Engaging secondary students in agricultural careers

Project overview

The Cultivating the Next Generation project aims to help teachers and career advisors provide accurate and high-quality advice to secondary students about the diverse career opportunities in agriculture.

The project was funded by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, recognising the future workforce is dependent on the next generation seeing agriculture as an employer of choice, and critical to this is the role educators play in encouraging students towards a career in agriculture.

Led by AgriFutures Australia with CQUniversity Australia completing the research and national outreach, Stage 1 of the project aimed to better understand educators’ perceptions and knowledge regarding the agricultural industry and careers in agriculture, offering valuable insights into the perspectives and challenges faced by classroom teachers, career advisors, and school leadership.

Stage 2 of the project developed, delivered and evaluated the five resources recommended in the Stage 1 findings.

1. Curriculum-aligned lessons for five subject areas including Agriculture, Science, Food Technology, Business, and Digital Technology;
2. 20 video case studies of industry ambassadors showcasing the diverse range of jobs in agriculture;
3. Industry incursions and excursions across every state and territory that involved 19 schools, 514 students and 35 teachers;
4. Work placement guides for industry, schools and students to assist with organising valuable work placements for students;
5. In person and online professional development workshops that delivered training to 247 educators to increase their confidence to promote careers in agriculture.

Each resource was trialled through a national outreach program designed to enhance Year 9-12 students’ and educators’ knowledge and perceptions of the numerous agricultural career opportunities across Australia.

Contact

Abbey O’Callaghan
Manager, Workforce Delivery
AgriFutures Australia
abbey.ocallaghan@agrifutures.com.au