Educators' perspectives associated with school garden programs in Clark County, Nevada: Practices, resources, benefits and barriers.

摘要

School garden programs have been utilized in the U.S. since their introduction at the end of the 19th century. The use of school gardens and the teaching style implemented in them are dependent on individual schools and teachers. Educators' attitudes, knowledge, and motivation for a school-based gardening program are crucial to implementing comprehensive school garden programs. To move toward an expansion of garden education, it is necessary to determine the concerns, resources, benefits or barriers that educators identify regarding the utilization of gardens to teach their students. The purpose of this pilot study was to determine principals' and teachers' perceived practices, resources, benefits, and barriers to the school garden programs in Clark County Nevada. The survey was sent to 250 teachers and administrators at schools in Clark County School District (CCSD) using an electronic web site link on an invitation to participated in the survey. One hundred and nineteen educators completed the survey and were used for the data analysis. Many educators with gardens perceive that students benefit from school garden programs; however, there are factors that can be improved for the implementation of school garden programs in CCSD to be a success. Current practices and important resources needed for school gardens as well as benefits of and barriers to the school garden programs will be presented. Recommendations will assist the suitability of school gardening in the future.