​Plant diseases have a profound impact on agriculture and ecosystems, making the importance of equipping K-12 teachers with the necessary plant pathology knowledge and resources fundamental to cultivating environmental awareness among their students. As the world population grows, it is essential to inspire a new generation of agriculturally aware students, and teaching teachers is a way to reach a broader audience of students. Well-informed teachers enhance the quality of their courses, leading to increased enthusiasm and initiative in students (He and Wang, 2021).  Despite the growing need for new farmers, the number of farms has been declining, with a decrease of 200,000 from 2007 to 2022 (USDA, 2023). Additionally, we have an ever-decreasing farmworker population, despite increasing demands for food production in the U.S. Jodi Halvorson at the USDA (2023) reported that the mean age for the average farmer in the U.S. as of 2017 was 57.5 years old, as more young people lose awareness of the importance of food security for our growing population. The introduction of agricultural education in K-12 schools      can lead to students pursuing agricultural careers later in life, thus indicating the importance of well-informed teachers on the topics of science and agriculture (Scott and Lavergne, 2004). Having well-informed teachers is crucial to advancing both the students knowledge and the field of plant pathology. This can largely be achieved by providing regular opportunities for teachers to educate themselves and stay up to date on the latest information in the field (Chattopadhyay et al., 2021). For instance, a study by Guzdial et al. (2014) found that in Georgia, an increase in exposure to computer science workshops in elementary through high schools has led to more students participating in college-level computer science classes.

On May 6, 2023, the UF/IFAS Plant Pathology Department organized a 1-day workshop (from 8 am to 5 pm), titled "Plants Get Sick Too!" tailored for K-12 teachers to deepen their understanding of plant pathology and inspire them to incorporate this knowledge into their classrooms. Previous studies have found that many teachers lack the scientific proficiency to teach scientific concepts to students (Scales et al., 2009). The workshop aimed to deepen participants' understanding of plant diseases, with a specific focus on those affecting Florida's agriculture and local environments, such as the economically damaging citrus greening disease. The workshop included modules that featured interactive demonstrations, hands-on activities, and comprehensive discussions on disease-causing organisms such as bacteria, fungi, nematodes, and viruses. In addition, the participating teachers were provided with a guided tour of the UF/IFAS Plant Diagnostic Center, which receives numerous plant samples annually for diagnosis and treatment recommendations. The learning objectives of this workshop included an understanding of the field of plant pathology, increased knowledge of causal agents of plant disease, and the ability to teach these concepts in a classroom setting.

Understanding the effectiveness of this workshop may shed light on the potential to enhance scientific education and incorporate the vastly important field of plant pathology. The objectives of this study were: 1) Introduce K-12 teachers to the field of plant pathology and assess their knowledge and confidence of the field before and after the Plants Get Sick Too! Workshop; 2) Assess the impact of the workshop in order to make future improvements and meet the needs of teachers wanting to attend such workshops in the future.  ​

Methods

K-12 teachers were recruited from schools located in Florida for this workshop, and an advertisement was created and shared on the Florida Museum website: https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/earth-systems/may-6-2023-plants-get-sick-too-professional-development-for-teachers/. As an incentive, teachers were given a stipend of $100 each, a certificate of completion, a pocket microscope that can be attached to cell phone cameras, and access to resources for continued learning on plant pathology (e.g. teaching materials, such as presentation slides used in the workshop and instructions for the activity performed during the workshop). Teachers received refreshments throughout the workshop and lunch, and between sections someone accompanied the teachers to the next section. Posted signage on the walls of the building was utilized to help teachers locate sessions and restrooms (Supplemental file 1).

The demographics of the teachers recruited and who participated in this study can be found in Table 2.

To m​easure the changes in teachers' knowledge and confidence, a pre-survey and post-survey were applied (Table 3). The pre-survey aimed to establish a baseline of teachers' existing knowledge and confidence levels regarding plant pathology, while the post-survey assessed the impact of the seminar on these traits. By comparing the pre- and post-survey responses, benefits derived from the "Plants Get Sick Too!" seminar can be identified.    

The overall goal of this workshop was to expose K-12 teachers (and students) to the field of plant pathology. The main learning objectives were to:

1. learn about the varied organisms that cause plant diseases;
2. recognize the importance of common plant diseases;
3. inspire teachers to bring this information into their classroom.

Table 3. Open-ended, multiple-choice, and true or false questions employed in the pre- and post-survey.
*Teachers were not timed to complete the surveys, and participation was voluntary.​

​Question number	​Question & Answer Options (italics)*
​1	​What are the two first words that come to your mind when you hear about plant diseases? First word: __________________                    Second word: __________________
​2	​On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = not important at all and 10 = extremely important, how important do you rate the plant diseases subject to be studied/taught? 1          2          3          4          5          6          7          8          9          10
​3	​On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = nothing and 10 = a lot, how much do you already know about plant diseases? 1          2          3          4          5          6          7          8          9          10
​4	​On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = not at all and 10 = very comfortable, how comfortable do you feel in teaching about plant pathology to your students? 1          2          3          4          5          6          7          8          9          10
​5	​Below are a few names of organisms. Circle only those names that you believe can cause plant diseases: bacteria           oomycetes          virus          nematodes           fungi
​6	​Just like for human diseases where vectors that can function as a vehicle of pathogens, some plant diseases can also have vectors.​ True False ​If you chose “True", can you give one example:​​
​7	​What are a few methods of plant disease control?

Sessions from the Workshop​

Each session was totaled at 40 minutes (Table 1), with the structure of each session containing a 10–15-minute lecture-style presentation and the remaining time used for demonstrations and questions.

Session 1: Bacteriology

Learning objectives

1. ​Discuss the basics of bacteriology, including their characteristics and importance in the ecosystem.
2. Recognize the impacts of plant-pathogenic bacteria.
3. Identify different diagnostic strategies.

Setting, materials, and methods

A lecture-style presentation (~15 minutes) was given by the members of Dr. Jeff Jones's laboratory, which focused on the common bacterial diseases in Florida and methods of diagnosis. Additionally, a worksheet was given to the teachers on the basics of plant bacteriology and bacteria-specific diagnostic tests. The tests covered included immunostrip tests, KOH tests to determine Gram status, determination of pectolytic activity by use of a potato, hypersensitive response testing, determination of ice nucleation, and fluorescence on King's Medium B agar.

Table 1. “Plants get sick too!" workshop schedule. 

​8:50 – 9:10 am: Pre-workshop survey, consent form, photo release

​9:10 – 9:20 am: Introductions and overview of the day

​9:20 – 9:45 am: Brief introduction to the field of plant pathology

​9:50 – 10:30 am: Bacteria​

​10:35 – 11:15 am: Viruses ​

​11:20 – 12:00 pm: Nematodes​

​12:00 – 12:50 pm: lunch, provided

​12:50 – 1:45 pm: Plant Disease Diagnosis [Plant Diagnostic Center]​

​1:50 – 2:45 pm:​ Fungi ​

​2:50 – 3:30 pm: Citrus greening ​

​3:40 – 4:00 pm: Think-pair-share lesson planning, post-workshop survey, last questions.​

​

Session 2: Virology

Learning objectives

1. ​Discuss the basic concepts of plant virology.
2. Recognize the impacts of viruses on plants' health.
3. Identify different detection methods and management strategies.

Setting, materials, and methods

The session opened with the members of Dr. Svetlana Folimonova's lab giving a 15-minute lecture regarding the basics of plant virology, the common viral diseases of plants, and methods of diagnosis. Common Floridian viral diseases were discussed such as Citrus Tristeza Virus (CTV), as well as the impacts to the Floridian citrus industry. This presentation featured open communication and questions throughout the lesson. Then, a hands-on activity regarding the detection of viral particles using a fluorescent virus was shown. Lastly, a demonstration of how to use an immunostrip test when testing for plant viruses was given. Teachers were able to brainstorm ways to demonstrate these concepts, such as using glow-in-the-dark materials to mimic fluorescence.

Session 3: Nematology

Learning objectives

1. ​​​Discuss the basic concepts of plant nematology: Explain the basic biology and life cycle of nematodes.
2. Recognize the impacts of nematodes on plant health.
3. Identify different management strategies.

Setting, materials, and methods

The members of Dr. Samuel Martins's lab opened the session with a 15-minute lecture regarding the basic concepts of plant nematology, biology and identification of plant parasitic nematodes, and management techniques. This presentation was accompanied by visual aids of a Baermann funnel and preserved infections of root-knot nematodes, foliar nematodes, and heartworms. The session concluded with an interactive activity in which the teachers were able to use a dissecting microscope to view live nematodes. During the session, participants and the instructors were able to brainstorm ways to implement some of the concepts into the classroom, such as strategies to create a modified Baermann funnel to separate nematodes from soil.

Session 4: Plant Diagnostic Center

Learning objectives

1. ​​Learn and apply the basic concepts of microscopy.
2. Discuss the process of plant disease diagnostics.
3. Identify the methods and components of a Plant Diagnostic Center.
   

Setting, materials, and methods

In the teaching lab/library of the Plant Diagnostic Center (PDC), teachers were given a short presentation (~15 minutes) about common local plant diseases and how they look under a microscope. Diseased plant samples were sourced from local plants surrounding the building, highlighting that samples of plant diseases can be sourced from common areas for classroom use. Following the presentation, teachers were given miniature microscopes that can be attached to a phone camera. During this activity, the teachers used their miniature microscopes to observe diseased plants provided by the PDC. During the session, teachers were able to discuss potential ideas to bring the information from the workshop to their classrooms, such as having students look for diseases outside to collect and observe in the classroom using the miniature microscope.

Session 5: Mycology

Learning objectives

1. ​Discuss the basic concepts of plant mycology.
2. Identify the impacts of fungi on plant health.
3. Recognize different fungal structures and spore shapes.
   

Setting, materials, and methods

A lecture-style presentation (~15 minutes) regarding plant pathogenic fungi was given to the teachers by the members of Drs. Jeffrey Rollins and Matt Smith's laboratories. Important fungal diseases in history, as well as important fungal diseases in Florida, were discussed. Additionally, a series of fungal spores and fruiting bodies were placed under dissecting and compound microscopes for the teachers to view. This was accompanied by a worksheet indicating some common fungal structures for the teachers to refer to.

Session 6: Citrus Greening

Learning objectives

1. ​Discuss the impact of Citrus Greening (HLB) in Florida agriculture.
2. Recognize the difficulty of managing HLB disease and current management strategies used.
3. Execute a simple DNA extraction method to use as teaching material for students.

Setting, materials, and methods

The members of the UF Citrus Research and Education Center began their session with a lecture (~15 minutes) regarding HLB in Florida. This presentation featured a discussion about the disease, its vectors, its economic impact, current treatments, and antibiotic resistance bacteria. Visual aids such as infected fruit, leaves, and citrus psyllids were available for the teachers. Following the presentation, the teachers were guided through a “Watching DNA" activity in which they could extract banana DNA using a few common ingredients such as water, liquid soap, rubbing alcohol, and table salt (WGBH Educational Foundation, 2005). This instructional was given to the teachers at the end of the sessions to allow implementation of the demonstration in a classroom.

​ Fig. 1. Word clouds representing the words the teachers associated with plant pathology before (left) and after (right) the “Plants get sick too!" workshop. Words increase in size based on how often the term was repeated. ​

Data analysis

All activities conducted in this research were approved by the Institutional Review Board, with the service survey number IRB202300828. The quantitative data from the ​questionnaires (Table 3) were assessed through the student t-test. SigmaPlot® version 14.5, RStudio (RStudio Team, 2020), and Wordcloud package (Ian Fellows, 2018) were used for data analysis and artwork.

​​ Fig. 2. “Plants get sick too!" workshop for teachers from underrepresented groups in Florida and the instructor (Samuel Martins) in the center (A). More than 65% of teachers participa​ting in this program work in Title I schools, where most of the students are eligible for the federal free and reduced-price meal program. Gained knowledge assessed through self-assessment in pre- and post-surveys (B). The error bar represents ± SE. (Photo used with teachers' permission).​

​​ Fig. 3. Figure displays the shift in answers between the pre- and post-surveys. Each figure with a darker color represents a teacher who correctly identified the word (above) as a causal agent. ​

Results

To measure teacher's prior knowledge of plant pathology, we prompted them with the question “What are the first two words that come to your mind when you hear about plant diseases?" in the pre- and post-survey. The word associations made before and after the workshop showed that there was a shift in the way teachers viewed plant pathology with the emphasis on other important aspects, such as economics in the post survey (Fig. 1). For instance, before the workshop, as expected, there was little common understanding regarding plant diseases, as only one word was commonly shared among the teachers (Pathology). After the workshop, two words were commonly shared by the teachers. However, it is difficult to assess the increase in common knowledge due to the small sample size. In addition to the increase in shared word choices, the words chosen after the workshop demonstrated increased importance of the topic. For example, previously teachers had chosen words such as “common," “unsure," or “ignored." After the workshop, the chosen words increased in significance, such as, for example, “pervasive," “important," or “economics," with more associations being made with the overall importance of the field of plant pathology in science and in the economic sphere. In each session, the impact of diseases on the agricultural industry was emphasized, which likely contributed to a stronger sense of the economic importance of plant pathology. Floridian agriculture and relevant local diseases were highlighted in the sessions, which likely served as a strategy that allowed a stronger awareness of impact to Floridian teachers.

This increase in perceived importance is also supported by further results from the surveys, which showed plant pathology being rated far more important after the workshop (9.57; ±0.29) compared to before the workshop (7.00; ±0.43) (P=0.001) (Fig. 2B).

The surveys also indicated a significant increase in the teachers' own perceived knowledge of plant pathology (P<0.05) and their confidence in teaching the subject (P<0.05), suggesting that a workshop such as the one in this study could be an important tool to help teachers to make improvements in their curricula.

Teachers were asked to select the microbes' names that they believe can cause plant diseases, and in the pre-survey, both bacteria and fungi were 100% identified as causal agents of plant disease. However, the other causal agents were less likely to be selected, with oomycetes selected as a causal agent by only 2 out of the 7 teachers (Fig 3), implying that disease-causing organisms are not well known among K-12 teachers. The post-survey indicated an increase in knowledge, with 100% of the teachers correctly identifying every causal agent of plant disease listed in the questionnaire.

Prior to the workshop, teachers were asked the following “true or false" question: “Just like for human diseases where vectors can function as a vehicle for pathogens, some plant diseases can also have vectors." In both the pre-and post-survey, all teachers in attendance correctly answered: “true." However, in the follow-up question “If you chose 'True,' can you give one example," there was variation in the responses. Before the workshop, four out of the seven teachers correctly identified a vector. After the workshop, this number increased to six out of seven. Furthermore, the teachers showed a stronger commonality in their responses post-workshop, with four teachers writing down “insects" and two writing “aphids." Moreover, regarding the ability to identify management strategies, the teachers were able to identify more methods overall (Table 4). After attending the workshop, an increase was found in teachers' responses to the correct control methods for plant diseases. Teachers' responses went from 2.4 methods to 3.3 methods, respectively, for the pre- and post-surveys. The answers given in the post-survey, such as the identification of cross-protection, nematicides, and CUPS for citrus protection, were also more specific in nature.

Vectors ​		Management Strategies ​
Pre-Survey	Post-Survey	Pre-Survey	Post-Survey
Aphids	Aphids	Dusting and pesticides. Ensuring crop is well situated (Fertilized, watered, etc.) so that its defenses are strong. Companion planting. Diversification, GMOs**​	Burning, pesticides, viruses & bacteria as biological controls
Proximity of one plant to another	Proximity, Insects, Soil	Control their environment and exposure to pathogens	Quarantine, pesticides & chemical solutions, having a mild strain of the virus to protect it from severe strains, recombinant DNA
Fungi spores	Insects	Culling, amputation, and quarantine	Fire, inoculation, cross-protection, antibiotics, pesticides
Pollinators	Insects	Trimming & removing infected sections	Fire, removal, pesticides
Pollinators	Aphids	Pesticides and Fertilizers	CUPS*** for citrus, fungicides, nematicides
Tree Bark	Citrus Greening, TMV*	Keeping invasive plants away and growing plants in appropriate areas and soils	Crop rotation, pesticides, CUPS
Insects	Insects	Control insects, parasites, and moisture control	Biological controls and moisture management

*TMV = tobacco mosaic virus

**GMOs = genetically modified organisms

*** CUPS = Citrus Under Protective Screen

Conclusions

The “Plants Get Sick Too!" workshop provided Floridian teachers an opportunity to learn more about the field of plant pathology. The workshop led to an increase in confidence towards teaching about plant disease, the ability to identify the organisms responsible for plant diseases, and an increase in perceived importance of the field of plant pathology.

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) teachers play a crucial role in the teaching-learning process of future citizens who will likely face challenges regarding plant diseases. Teaching teachers about the importance of plant diseases is a way to pique students' curiosity toward the subject and reach a larger audience. Preparing and empowering students with knowledge of plant disease will allow them to be better equipped to address and understand the challenges regarding food security in the future (Chattopadhyay et al., 2021).

Potential challenges for implementation into a K-12 curricula often include limited resources. To minimize some of these challenges, teachers were provided with affordable resources, such as a pocket microscope, instructions for simple hands-on activities, and access to teaching materials used during the workshop. In the future, a longer workshop may allow for more in-depth instruction, higher confidence levels in teachers, and an activity centered around lesson planning at the end of the workshop.

Further studies will aim at increasing the sample size to better understand teachers' learning outcomes from this type of workshop. Additionally, a follow-up study to investigate how continuous plant pathology workshops for teachers correlate with an increase in their students' learning outcomes in this area is a topic to be explored. ​​

​​​This work was supported by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) grant project no. 2022-68015-36721 and Hatch project no. 1024881. We would like also to thank Dr. Erica Goss for the co-organization of event and all the participants of the “Plants Get Sick Too!" workshop of 2023.

​​References

Chattopadhyay, C. (2021). Plant pathology in the era of new education policy: challenges and opportunities. Indian Phytopathology, 74(3), 587-595.

Halvorson, J. (2023, February 22). 2022 census of agriculture impacts the next generations of farmers. USDA.

Guzdial, M., Ericson, B., Mcklin, T., & Engelman, S. (2014). Georgia computes! An intervention in a US state, with formal and informal education in a policy context. ACM Transactions on Computing Education (TOCE), 14(2), 1-29.

He, X., & Wang, W. (2021, July). Teaching Reform and Practice of Landscape Plant Pathology. In 2021 2nd International Conference on Modern Education Management, Innovation and Entrepreneurship and Social Science (MEMIESS 2021) (pp. 172-175). Atlantis Press.

Keller, A. (2023).Farming and farm income. USDA ERS - Farming and Farm Income. Retrieved from:https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/ag-and-food-statistics-charting-the-essentials/farming-and-farm-income/#:~:text=In%20the%20most%20recent%20survey,from%202.20%20million%20in%202007

Scales, J., Terry Jr, R., & Torres, R. M. (2009). Are Teachers Ready to Integrate Science Concepts into Secondary Agriculture Programs?. Journal of Agricultural Education, 50(2), 102-113.

Scott, F. L., & Lavergne, D. (2004). Perceptions of agriculture students regarding the image of agriculture and barriers to enrolling in an agriculture education class. Journal of Southern Agricultural Education Research, 54(1), 48-59.

RStudio Team (2020). RStudio: Integrated Development for R. RStudio, PBC, Boston, MA URLhttp://www.rstudio.com/.

Ian Fellows (2018). wordcloud: Word Clouds. R package version 2.6.https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=wordcloud

WGBH Educational Foundation. (2005). Extracting DNA from bananas. Retrieved October 30, 2023, from https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/teachers/activities/pdf/3214_01_nsn_01.pdf.