Teachers’ Perceptions Regarding Experiential Learning Attributes in Agricultural Laboratories

Abstract

In laboratory settings, research has found a mismatch between teachers’ practices and the likelihood they have to influence students’ perceptions and behaviors in laboratory work. Various attributes of experiential learning can enhance learning experiences, yet many have not been subject to exploration in agricultural education. This nonexperimental, descriptive study sought to investigate how teachers’ perceptions of the attributes which can make up experiential learning activities and how their ability to address these attributes might be associated with the different learning environments found in agricultural laboratories. Results indicated teachers found student ownership and the types of motivation students respond to as most important attributes, while duration of the activity and background knowledge of the students were found to be least important. Further, teachers reported the actions required during an activity and types of motivation were most frequently able to be addressed, while use of senses and family involvement were least frequently able to be addressed. These results, along with those associating specific laboratory settings with teachers’ ability to address various experiential learning attributes, hold implications for teacher training related to the use of experiential learning within laboratory settings.