A Qualitative Assessment of Considerations on How Teachers Can Use Classroom Growing Systems as a Teaching Model in Middle School Classrooms

For many schools, the opportunity for more time to teach health continues to be a struggle. School gardening programs come as a result of farm-to-fresh initiatives that aim to link students with food production, increase access to healthy and local foods, and serve as an educational opportunity. The purpose of this study was to examine how one type of growing system, aquaponics, can be used as a health education teaching model within middle school classrooms. Participating middle school teachers (n = 17) attended three interactive workshops focusing on how to integrate the growing systems into their classrooms. Researchers administered semi-structured interviews using open-ended questions focusing on integration and implementation strategies, aesthetics of the systems and how they fit within their classrooms, and overall system functionality. Three specific themes emerged from participant responses: increase in experiential learning; learning about ecosystems; and lessons learned from implementation. Health educators can use growing systems to teach about healthy ecosystems and nutritional behaviors in a learner-centric environment using interactive activities that promote the development of higher-order thinking skills.