International Journal of Pure and Applied Mathematics Volume 118 No. 19 2018, 1007-1019 ISSN: 1311-8080 (printed version); ISSN: 1314-3395 (on-line version) url: http://www.ijpam.eu Special Issue ijpam.eu
A Preliminary Application and Development of Early Childhood Agricultural Education Program for Sustainable Development
Hyun-Ah Seo1 1Dep. of Early Childhood Education, KyungSung University, 309, Suyeong-ro, Nam-gu, Busan, Republic of Korea 48434 [email protected]
January 27, 2018
Abstract Background/Objectives: This research aims to de- velop an early childhood agriculture education program for sustainable development. Methods/Statistical analysis: To develop the pro- gram, theoretical criterion of program development was de- rived from studying preceding research that is related with sustainable development education and agricultural educa- tion program. Through the awareness of teachers from day- care and kindergarten and their demand analysis for early childhood agricultural education program derived the ac- tual criterion. Based on this, a focus group of experts was interviewed and the results were contributed to construct the first draft proposal for the early childhood agriculture education program. The developed first draft proposal was edited and supplemented after going through relevance ex- amination by experts. After conducting an example appli- cation on 13 children of age of four, some problems from
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the first proposal were fixed and completed to be the final program. Findings: The final development program is education on the pluralistic function of agriculture is carried out to form the right values of agriculture from early childhood, it is aimed to promote the sustainable development of present and future society by growing to coexist with nature in the future. Improvements/Applications: The program consisted of 28 sessions, include various educational activities such as story-telling, art, game, music, science, cooking as well as agricultural activities. So that to allow young children to participate in agricultural literacy education programs with constant interest.
Key Words : Education for sustainable development, Early childhood, agricultural, Early childhood agricultural education, Program.
1 Introduction
Sustainable development is a development that satisfies today’s needs while it does not require sacrifice of the need of the future generation. The core the sustainable development is the interaction among society, economy, and existing environmental problems. The sustainable development education enables children to be equipped with knowledge to practice sustainable principle throughout their 1 lives 0. Agriculture is a core field to make the Earth sustainable since it is majorly linked with antipoverty, end starvation, health and wellbeing, high-quality jobs and economic growth, sustainable production and consumption, land ecosystem protection and more that are included in the 17 sustainable development goals. Not only this, agriculture can be divided into core-function and life- functioncore-function includes agriculture and rural area preserva- tion, succession of traditional culture, maintaining local commu- nity as well as the preserving and developing function of our soci- ety. Llife-function is agriculture as life industry that includes static 2 food supply and environment preservation function 0. That is, agriculture has various function and economic values that are not
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only in food production, but also in natural landscape and environ- ment preservation, traditional culture preservation, and ecosystem preservation. In particular, since 2006, the education on the importance of the agriculture and rural area that includes ’the various functions of agriculture and farming land’ was strengthened, but every time the curriculum was reorganized, the sections on ’our living and agri- culture’, ’animal production’, and ’plant production’ were reduced, while ’agriculture and future plan’ was deleted 30405060 . In order to increase the value of agriculture, the importance of agriculture and awareness education should be attained from in- fancy. Raising the right understanding of agriculture from early childhood can make it possible for adults to have the right un- derstanding and attitude toward agriculture. Furthermore, an ac- tive engagement of the intelligent farm and the use of drones with mobile equipment is expected in the future, children need to be prepared for the era when the advance of agriculture will be assim- ilated with the 4th industry. Therefore, to make children realize the importance of agriculture, have continuing interest in agricul- ture, and eventually participate actively by themselves in their daily life, it is suggested that an education program for children to be- gin building basic knowledge in agriculture need to be developed. Especially, by looking at curriculum in America where agriculture begins from kindergarten level through high school level and is sys- tematically managed, it can be said that agriculture education is urgently needed from early childhood when great educative effect is expected. Agricultural Education is a basic and essential education to be supported from the infancy but it begins with elementary school in Korea 708090100 . All the agricultural technology centers at local com- munity provides an education program for children to experience rural area and the nature, but some drawbacks exist – to partici- pate in some of those programs, children education institute has to register as a group on behalf of individuals and the education itself could end in one-time event. Therefore, this research aims to develop an early childhood agri- culture education program for sustainable development. That is, to establish an understanding in agriculture, an existing experience- based education is important, but it needs to go further to link
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the education program with the concept of agriculture that is ul- timately sustainable development, and early childhood education organization needs to prepare its own program to help children build agricultural knowledge. Maintain connection with elemen- tary school, to construct a systematic agricultural literacy program suitable for the characteristics of infant contents and scopes of agri- culture are narrowed. Such research will be able to expand the fundamental knowledge and recognition of the importance of agri- culture which is the most essential means of living in childrens lives. The following is the research problems to achieve the purpose of the study. First, examine the direction of development of early childhood agriculture education program for sustainable development educa- tion. Second, develop an early childhood agriculture education pro- gram for sustainable development education.
2 Research methods
2.1 Subject of study 2.1.1 Interviewees of the focus group First, four professors of early childhood education and teachers are selected as experts of early childhood education. Second, three teachers and assistant director who qualifies cer- tain years of work experience and level of education are selected as field specialists of early childhood education. Third, two researchers and professors of industrial system engi- neering of life are selected as agricultural experts.
2.1.2 Professional reviewer to examine the content valid- ity To examine the purpose, the validity of the content, and the field applicability of the developed draft of the early childhood agricul- tural education program, five early childhood education experts, three field specialist of early childhood education, and two agricul-
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tural experts total of ten expertswere selected as qualified partici- pants.
2.1.3 Subjects of pre-application of the program Preliminary research was conducted to verify the effect and the validity of the draft proposal of the program. For this preliminary research, four-year old 13 children from a daycare were selected as preliminary research subject instead of the actual subject of this research.
2.2 Research Tool 2.2.1 Questionnaire for the focus group interview The questions for the focus group were composed to collect required information to develop a program proposal that is associated with the development direction of the program which includes the ne- cessity of developing the program, contents, methods, and consid- erations of the early childhood agricultural education.
2.2.2 Questionnaire for experts to examine content valid- ity Content validity was examined by experts and field specialists of early childhood education and experts in agriculture to review if the draft proposal for the early childhood agricultural education program was composed in accordance with the purpose of the pro- gram, if it was developed appropriately with the age of children, and if it is applicable at field.
2.3 Research Procedure First of all, ’Focus group’ interviews were held to examine opinions on the agriculture education to early childhood program, includ- ing the necessity, purpose, contents, methods and developmental considerations for the development of early childhood education programs. Second, developing draft on early childhood agriculture educa- tion program based on ’Focus Group’ interview results, literature
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review, prior research search, recognition of the program and de- mand survey. Third, after reviewing the appropriateness of early childhood agricultural education program developed by the researcher to 10 early childhood education specialists, early childhood education specialists and agricultural experts, the program was revised and supplemented according to the advice of experts. Fourth, before the program was implemented, only the nursery schools that were not the subject of this study were applied to ages 4 and 13 young children and the problems were corrected and supplemented. Based on this, the final draft was finalized.
2.4 Data processing 2.4.1 Focus group interview data analysis Focus group interview data was analyzed by using opening coding of analysis phase of grounded theory which was developed by Strauss and Corbin 11.
2.4.2 Professional content validity examination data anal- ysis The content validity was verified by experts and field specialists of early childhood education and agricultural experts to examine if the draft proposal for the early childhood agricultural education pro- gram was composed in accordance with the purpose of the program, if it was suitable with the age of children, and if it is applicable at field.
3 Research Results
The final draft of the early childhood agricultural education pro- gram was composed after going through focus group interview, com- position of the program draft proposal, examination of the program appropriacy, and pre-application stage. The composition of the de- veloped program for the early childhood agricultural education is described in ss