MUCH MORE THAN OLD WINE IN NEW SKINS: STUDENTS’ AND ADULTS’ KNOWLEDGE ON GRAPEVINE AND VINEYARDS AS A STARTING POINT FOR NEW TOPICS IN SCHOOL

Abstract

Young people continually lose contact to their natural surroundings and agriculture. As school is one of young people’s main source of knowledge it should bring students and nature back together, by using agricultural examples. This research examines German students’ and adults’ knowledge on plant biological basics and viticulture choosing grapevine as an agricultural example of plants. It was undertaken as a paper-and-pencil test with participants of different ages and from different educational backgrounds. The results reveal the weaknesses of participants’ knowledge concerning botanical as well as viticultural aspects. Additionally, the results show a positive correlation between their age and their knowledge on viticulture. Thus, it shows the chance given by developing new teaching material meeting curriculum requirements, modern didactical approaches and the attempt of reconnecting young people with their agricultural surroundings. By using the example of grapevine a local and culturally important agricultural plant is chosen as a representative of different phenomena of botany as well as steps of food processing. Keywords: biology curriculum, science education, sustainability education, knowledge on grapevine, botany and viticulture.