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Sociocultural tensions and wicked problems in sustainable agriculture education

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Abstract

Future practitioners of sustainable agriculture and agroecology must have the capacity to address the wicked problems in the food system to make progress toward sustainability. Undergraduate sustainable agriculture students from a variety of backgrounds may struggle with the question, is the challenging and complex work of addressing wicked problems of agroecology for me? Our case study investigated sociocultural tensions associated with identity encountered when wicked problems teaching units were integrated into the Advanced Practices of Sustainable Agriculture course at a large, Midwestern Land Grant University. The research and course employed a four-part framework that focused on (1) attending to individual needs and identities, (2) facilitating practice-based and community-based learning, (3) engaging in problems situated in regional contexts, and (4) supporting awareness of local and global political and ecological issues. Researchers used a community of practice theoretical lens, and focused on the sociocultural tensions that may have impacted individual and community identity formation. Two wicked problems teaching units are described by drawing upon documentation and audio recordings from planning meetings, course sessions, student and instructor interviews, and course artifacts. Vignettes were constructed to situate four interrelated types of sociocultural tensions encountered by instructors and students. These tensions reflected forces at the individual, community, local, and global levels which interact to influence learners’ capacity to become full participants in sustainable agriculture. The study fills a gap related to affective dimensions of learning like identity in agroecology education. Dilemmas and implications related to identity, pedagogy, and epistemology are discussed.

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Abbreviations

APSA:

Advanced Practices of Sustainable Agriculture

MLGU:

Midwestern Land Grant University

SSI:

Socioscientific issues

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Acknowledgements

The paper has been greatly enhanced due to the helpful comments of the journal editor and anonymous reviewers. Thanks are due to the instructors and students who reviewed early versions of this manuscript and participated in the study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Assessment Resource Center, University of Missouri, 2800 Maguire Blvd, Columbia, MO, 65201, USA

    Christopher D. Murakami

  2. Department of Rural Sociology, University of Missouri, 201 Gentry Hall, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA

    Mary K. Hendrickson

  3. Department of Learning, Teaching, and Curriculum, University of Missouri, 321 Townsend Hall, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA

    Marcelle A. Siegel

  4. Department of Biochemistry, University of Missouri, 321 Townsend Hall, Columbia, MO, USA

    Marcelle A. Siegel

Authors
  1. Christopher D. Murakami
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  2. Mary K. Hendrickson
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  3. Marcelle A. Siegel
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Correspondence to Christopher D. Murakami.

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Murakami, C.D., Hendrickson, M.K. & Siegel, M.A. Sociocultural tensions and wicked problems in sustainable agriculture education. Agric Hum Values 34, 591–606 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10460-016-9752-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10460-016-9752-x

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