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ERIC Number: EJ1062697
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2015-Jun
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0157-244X
EISSN: N/A
Measuring the Interest of German Students in Agriculture: The Role of Knowledge, Nature Experience, Disgust, and Gender
Bickel, Malte; Strack, Micha; Bögeholz, Susanne
Research in Science Education, v45 n3 p325-344 Jun 2015
Modern knowledge-based societies, especially their younger members, have largely lost their bonds to farming. However, learning about agriculture and its interrelations with environmental issues may be facilitated by students' individual interests in agriculture. To date, an adequate instrument to investigate agricultural interests has been lacking. Research has infrequently considered students' interest in agricultural content areas as well as influencing factors on students' agricultural interests. In this study, a factorial design of agricultural interests was developed combining five agricultural content areas and four components of individual interest. The instrument was validated with German fifth and sixth graders (N?=?1,085) using a variance decomposition confirmatory factor analysis model. The results demonstrated a second-order factor of general agricultural interest, with animal husbandry, arable farming, vegetable and fruit cropping, primary food processing, and agricultural engineering as discrete content areas of agricultural interest. Multiple regression analyses demonstrated that prior knowledge, garden experience, and disgust sensitivity are predictors of general agricultural interest. In addition, gender influenced interest in four of the five agricultural content areas. Implications are directed at researchers, teachers, and environmental educators concerning how to trigger and develop pupils' agricultural interests.
Springer. 233 Spring Street, New York, NY 10013. Tel: 800-777-4643; Tel: 212-460-1500; Fax: 212-348-4505; e-mail: service-ny@springer.com; Web site: http://www.springerlink.com
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Grade 5; Intermediate Grades; Middle Schools; Elementary Education; Grade 6
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Germany
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A