Assessment and perception of student farm background in an introductory agriculture course

Abstract

As faculty continue to become generations removed from production agriculture, it may be difficult for some instructors to determine the production experience of students in their classrooms. This presents a unique issue in the broader field of agriculture education across disciplines in areas such as curriculum development and teaching methodology. The objective of this study was to quantify student self-perceptions of their farming backgrounds and experiences in a non-land-grant university agriculture department. Students in an introductory agriculture course at Illinois State University were surveyed over four consecutive semesters to determine previous agricultural experience. Out of a total course enrollment of 775, 200 students indicated a farm background. This study focuses on these 200 students. Grain production experience was indicated by 79.5% of participants, and 52% of students reported livestock production experience, many of which (41.3%) were junior/4-H/FFA-based, which may influence student perception of commercial practices. Although 46.7% of respondents reported at least half of their family's household income was farm-based, the proportion of household income generated by farming was greater for students indicating primarily grain farming backgrounds. Contrary to typical perceptions of “farm kids,” results of this study indicate low levels of production experience, and further evaluation of student and teacher agricultural experiences and perceptions is warranted.