CLASSROOM EVALUATION OF AN ELEMENTARY EDUCATIONAL SWINE CURRICULUM: THERE’S A PIG IN MY CLASSROOM

The purpose of this study was to test an educational swine curriculum geared toward fifth grade classrooms to measure the change in students’ knowledge about the pork industry, pork as a nutritious protein source, and the value of byproducts derived from pork production. Objectives of this study were to evaluate overall change in students’ knowledge of the pork industry and the effect of specific demographics on the change in students’ knowledge following participation in an educational swine curriculum. Effectiveness of the curriculum was measured by a pretest/post-test survey of fifth grade students (n = 435), with classrooms divided into treatment and control groups. Findings indicated that participating in the educational swine curriculum increased the students’ knowledge of the pork industry by 37.4%; demographics such as 4-H experience, farm experience, or prior experience with pigs had limited effect on knowledge gained.