A Systematic Review of the Emergence and Utilisation of Agricultural Technologies into the Classroom

Abstract

This systematic review explores the emergence and utilisation of agricultural technology (“AgTech”) in secondary schools globally. A total of 14 studies published between 2000 and 2020, inclusive, were reviewed, each exploring the use of agricultural technologies in secondary school classrooms and barriers to adoption. For all reviewed studies, each had aimed to address one of three major objectives: (a) to determine or increase teacher knowledge of AgTech; (b) to evaluate the effectiveness of AgTech professional development (PD); or (c) to evaluate the effectiveness of AgTech classroom activities. Requirements for future AgTech PD or classroom activities were also identified, including the use of improved pre-service learnings and in-service PD. This study highlights the importance of improving the opportunities of teachers for AgTech learning, including both an introduction to the technologies and support for classroom implementation. Applications of these findings could be used by teachers, schools, industry organisations, universities and policymakers to ensure sufficient teacher knowledge and skills for effective student learning. By increasing the knowledge and skills of the next-generation agricultural workforce, it is anticipated that AgTech adoption on farms will increase.

Keywords

• precision agriculture
• capacity building
• agricultural literacy
• secondary school students
• primary school students
• agricultural education