Assessment of the agriscience knowledge of agricultural education teachers in Alabama

The purpose of this study was to determine the science proficiency of Alabama agriculture teachers and to measure their perceptions toward integrating science into their programs. A science proficiency test and an attitude survey were administered to 132 Alabama agriculture teachers. The proficiency test contained 50 multiple-choice science questions and the attitude survey contained 42 statements with a 1 to 5 Likert rating scale.;The study was descriptive-correlational in design and the data was collected during a statewide conference. The targeted population was all the agriculture teachers in Alabama.;Results of the study included a mean score of 60% on the science proficiency test. The mean score on the attitude survey was 3.68, indicating a neutral to agreeing perception toward integrating science into their program.;Several variables were analyzed to determine their relationship to science proficiency. These included age, teaching experience, education level, type of school, exposure to graduation exit exam material, number of science objectives taught, status of embedded credit, and perceptions toward integrating science. Statistically significant relationships were found between science proficiency and two of the variables, number of science objectives taught and the teachers' perceptions about the importance of science in agricultural education.;The following conclusions were formulated as a result of the study: (a) The average Alabama agriculture teacher has the science proficiency necessary to pass the science portion of the Alabama High School Graduation Exam, however, their proficiency needs improving. (b) The average Alabama agriculture teacher does not strongly believe that science should be integrated into their program. (c) The higher a teacher rated the importance of science the higher they scored on the proficiency test. (d) The more proficient the teachers were in science the greater the number of science objectives they taught. (e) Neither obtaining advanced degrees nor gaining experience are associated with higher proficiency scores. Finally, (f) Alabama teachers offer science credit at about the same level, as do teachers nationally.