Integrated STEM in School-Based Agricultural Education

Introduction

Agriculture, food, and natural resources (AFNR) employs over one billion people, which is one out of every three workers in the world, and generates $1 trillion worth in food globally. Annually, AFNR in the U.S. is a $100 billion industry (STEM Food and Agriculture Council, 2014). Science and engineering-related careers make up 29% of careers in agricultural, food and natural resources (AFNR). In the next 5 years, Fernandez et al. (2019) estimated a shortage of over 17,000 STEM careers in AFNR. Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) knowledge and skills play a critical role in the field of AFNR. Moreover, AFNR has evolved with new digital technologies, which creates a demand to prepare the future generations to be prepared to solve complex problems using integrated knowledge (Swafford, 2018b). To prepare the next generation to join the AFNR workforce that demands STEM knowledge and skills, current Agricultural Education that focuses on teaching technical skills in AFNR is not enough. STEM knowledge and skills need to be emphasized and be integrated in Agricultural Education using a balanced approach to help students apply STEM principles in the AFNR workforce (Sen et al., 2018; Stehle & Peters-Burton, 2019; Swafford, 2018a).

AFNR industry grows food, fiber and renewable energy to meet human needs, it provides highly contextualized and complex problems that can help students analyze problems and solutions using a variety of considerations (Agunga et al., 2005; NRC, 2009a) such as social, economic, ecological, political, scientific, technological, and risk factors (Ozturk & Yilmaz-Tuzun, 2017), and facilitates transdisciplinary learning and systems thinking (Francis et al., 2011; Schneider & Rist, 2014; Scott et al., 2015). These real-world connections facilitate authentic learning experiences in Agricultural Education (Knobloch, 2003; Knobloch et al., 2007).

AFNR provides a platform for integrating multiple STEM disciplines (Stubbs & Myers, 2016) because abstract ideas of science and mathematics are applied in agricultural contexts (Roberts & Ball, 2009; Smith et al., 2015). School-Based Agricultural Education (SBAE) engages middle and high school students to learn about AFNR, and is strongly informed by pragmatism (Knobloch, 2003; Wang & Knobloch, 2023), connects learning to local community and industry needs (STEM Food and Agriculture Council, 2014), and applies knowledge through experiential learning in real-world and work-based settings (Roberts, 2006). Moreover, SBAE uses an integrated engagement model (i.e., 3-circle Venn diagram) that consists of learning and applying AFNR knowledge and skills through academic instruction, entrepreneurship and work-based learning, and leadership and career development experiences (Croom, 2008). The 3-circle model in SBAE provides holistic learning for students to develop 21st century workforce skills. The classroom and laboratory component of the SBAE program model is the focus of this chapter and multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary learning in AFNR will be explored through the lens of integrated STEM. The authors defined integrated STEM, based on the intersectionality of literature and their philosophical perspectives and experiences, as blending multiple disciplines with intentionality and purpose to help students apply academic content in meaningful ways by solving real-world, complex problems grounded in career and technical contexts. In doing so, students engage in multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary learning and develop 21^st century skills that they can use as citizens, consumers, employees, and entrepreneurs (Wang & Knobloch, 2023).