Millenial and Non-millenial Agriculture Teachers' Current and Ideal Emphasis on the Three Components of the Agricultural Education Program

Abstract

Classroom and laboratory instruction, FFA, and SAE have long represented the complete agricultural education program via the three-component model. While the model depicts three circles of equal size to represent these components, the focus and level of emphasis of each component within the agriculture program is the decision of the agriculture teacher. The purpose of this study was to describe [State] agriculture teachers’ behavioral intentions and actual behaviors regarding emphasis of each component in the profession’s three-component model. Results of this descriptive study indicated the average program emphasized instruction most, FFA next, and SAE least. However, the majority of respondents indicated a disparity between the emphasis of each component in their current program and their ideal program. Most respondents indicated their ideal program would emphasize instruction, FFA, and SAE equally. Differences between Millennial and Non-millennial teachers indicate the younger generation spent more time on FFA than the older generations, while the older generation wanted more personal time than their younger peers. We recommend further research be conducted to determine whether these results are found among other populations, as well as to uncover the reasons behind these results.