Inquiry–Based Instruction for Students with Special Needs in School Based Agricultural Education

Educating students with special needs in school based agricultural education (SBAE) is a problem that should be addressed. While many students in SBAE classes have special needs, contradicting research exists establishing the best method of instruction for students with special needs. Inquiry–based instruction shows some promise, but little is known about its effectiveness in SBAE settings for students with special needs. The purpose of this study was to determine if inquiry–based instruction impacts content knowledge achievement for students with special needs. A one–group pretest–posttest, design was used to determine if students with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) differed in content knowledge achievement from those students without IEPs. No difference in content knowledge achievement was found between students with IEPs and those without over seven pre and post tests using ANCOVA measures. Based on these findings inquiry–based instruction can be an effective method of instruction for students with special needs and should be used when appropriate.