Abstract:
This research was aimed at ‘assessing the contribution of teaching methods used in secondary schools in promoting youth’s choice of agriculture as a source of livelihood’. This study was motivated by the high unemployment rates among Malawian youth despite undergoing the agriculture curriculum whose main focus is on providing skills for self-employment and entrepreneurship. The study was conducted in Mzimba south in Malawi. The targeted population comprised of community day secondary school students, its recent graduates and agriculture teachers. Multistage sampling technique was used to narrow down the sampled schools while the actual sample size was calculated using the monkey survey formula. Data was collected through one-on-one interviews with teachers, a survey questionnaire of 188 students and focus group discussions with 40 secondary school graduates. Data was analysed using IBM SPSS and MS Excel software packages. Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis were used for analyzing demographic and qualitative data for objectives one, two and four. Chi-square test was used to analyze quantitative data to show the relationships between variables in objective three. This study found that: The youth in Malawi have a positive attitude towards agriculture and its teaching methods; Teacher-centered methods dominate most agriculture lessons; A significant relationship exists between teaching methods used and youth choice of agriculture careers; There is low usage of agriculture skills gained in class in daily farming practice. The study’s limitation was that it was only done in Mzimba south, hence the results cannot be generalized to the whole Malawi. The study advances that educators should leverage the positive attitudes that Malawian youth have on Agriculture and develop teaching methods that focus on skill development through hands on learning experiences. Adequate skills will embolden the youth to pursue agribusiness ventures, hence fostering entrepreneurship. The study recommends that schools should have school gardens and more teachers should be trained in agriculture education for effective implementation of practical agriculture lessons.
