Author

Irish Jane Canao Apatas*
DEPED, Purok 6, Bulanao, Tabuk City, Kalinga, Philippines

Abstract

The primary goal of this research was to evaluate the interest and skills of the TLE grade 7 students in organic gardening at Tanudan district. To unlock the prevailing attitude of this students toward organic school gardening in terms of environmental stewardship, appreciation for agricultural labor, and perceived importance of organic products, the level of practical skills of the students in organic gardening operations, specifically in land preparation, production of organic fertilizers/concoctions, and natural pest management, the extent of students’ interest in organic gardening about classroom engagement, home application, and potential career or livelihood aspirations, a significant relationship between the students’ attitude/interest and their actual practical skills in organic gardening, the researcher employed both quantitative and qualitative research methods. For the quantitative aspect, to identify the prevailing attitude, practical skills and level of interest using a Likert scale. While for the qualitative part, the observation of the researchers on all three. Statistical data used is percentage, mean and weighted mean. The findings show that students demonstrated a “Skilled” level of practical gardening competence with a total average weighted mean of 3.24, with the highest proficiency in plant care and pest management (M = 3.35) and the lowest in organic fertilizer production and application (M = 3.10). Students’ prevailing attitude toward organic school gardening registered a mean of 3.05, described as “Agree,” while their interest yielded an average mean of 3.18, interpreted as “Interested.” Correlational analysis confirmed a statistically significant moderate positive relationship between practical skills and attitude (r = 0.500, p = 0.025) and a stronger significant relationship between practical skills and interest (r = 0.606, p = 0.005), with both null hypotheses rejected at the 0.05 significance level. Interest proved to be a more powerful predictor of practical skill acquisition than attitude. Based on these findings, Project GROW (Green Resources for Organic Wellness) was proposed as a targeted intervention integrating applied agricultural mathematics, gamified innovation challenges, peer-led mentoring, and school-to-market entrepreneurial activities to address the identified competency and motivational gaps.

Keywords: Organic school gardening, practical skills, student interest, TLE curriculum, experiential learning, intervention program.

*Corresponding author/ Email: irishapatas2021@gmail.com
DOI: http://doi.org/10.69651/PIJHSS0502943

Recommended citation:
Apatas, I. J. C. (2026). Students interest and skills in organic school gardening: Basis in enhancing the TLE curriculum. Pantao (The International Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences) 5 (2), 825-835. http://doi.org/10.69651/PIJHSS0502943

Read the full text

References

Aikaterini. (2020). Education for sustainability development via school garden. European Journal of Education Studies. ISSN: 2501-1111.

Acharya, et al. (2020). Small change is beautiful: Exploring possibilities of eco-san on school garden for transformative pedagogy. Higher Education Studies, 10(2). ISSN: 1925-4741.

Acharya, Dr., et al. (2023). Gardening at school for new good life: Entrepreneurship for sustainable education in the public schools in Nepal.

Cosco, et al. (2022). Hands-on childcare garden intervention: A randomized controlled trial to assess effects on fruit and vegetable identification, liking, and consumption among children aged 3-5 years in North Carolina. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.993637

Demapendan, et al. (2024). Technology and livelihood education learning brochures for Grade 7 students. Journal Evaluation in Education, 5(4), 177-189. https://doi.org/10.37251/jee.v5i4.1113

Hershey, H., & Parks, M. (2023). Digging into gardening in elementary classrooms. International Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities, 14(1), Article 3. https://doi.org/10.7710/2168-0620.0360

Holloway, et al. (2023). School gardening and health and well-being of school-aged children: A realist synthesis. Nutrients. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15051190

Hunter, et al. (2025). Agrobiodiversity, school gardens and healthy diets. https://iirr.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/CGSpace-Home-Bioversity-International-Bioversity-Books-View-Item_compressed.pdf

Gamil, et al. (2025). Gardening program in schools and homes of learners and the perception of the usefulness of school-based gardening. Psychology and Education: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 40(1), 93-102. https://doi.org/10.70838/pemj.400107

Seeds Canada. (2018). Gardens for learning. https://seeds.ca/schoolfoodgardens/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Creating-and-Sustaining-your-School-Garden.pdf

Ikendi. (2023). Influence of school garden learning approach on academic development of global service-learners. https://doi.org/10.5032/jae.v64i4.167

Kos, et al. (2020). Gardening activities at school and their impact on children’s knowledge and attitudes to the consumption of garden vegetables. Problems of Education in the 21st Century, 77(2), 270-291. https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/19.77.270

Kelemen, et al. (2025). School gardens as commons: Fostering relational values for biodiversity through participatory environmental education. International Journal of the Commons, 19(1), 431-443. https://doi.org/10.5334/ijc.1539

Labay, et al. (2025). Gardening program in schools and homes of learners and the perception of the usefulness of school-based gardening. Psychology and Education: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 40(1).

Monday. (2024). Community engagement with technology and livelihood education (TLE): Teachers’ point of view. International Journal of Advanced Multidisciplinary Studies, 4(6).

Montales. (2024). Agricultural activities implemented in secondary schools relative to food security: A systematic literature review. https://doi.org/10.55248/gengpi.5.1224.3551

Onay, et al. (2024). Impacts of organic farming on the environment. In New horizons in environmental health (pp. 1-15). Orient Publications.

Prianto. (2022). Does student involvement in practical learning strengthen deeper learning competencies? International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 21(2), 211-231. https://doi.org/10.26803/ijlter.21.2.12

Rahaman, et al. (2025). School gardens as a pedagogical tool in teaching and learning of agriculture in senior high schools in Ghana. European Journal of Education Studies. ISSN: 2501-1111.

Rahman, et al. (2021). Impact of practical skills on academic performance: A data-driven analysis. IEEE Access. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2021.3119145

Sagario. (2023). Experiential learning approach to improve students’ common competencies and attitude towards agricultural crop production. International Journal of Social Science Humanity & Management Research, 2(9), 850-860. https://doi.org/10.58806/ijsshmr.2023.v2i9n04

Sena. (2022). Impact of school garden on the teaching and learning of agricultural science in Peki College of Education, Ghana. Global Scientific Journal, 10(8).

Sharma. (2025). Career readiness: Importance of practical skills in higher education. https://www.hurix.com/blogs/career-readiness-importance-of-practical-skills-in-higher-education/

Sumandal, et al. (2022). Students’ level of engagement in learning technology and livelihood education in the new normal. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies, 6(3), 45-50.

Walshe. (2024). School gardens and student engagement: A systematic review exploring benefits, barriers and strategies. Issues in Educational Research, 34(2). https://www.iier.org.au/iier34/walshe.pdf

Panorama Education. (n.d.). Comprehensive guide to 21st century skills. https://www.panoramaed.com/blog/comprehensive-guide-21st-century-skills