New York State Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey Your ideas and answers are very important to us Thank you once again Please fill in the appropriate response for questions 1-12 below on the bubble sheet What type of area is your home located? A) Rural B) Urban Do you live on a farm? A) Yes B) No Have you or anyone in your immediate family ever lived on a farm? A) Yes B) No Does anyone in your family work on a farm? A) Yes B) No A) Mother B) Father If yes, indicate which relative: Does anyone in your family work in an agricultural industry? A) Yes B) No Do you participate in any agriculturally related clubs? A) Yes B) No A) 4-H B) FFA If yes, indicate which groups you belong to: C) Suburban C) Brother or sister D) Grandparent C) Farm Bureau D) Grange Have you taken any agriculture-related classes? A) Yes B) No 10 Do you believe that most farmers in New York State work only on their farm? A) Yes B) No C) Don’t know 11 Do you believe that most farmers in New York State get the majority of their income from their farm? A) Yes B) No C) Don’t know 12 Do you believe that individuals interested in agriculture need to attend college to be successful? A) Yes B) No C) Don’t know (over) Agricultural Perceptions 29 For the following stem “Agriculture…,” select one of the two following responses for each numbered item Your selection should represent the answer that is closest to your perceptions of agriculture Agriculture … 13 A) Is difficult B) Is easy 14 A) Involves men wearing overalls B) Involves professionals 15 A) Is profitable B) Is not profitable 16 A) Requires a college education B) Requires no education 17 A) Harms the environment B) Protects the environment 18 A) Supplies safe, abundant food B) Is irresponsible with food issues 19 A) Is scary B) Is safe 20 A) Involves high technology B) Involves low technology 21 A) Includes computers & global positioning B) Includes pitchforks & animal labor 22 A) Is for hicks B) Is for anyone 23 A) Is a dead-end career B) Is a viable career option 24 A) Is big business B) Is small family farms 25 A) Is mostly men B) Is of mixed genders 26 A) Is a broad career field B) Is only farming Please fill in the appropriate response on the answer sheet for question 27 below 27 Would you consider a career in the field of agriculture? A Yes, I plan to B Maybe, it’s a possibility C No, agriculture doesn’t interest me For the following questions, choose any and all that apply 28 Who has influenced your perception of agriculture/farming? A) Friends B) Teachers C) Relatives D) Immediate family E) No one 29 What media has influenced your perception of agriculture/farming? A) Movies B) Television C) Newspapers D) Magazines E) None 30 Where have you developed your perception of agriculture/farming? A) Home B) School C) Community D) Clubs E) None of these places If you have any questions or comments about this questionnaire, please contact Erin Smith at eas78@cornell.edu ... Four types of schools were targeted for this study: rural and urban schools with agriculture programs, and rural and urban schools without agriculture programs The purpose of this study was to determine... Agricultural Beliefs, School Setting and Presence of an Agricultural Education Program School setting Presence of an (0 = urban, = rural) agriculture program (0 = no, = yes) Participated in an agriculture. .. majors and careers, an increased understanding of the origin of agricultural perceptions is needed Two elements integral to these developing agricultural perceptions are the school curriculum and