A CASE STUDY ASSESSMENT OF STANDARDS AND BENCHMARKS
FOR IMPLEMENTING FOOD AND FIBER SYSTEMS LITERACY
Carl G. Igo
Ass’t. Ext. Specialist
Oklahoma State University
James G. Leising
Professor
Oklahoma State University
Martin J. Frick
Assistant Professor
MSU – Bozeman
Introduction
In 1988 the National Research Council’s Committee on Agricultural Education in
Secondary Schools proposed that an agriculturally literate person would understand the Food and
Fiber System in relation to its history, economic, social, and environmental significance (National
Research Council, [NRC] 1988). The committee also recommended that “all students should
receive at least some systematic instruction about agriculture beginning in kindergarten or first
grade and continuing through twelfth grade” (NRC, 1988, p.10).
Frick, in 1990, reported one of the first conclusive agricultural literacy definitions:
“Agricultural literacy can be defined as possessing knowledge and understanding of our food and
fiber system… An individual possessing such knowledge would be able to synthesize, analyze, and
communicate basic information about agriculture.” (p. 52).
Much of the focus of agriculture literacy research has been instructional material
assessment. In evaluating the Georgia Agriculture in the Classroom program, Herren and Oakley
(1995) concluded the materials were effective with both urban and rural students.
Swortzel (1996) reported an Ohio study assessing fourth-graders knowledge of animal
agriculture. A pretest/posttest design was used and a statistically significant difference was shown
between the two test scores with greater gains for students living in urban areas. Trexlar (1997)
concluded the introduction of an agriculturally based science curriculum “did not alter or
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negatively effect student perceptions of science, agriculture, or their agri-science knowledge
level” (p. 19).
Nunnery (1996) noted the necessity for building a literacy framework for understanding
agriculture’s perspectives and viewpoints. Leising and Zilbert (1994) approached agricultural
literacy from this angle. They developed a systematic curriculum framework identifying what
students should know or be able to do. The Food and Fiber Systems Literacy Framework
explained what an agriculturally literate high school graduate should comprehend. Using a series
of standards in five thematic areas, the framework delineated the necessary components for
understanding the way food and fiber systems relates to daily life. Breaking the standards into
grade-grouped benchmarks, K-1, 2-3, 4-5, and 6-8, the Framework provided a systematic means
of addressing agricultural literacy.
One point of contention was the most appropriate and least intrusive way to incorporate
instruction into an already overloaded curriculum. (Law, 1990). The Food and Fiber Systems
Literacy Framework was designed to make connections to agricultural concepts through existing
curriculum. The research problem was whether education about agriculture effectively can be
infused into core academic learning using the Food and Fiber Systems Literacy Framework as the
guide for instruction.
Purpose and Objectives
The purpose of this study was to assess food and fiber knowledge of selected students in
kindergarten through eighth grade before and after receiving instruction based upon the Food and
Fiber Systems Literacy (FFSL) Framework standards and benchmarks. For the three case studies
of this research, the specific objectives included:
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1. Assess students’ knowledge of Food and Fiber Systems before and after receiving instruction
based upon the FFSL Framework.
2. Determine differences by grade grouping (K-1, 2-3, 4-5, 6-8) in student knowledge about
agriculture before and after instruction based upon the FFSL Framework.
3. Determine grade-grouping differences in student knowledge about agriculture before and after
instruction based upon the five thematic areas of the FFSL Framework.
4. Determine if a relationship existed between the differences in student knowledge about
agriculture before and after instruction based upon the FFSL Framework and the number of
teacher reported instructional connections to the Framework.
Methods and Procedures
The study included one K-8 school in California, Montana, and Oklahoma. The sites were
chosen based on diversity and school size. The case studies included 366 students, 177 students,
and 257 students, respectively. The Montana and Oklahoma cases involved kindergarten through
eighth grade students and teachers. The California study included students and teachers from first,
second, third, fourth, seventh, and eighth grades. Each site used an infusion approach, with
teachers integrating FFSL instruction into core academic subjects.
Instruments were developed to measure FFSL knowledge for each grade grouping in the
Framework: K-1, 2-3, 4-5, and 6-8. Questions on each instrument were based on the gradegrouped benchmarks. The K-1 and 2-3 instruments included 16 and 21 items respectively. The 45 and 6-8 grade level instruments contained 35 and 30 text-responses respectively. Educators and
agriculturalists reviewed the instruments for content validity. The reliability coefficients for the
four instruments ranged from 0.7763 to 0.9469.
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Participating teachers administered the pre-test during the first week of October 1997,
prior to any FFSL instruction. The teachers administered the post-test during the week of May 5,
1998. Feedback regarding the connections made to the Framework was solicited from the
teachers throughout the project year.
Test mortality accounted for 193 fewer students tested in California, 14 fewer students
tested in Montana, and 11 fewer students tested in Oklahoma. Analysis of variance procedures
were used to determine differences in pretest and posttest knowledge scores and to delineate
differences by theme area of the FFSL Framework. A Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation was
computed to assess relationships between pre- and posttest differences and the number of teacher
reported instructional connections to the Framework.
Results/Findings
Pretest and Posttest Grade Grouping Analysis
The pretest and posttest food and fiber knowledge scores for students were reported in
Tables I, II, and III. Each table provides pre- and posttest score differences and the significance
levels for those differences.
Table I provides the results from the California test site. The K-1 scores increased 2.5
points while the 2-3 scores increased 5.8 points. Both third-fourth-combination teachers gave the
2-3 test to all students in their classes thus there was no 4-5 component. Also, without a
participating sixth grade, the 6-8-grade grouping included only seventh and eighth graders. Within
this group, the mean score dropped 2.5 points. Both the 2-3 and the 6-8-grade group returned
statistically significant pre- and posttest score differences.
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Table I
California Students’ Food and Fiber Knowledge Levels As Measured By Pretest And Posttest
Scores
Pretest
n
Mean
15
54.8
42
71.0
Posttest
n
Mean
12
57.3
39
76.8
Grade
K-1
2-3
4-5a
6-8b
502
31.8
315
Note. df for all calculations was 1.
a
There was no 4-5 component in CA
29.3
Difference
+2.5
+5.8
F-value
0.86
8.83
p
0.3555
0.0032*
-2.5
21.45
0.0001*
*p<0.05
b
There were no 6th grade participants in CA
Table II illustrates the data from the Montana site. The mean score for the K-1 grade
group increased almost 17 points. The 2-3 group the mean score increased almost 14 points and
the 4-5-grade group mean score increased four points. The 6-8-grade group mean decreased 1.3
points. All grade groups except 6-8 showed statistically significant differences in pre- and posttest
knowledge scores.
Table II
Montana Students’ Food and Fiber Knowledge Levels As Measured By Pretest And Posttest
Scores
Pretest
Grade
n
Mean
K-1
54
72.1
2-3
38
75.6
4-5
49
67.2
6-8
50
63.7
Note. df for all calculations was 1.
Posttest
n
Mean
50
88.8
35
89.4
47
71.2
45
62.4
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Difference
+16.7
+13.8
+4.0
-1.3
*p<0.05
F-value
74.75
46.28
5.13
0.23
p
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.0239*
0.6315
Table III provides the pretest and posttest data for the Oklahoma site. The K-1 group
mean score increased almost nine points, and the 2-3 group mean increased just over nine points.
The posttest mean score increased 6.6 points at grade grouping 4-5, while the 6-8-grade group
posttest score decreased almost three points. Once again, all grade groups except 6-8 showed
statistically significant pre- and posttest knowledge score differences.
Table III
Oklahoma Students’ Food And Fiber Knowledge Levels As Measured By Pretest And Posttest
Scores
Pretest
Grade
n
Mean
K-1
53
77.3
2-3
73
79.3
4-5
75
66.1
6-8
67
57.9
Note. df for all calculations was 1.
Posttest
n
Mean
53
86.1
72
88.4
74
72.7
58
55.0
Difference
+8.8
+9.1
+6.6
-2.9
*p < 0.05
F-value
21.33
41.24
15.11
1.53
p
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.2157
Thematic Area Analysis
The FFSL Framework was organized around five thematic areas: Food and Fiber
Systems—Understanding Agriculture; History, Culture, and Geography; Science—Agricultural
and Environmental Interdependence; Business and Economics; and Food, Nutrition, and Health.
With each site using an infusion approach to implementing FFSL, the data were combined
to provide a composite view of the thematic area analysis. That composite information was
presented in Table IV. With only two exceptions, all grade groups within each theme area showed
statistically significant differences between pre- and post test results. Within the Science and
Environment theme, the 2-3 grade-group produced a zero F-value, which yielded a 0.98
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significance score. The 6-8 group, within the Business and Economics theme, also showed no
statistical significance, producing an F-value of less than one.
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Table IV
F-Value Comparison Of Composite Pretest And Posttest Differences By Grade Groups Within
Theme Areas For California, Montana, and Oklahoma Sites
Theme and group
F-value
Understanding Agriculture
K-1
15.5
2-3
11.01
a
4-5
42.71
6-8
19.54
History, Culture, and Geography
K-1
1108.58
2-3
33.33
4-5a
52.83
6-8
290.48
Science and Environment
K-1
202.96
2-3
0.00
a
4-5
79.96
6-8
14.09
Business and Economics
K-1
4.80
2-3
22.56
4-5a
18.76
6-8
0.40
Food, Nutrition, and Health
K-1
59.88
2-3
145.27
4-5a
24.21
6-8
5.92
Note. df for all calculations was 1.
*p < 0.05
a
there was no 4-5 component in CA – data represent only MT and OK
p
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.9820
0.0001*
0.0002*
0.0295*
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.5254
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.0001*
0.0151*
Correlation Analysis
Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation Coefficients were computed to assess whether a
relationship existed between the knowledge score differences and the number of instructional
connections teachers made to Food and Fiber Systems. Table V indicates the result of the
analysis. Both the Montana site and the Oklahoma site showed a strong correlation, 0.621 and
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0.586 respectively, between the test score differences and the number of instructional connections
made by teachers, with the Oklahoma site returning a significant statistical difference. Pooling the
Montana and Oklahoma data to create a composite yielded a 0.603 correlation coefficient and the
computed difference was statistically significant as well. Knowledge score increases of 10 percent
or better were seen when the number of reported connections rose to 20 or above.
California data were not included in the correlation due to structural differences between
the California school and the other two schools. The California school did not include all grade
levels and was based on a village concept. The California teachers did submit reports, however
the village concept prevented applicable correlations between a particular group or class of
students and the number of instructional connections those students received.
Table V
Correlation Of Differences In Pretest And Posttest Scores To Instructional Connections By Site
Site
Montana
Oklahoma
Composite
*p < 0.05
n
8
13
21
reported connections
14-28
5-27
5-28
Pearson r
0.621
0.586
0.603
p
0.1003
0.0353*
0.0038*
Major Findings
Objective 1. California students had a cursory knowledge of Food and Fiber Systems prior
to receiving instruction, with pretest grade-grouped mean scores ranging from 32 to 71 percent.
Scores increased minimally from pretest to posttest, with posttest mean scores ranging from 29 to
77 percent.
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Prior to receiving instruction based upon Food and Fiber Systems, students in Montana
had some knowledge of agriculture, with pretest grade-grouped mean scores ranging from 64 to
76 percent. Grade-grouped mean scores were generally higher, 62 to 89 percent, after receiving
instruction.
Oklahoma students also had some knowledge of Food and Fiber Systems with pretest
means ranging from 58 to 79 percent for the four grade groupings. Posttest means were higher in
all but the 6-8-grade group, ranging from 55 to 88 percent.
Objective 2. The California students posttest scores for grade groups K-1 and 2-3 were
higher than pretest scores, with the 2-3 group scores significantly different at the 0.05 level. Both
the Montana students’ and Oklahoma students’ posttest scores were higher than pretest scores for
grades K-5, and each group was statistically significant. The posttest scores for 6-8 at each site
were lower than pretest scores, with the California groups’ scores showing statistically significant
difference.
Objective 3. Statistically significant pre- and posttest mean differences were found in
grade-groupings across all five thematic areas of the FFSL Framework. In three theme areas those
differences occurred across all grade-groups. The Science and Environment theme showed no
statistical significance at the 2-3 grade group and the Business and Economics theme showed no
significance at the 6-8 grade group.
Objective 4. Teacher reported connections to the FFSL Framework ranged from 5 to 28 in
the Montana and Oklahoma case studies. There was a statistically significant correlation between
pre- and posttest score differences and the number of teacher reported instructional connections in
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Oklahoma. The correlation of score differences to composite teacher reported instructional
connections was also statistically significant.
Conclusions
The conclusions were not to be generalized beyond the case studies within this research.
Examination and analysis of the major findings for each objective led to the following conclusions:
1. Students at each site had some knowledge of Food and Fiber Systems prior to the study.
2. In each case study, it was possible to increase student knowledge about agriculture by infusing
instruction based upon the FFSL Framework standards and benchmarks.
3. It was possible to infuse education about agriculture into core academic learning using the
FFSL Framework’s five thematic areas as the guide for instruction.
4. A positive relationship existed between the number of connections teachers made to the FFSL
Framework and increases in student knowledge.
Recommendations
Based upon the conclusions and major findings of the research, the following
recommendations were made:
1. As a means of assessing changes in student knowledge about Food and Fiber Systems,
agricultural literacy instructional materials should be linked to the FFSL standards and
benchmarks.
2. There is a need for inservice training of teachers at all grade levels to assist them in making
relevant connections between core academic instruction and FFSL.
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3. Further investigation is needed to understand how FFSL standards and benchmarks effectively
can be infused into departmentalized instruction found in middle, junior, and senior high
schools.
4. Subsequent studies should incorporate an experimental or quasi-experimental design with
larger student populations to better understand the relationship between teaching and learning
and the FFSL Framework.
Implications
The conclusions from this study showed that the FFSL Framework effectively can be used
to guide instruction about agriculture. Discussions among agricultural literacy professionals,
agriculture educators, curriculum specialists, state education leaders, and local educators must
focus on agricultural literacy as the common goal. To accomplish that goal, consensus agreement
must be reached on the definition and scope of agricultural literacy. The use of the FFSL
Framework with its standards and benchmarks provides an opportunity to engage the
stakeholders in a dialogue toward attaining that goal.
The whole-school setting for implementing FFSL instruction works to create a synergy
among teachers, administrators, students, and parents. That synergy may lead to greater overall
student achievement and increase the chances of sustaining infusion of Food and Fiber Systems
standards across curriculums.
References
Frick, M.J. (1990). A definition and the concepts of agricultural literacy: A national study.
Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Iowa State University, Ames.
229
Herren, R.V. & Oakley, P. (1995). An evaluation of Georgia Agriculture in the Classroom
program. Journal of Agricultural Education, 36 (4), 26-31.
Law, D.A. (1990). Implementing agricultural literacy programs. Agricultural Education
Magazine, 62 (9), 5-6, 22.
Leising, J.G. & Zilbert, E.E. (1994). Validation of the California agriculture literacy framework.
Proceedings of the National Agricultural Education Research Meeting, USA, 21, 112-119.
National Research Council, Board on Agriculture, Committee on Agricultural Education in
Secondary Education. (1988) Understanding agriculture: New directions for agricultural
education. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.
Nunnery, S. (1996). Ag-outside-the-classroom: The citizens’agenda. The Agricultural Education
Magazine 68 (3), 12-13,24.
Swortzel, K.A. (1996). Systematic educational efforts teaching about agriculture and the effect
on fourth-grade students knowledge of animal agriculture in Ohio. Proceedings of the
National Agricultural Education Research Meeting, USA, 23, 163-172
Trexlar, C. (1997). The cheeseburger came from where?: Elementary school student’s
understanding of how food is affected by biology and climate. Proceedings of the
National Agriculture Research Meeting, USA, 24, 23-33.
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A CASE STUDY ASSESSMENT OF STANDARDS AND BENCHMARKS FOR
IMPLEMENTING FOOD AND FIBER SYSTEMS LITERACY - A Critique
Linda Whent, University of California, Davis
The authors should be commended for conducting a timely and extensive study to assess the food
and fiber knowledge of students in kindergarten through 8th grade before and after receiving
instruction based on the Food and Fiber Systems Literacy Framework.
Theoretical Framework – The authors have provided a thorough discussion of the background
and need for the study. An appropriate theoretical base was selected for the research. The
purpose and objectives of the research were clearly stated and presented.
Methodology – The study included two cases: populations from schools included 177 students
from a Montana school community and 257 students from an Oklahoma school community. The
study focused on K – 8 grades. It was not clear that two schools from each community were part
of the case study until the school profiles were presented in the results section. The researchers
should be commended for their time and efforts in developing knowledge instruments for multiple
grade levels. Instruments were validated by experts, pilot tested, and revised. Adequate to
excellent reliability coefficients were reported. Extensive teacher training, preparation, and
support were provided by the researchers to help increase the internal validity of the study.
Findings – Formative feedback, qualitative, and quantitative data were collected. Both case
studies used static populations. The researchers state that the conclusions were not to be
generalized beyond the case studies within the research. Inferential statistics are only used when
sample data is generalized to a larger population. Only means and standard deviations of the
populations needed to be presented. It was interesting to find that test scores of grades K – 5
increased and scores of grades 6 – 8 decreased in both case studies. The summary of major
findings was helpful in compiling the many findings of this study
Conclusions and Practical Importance – The findings, recommendations, and implications were
clearly presented. Could one conclude that, in these case studies, students in lower grades
received the greatest benefits from agriculture literacy instruction? Do these findings support
arguments of teaching agricultural literacy in lower grades? Are certain agricultural subject or
theme areas better taught at specific grade levels? Since students in both case studies had
previous agricultural knowledge, should we question if the instructional materials at the 6- 8
grade levels provided new or challenging information? The researchers should be commended for
an excellent study. Due to the scope, sophistication, and length of this study, I recommend that it
be published as two papers: possibly, Objectives 1 through 3 in one paper and Objectives 4 and 5
in the other.
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