Why pursue a career in teaching agriculture? Application of self-determination theory and the theory of planned behavior

Given the shortage of agriculture teachers across the country, understanding individuals’ motivation to pursue a career in teaching agricultural education is critical to developing strategies for teacher recruitment and teacher education. Several studies have investigated factors that motivate preservice and in-service agriculture teachers to pursue a career teaching agricultural education based on the Factors Influencing Teaching Choice (FIT-Choice) model. However, little research investigated the topic using different theoretical lenses or a mixed-methods approach, which could provide new perspectives on individuals’ motivation to teach. To address the knowledge gap, we investigated Florida preservice teacher recruitment program participants’ motivation to teach agricultural education using a mixed-methods approach from the self-determination theory and the theory of planned behavior theoretical lens. We found that individuals’ intention to become agriculture teachers was statistically significantly explained by two predictors: attitude toward behavior and perceived behavioral control regarding a career in teaching agriculture. When choosing a career in teaching agriculture, the score for more self-determined motivation was substantially higher than that for less self-determined motivation. Furthermore, inspiring agriculture teachers, positive experiences with SBAE programs, a passion for teaching and agriculture, and paying it forward to students were the main factors that motivated them to pursue a career in teaching agricultural education. Based on the theoretical frameworks and the results, a model for understanding factors influencing individuals to pursue a career in teaching agriculture was proposed to broaden our understanding of the multidimensional nature of individuals’ motivation to teach agriculture.