Friday, 03 May 2024 10:27

Programme connecting farmers to schools bearing fruit

Written by  Staff Reporters
Farmer Time for Schools national coordinator Marie Burke with husband Rob. Farmer Time for Schools national coordinator Marie Burke with husband Rob.

An educational programme, set up by Beef + Land New Zealand, to connect farmers virtually with primary and intermediate school students has reported the successful completion of its second year.

Farmer Time for Schools says student participation increased by 8% from 2022, to nearly 1100 students. Despite challenges in 2023, including adverse weather and the impact of Covid19 and teacher strikes, Farmer Time for Schools persevered, introducing more young New Zealanders to rural life and the farmers behind our food.

National Coordinator, Marie Burke says being involved with Farmer Time for Schools and witnessing its growth has been amazing.

“The overwhelmingly positive feedback from both farmers and teachers reaffirms to me the importance and value of this initiative. I am proud to be a part of it,” she says.

"Our next focus is to recruit more schools and teachers. We have many farmers eager to participate, but currently face a shortage of teachers."

From humble beginnings at the start of 2022 with just eight farmer-teacher pairs forming the pilot group, Farmer Time for Schools has expanded significantly. By the end of 2023, 95 teacher-farmer pairs and 2,115 students had experienced Farmer Time for Schools over the two-year period. The programme has also evolved so it is now open to both urban and rural schools.

Burke says they’ve received numerous requests from rural schools eager to join the programme.

“Initially, we underestimated the potential impact on rural schools, assuming they might not benefit as much from Farmer Time for Schools. However, it became clear that even children attending rural schools may lack food production knowledge.

“Because we go through a very thorough matching process, we can ensure we match each class with a farm type that best suits them and the programme can be tailored to suit their needs.”

In the recent annual survey conducted by Farmer Time for Schools, participants provided positive feedback. Survey results revealed that all teacher respondents found Farmer Time for Schools offered a valuable learning experience for their class, while all farmer respondents expressed enjoyment in connecting with students through the online sessions.

Further key results from the survey include:

  • Teacher feedback indicates that Farmer Time for Schools allows for an array of applied learning scenarios, particularly for science and maths.
  • All responding teachers felt that Farmer Time for Schools helped students develop a greater awareness of the work food producers do and introduced them to career options in the primary industries.
  • All responding farmers believe that introducing Farmer Time for Schools to as many schools as possible would result in a positive impact on the future of farming in New Zealand.

Sandra Howard a teacher at Tamatea Intermediate in Hawkes Bay believes that the programme is extremely beneficial.

Matched with Southland farmers Colin and Dot McDonald, Howard says “by actively participating and connecting with our farmers on a regular basis, my learners acquired a multifaceted education that extended beyond the classroom, fostering a holistic understanding of food production, environmental sustainability, and community engagement.”

Now in its third year, Farmer Time for Schools aims to broaden its reach, raising awareness and inspiring as many students as possible. A trial is currently underway with Te Kura, formerly The Correspondence School to test the programme’s suitability for distance learners. Initial feedback has been positive.

Burke is urging teachers to get onboard with Farmer Time for Schools.

Primary producers and teachers who want to get involved or find out more can visit: www.farmertime.co.nz

More like this

New red meat campaign dots down

A new campaign from Beef + Lamb New Zealand Inc. seeks to highlight the link between life’s memorable moments and New Zealand red meat.

Featured

Massey Research Field Day attracts huge interest

More than 200 people turned out on Thursday, November 21 to see what progress has been made on one of NZ's biggest and most comprehensive agriculture research programmes on regenerative agriculture.

Expo set to wow again

Stellar speakers, top-notch trade sites, innovation, technology and connections are all on offer at the 2025 East Coast Farming Expo being once again hosted in Wairoa in February.

A year of global challenges

As a guest of the Italian Trade Association, Rural News Group Machinery Editor Mark Daniel took the opportunity to make an early November dash to Bologna to the 46th EIMA exhibition.

Boost for hort exports

The horticulture sector is a big winner from recent free trade deals sealed with the Gulf states, says Associate Agriculture Minister Nicola Grigg.

National

Winter grazing warning

Every time people from overseas see photographs of cows up to their hocks in mud it's bad for New Zealand.

ANZ defends farm lending rates

The country's largest lender to the agriculture sector says it's not favouring home loans over farm and business lending.

Machinery & Products

Expo set to wow again

Stellar speakers, top-notch trade sites, innovation, technology and connections are all on offer at the 2025 East Coast Farming Expo…

A year of global challenges

As a guest of the Italian Trade Association, Rural News Group Machinery Editor Mark Daniel took the opportunity to make…

» Latest Print Issues Online

The Hound

Review SOEs!

OPINION: NIWA has long weathered complaints about alleged stifling of competition in forecasting, and more recently, claims of lack of…

Bank reset

OPINION: Adding to calls to get banks to 'back off', NZ Agri Brokers director Andrew Laming has revealed that the…

» Connect with Rural News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter