Learning in the field: can agriculture help in rural primary education?

How can agriculture help improve rural primary schooling in developing countries? Universal access to primary education is a sought-after goal in most developing countries as it offers a wide range of benefits. Yet many countries face problems such as low participation, high drop-out rates and under-education of pupils, especially in rural areas. The University of Reading carried out research in Tanzania, Sri Lanka, India, and Ethiopia to explore the benefits of linking the learning process more closely to pupils' everyday experience. The research focuses on the potential use of agriculture in helping pupils to make better sense of what they learn.

Most countries have set their sights on achieving universal primary education. However, obstacles are often harder to overcome in rural areas, partly because national education programmes are geared towards urban schools. Teaching in rural primary schools is often classroom-based, relying heavily on rote-learning and bearing little relation to pupils' lives outside the classroom. Capitalising on shared experiences of agricultural life could make typically academic subjects more relevant and interesting to pupils and encourage them to learn more effectively.

The study identified factors that favour rooting formal education in local experience:

• policy support in making the learning process more relevant to rural pupils' experience
• parents and local communities need to support experience-based learning
• parents can understand better what goes on in the classroom if the context is familiar
• learners may benefit more if the classroom experience is relevant to their daily lives
• experience-based learning is more attractive to girls as opposed to traditional learning methods which tend to favour boys - the number of girls who leave school with higher levels of achievement may therefore increase

The study also identified drawbacks to experience-based learning:

• where agriculture is part and parcel of daily life, some communities may not consider it an appropriate subject area
• parents may view experience-based learning as less valuable than traditional academic approaches to education
• social, economic, and curriculum constraints to education persist in rural areas

The study suggests that further research is needed to evaluate the benefits of this type of schooling for boosting community production levels, improving access to employment, and advancing the learning progress of both learners and teachers.

Implications for policy include:

• the provision of teacher-training, as well as support and awareness-raising for parents and local communities to help promote understanding of experience-based learning
• backing from local education authorities and school management to help teachers introduce flexibility into rigid curricula
• donor support for 'model' schools to help raise prestige and improve motivation amongst learners and staff

Source(s):
Contextualising teaching and learning in rural primary schools: using agricultural experience, Volume 1, Department for International Development Education Paper Serial No. 20, by P. Taylor and A. Mulhall, 1997 Full document.

Funded by: Education Division, Department for International Development, UK

id21 Research Highlight: 13 August 1999

Further Information:
Peter Taylor
Education Technical Advisor
Social Forestry Support Programme
Helvetas Vietnam
GPO Box 81
Hanoi
Vietnam

Tel: +844 832 9833 or 762 5105
Fax: +844 832 9834
Contact the contributor: sfsp.pt@hn.vnn.vn

University of Reading

Abigail Mulhall
Agricultural Extension and Rural Development Department
3 Earley Gate
University of Reading
Whitenights Road
Reading
RG30 3XJ
UK

Tel: +44 (0) 118 931 88 86
Fax: +44 (0) 118 926 12 44
Contact the contributor: a.e.k.mulhall@reading.ac.uk

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