The purpose of this study was to evaluate the agricultural literacy of college freshmen at a central Texas university. A score of 70% was considered acceptable; however, the mean overall score on the agricultural literacy test was fairly low (50.4%).A comparison of the overall mean literacy scores based on gender showed that male literacy scores (M = 51.3%) were significantly different (p < .05) than female scores (M = 49.9%). Students majoring in science (M= 54.0%) achieved an overall literacy score which was significantly (p < .05) higher than undecided majors (M = 47.4%). The mean literacy scores of students previously enrolled in high school agriculture classes (M = 54.1%) were noticeably higher than those students who were not enrolled in highschool agriculture (M = 49.6%), but the overall scores were not significantly different (p < .05). Agricultural literacy should be considered a critical aspect of general education throughout the public school system. Additionally, colleges and departments of agriculture should consider the results of the study and start discussions about what the profession should do about agricultural illiteracy.
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