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Abstract
Research has been completed on the significance of school gardens and their nutritional influence on students; however, minimal research has been conducted on urban parents’ and teachers’ lack of understanding regarding the ways school garden experiences can improve the poor nutritional decisions and consumption behaviors of third- and fourth-grade students. Kolb’s experiential learning, which reflects the process of transforming experience into learning and reliable knowledge, was the theoretical framework that supported this intrinsic single-case study. Eight parents and eight teachers from a southwestern Pennsylvania school district were purposefully selected to engage in parent interviews and a teacher focus group. Semi-structured, open-ended questions supported the three research questions and member checking increased credibility. Thematic analysis of the interviews and focus group was used to analyze the data and results included three themes: parents perceived their child’s enthusiasm and engagement positively influenced the family purchasing habits of fruits and vegetables, students demonstrated a significant increase in their consumption of fresh fruits and raw vegetables, and school gardens generated student willingness to try fresh fruits and raw vegetables. The findings of this study link the real-world, hands-on experiences of school gardens to food system relationships and provide a better understanding of students’ nutritional decision-making and consumption behaviors. Students’ gardening experiences could widen their horizons and improve their confidence, motivation, and decision-making beyond their improved nutritional choices. Results of this study can be used in developing an urban agriculture curriculum and expanding school garden education within the elementary grades. Urban school district administrators can use the results of this study to place school gardening in their curriculum to help mitigate student health concerns, such as obesity and other poor decisions plaguing youth today.
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