Early school dropout is a global concern, and the dropout rate is most pronounced among students who face racial and ethnic discrimination, are from low-income families, and have parents who do not have college degrees. Disruptive behavior disorders (DBD)—a collection of antisocial behaviors, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and conduct disorders—are oftentimes a precursor to dropping out. When left untreated, DBD can lead to antisocial behaviors in adulthood. An adult without a high school degree who displays antisocial behaviors will likely face limited employment and life opportunities. Studies have shown that environmental education, which uses student-centered teaching methods and beyond-the-classroom learning contexts, can excite students and effectively engage them in the learning process. As a result, EE may lead to reductions in dropout rates. Garden-based learning (GBL)—a growing branch of EE that integrates garden activities into the curriculum—has been shown to excite and engage students in learning and curb antisocial tendencies and reduce disruptive behaviors, among numerous other benefits. In doing so, GBL has the potential to set students up for greater personal and professional success in the future. This study measured the effects of GBL on students with DBD and low-performing students.
This study took place over the course of six years at a public high school in a middle-class neighborhood in southeastern Spain. The high school had a garden space with a greenhouse, weather station, composting station, outdoor oven, and an orchard. For this study, 10 teachers from a variety of academic disciplines at the high school collaborated to develop curricular content and created 30 hands-on, collaborative activities. Content and activities were divided into two teaching modules: the Science and Technology Module (which included all sciences) and the Sociolinguistic Module (which included all social sciences and linguistics). Teachers used different areas of the garden to teach module subjects and concepts. For example, students used math concepts to design garden plots; they learned about the cultural and historical significance of plants they grew; they learned about climate by recording air pressure measurements with a barometer and measuring wind speed with an anemometer; and they learned about folklore and music while growing plants named in traditional stories and songs. Though garden activities were tailored to different subjects, they all had an environmental focus.
Each year of the 6-year study, a group of 8-14 students (aged 15-18 years) were selected to participate in the study, and each group participated for two years. The 63 participating students were selected based on their designation as special needs, which was defined as having a DBD, having demonstrated poor academic performance, and/or having repeated at least one grade. During the two years of their participation in the study, students spent approximately 16 hours per week in the garden in lieu of classroom time. As part of their lessons, students were responsible for planting, transplanting, growing, and harvesting food, and they used these foods to learn how to cook different dishes and make herbal remedies. The authors observed students during their GBL lessons and collected information about their DBD episodes, such as failing to comply with teacher requests, using obscene language, disturbing peers, defying directions, and being expelled from class. They recorded the number and type of DBD episode observed. The authors met with teachers four times per year to discuss changes in student behaviors and attitudes toward school. During these meetings, teachers shared their own insights and observations as well as those they had learned from the students' parents or guardians. The researchers analyzed their meeting notes using statistical software. To gauge academic progress, the researchers collected participants' grades and compared them to grades earned the prior year (looking only at pass/fail rates). Finally, the researchers collected graduation records to look for changes in graduation trends after instituting the GBL program.
The results from this study indicate that GBL can help improve engagement with learning among lower-performing students who demonstrate DBDs. From their garden observations, the authors found that participants had significantly fewer DBD episodes in the last month of the GBL program than during the first month of the program. In a similar vein, teachers indicated that their students had improved attitudes toward school, which was demonstrated by higher attendance rates, greater engagement in learning, improved student-teacher relationships, and increased peer-to-peer encouragement. Teachers observed students assuming greater ownership over and responsibility for the garden. They also indicated that they saw increases in student self-esteem and self-confidence, as well as increases in critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, subject content, and gardening skills. Academically, students demonstrated greater success after participating in the GBL program: they passed significantly more courses and a significantly higher proportion of participants graduated from high school.
This study has a number of limitations. Though the results are promising, it is difficult to know the degree to which the results can be attributed to the GBL curricula versus environmental education, group-based learning, or collaborative activities. In fact, the results are context-specific, and it cannot be assumed that students in other programs, schools, or countries would experience similar successes. Additionally, this study does not explore the long-term impacts of GBL. Further research is needed to determine if the impacts of GBL participation in grade school—such as improvements in social skills, academic performance, and self-esteem—are experienced into adulthood.
Given the positive impacts of GBL, the authors recommend implementing a similar curricula more widely as a potential path to addressing DBD and school dropout. The authors also recommend further investigation into the longer-term impacts of GBL and into the impacts of GBL outside of school.
The Bottom Line
Disruptive behavior disorders (DBDs) can lead to early school dropout, but garden-based learning (GBL) has been shown to effectively re-engage students who have lost interest in school. This 6-year study engaged 63 students with DBDs (aged 15-18) in a 2-year GBL program, during which participants received garden-based lessons for 16 hours per week. Based on researcher observations, teacher insights, and academic data, the authors found that students who participated in the GBL program had significantly fewer DBD episodes, improved attitudes toward school, increased self-esteem and self-confidence, and greater academic success. The authors recommend more widely implementing GBL, which can minimize disruptive behaviors and help lower-performing students graduate.