Abstract:
Purpose
The purpose of the study was to assess Tanzanian
secondary students' beliefs, attitudes and aspirations
regarding farming and rural life, and how these relate to
school agricultural experiences and to individual and
situational characteristics of the students.
Methodology
Data were secured through a structured question
naire administered to a sample of 867 Tanzanian government
secondary school students.
The dependent variables for the study were
students' beliefs, attitudes and aspirations with respect
to farming and rural life.
The independent variables were
the school agricultural learning experiences, the sex,
grade and home location of the student, parental education
and occupation, and type of farming at home.
The analysis tested the relationship between the
independent variables and students' beliefs, attitudes
and aspirations toward farming and rural life.Ill
Findings and Conclusions
1. Students’ beliefs were mainly positive while
their attitudes were either positive or neutral, with
very few having negative beliefs or attitudes.
About one-
third of the students aspired to agricultural careers
including farming while half of them preferred working
in the rural areas.
2. Although students
who have had practical school
agricultural experiences were more likely to hold positive
beliefs, students' beliefs were more strongly related to
home background characteristics.
Students from rural
farm background were more likely to hold positive beliefs.
3. Students who have had practical school agricul
tural experiences were more likely to hold positive
attitudes.
Likewise, male and lower grade students were
more likely to hold positive attitudes.
Students’
attitudes were not related to home background character
istics .
4. Generally, school agriculture seemed to influence
students' aspirations toward rural-based agricultural
occupations.
But as students progressed up the academic
hierarchy their aspirations shifted progressively to
urban non-agricultural occupations.
Also students fromIV
less educated rural backgrounds were more Likely to aspire
to rural agricultural occupations compared to those from
more educated urban backgrounds.
5. Although school agriculture may help in
reorienting students’ expectations toward rural and
agricultural occupations, its effectiveness is severely
limited since schools continue to be the sole basis for
recruitment to elite positions and as such continue to
socialize students toward more elitist expectations,
contrary to policy objectives.
