Impact of a poultry education program on elementary students’ knowledge and interest

The Poultry and Animal Virus Education (PAVE) program was designed to increase agricultural literacy, content knowledge, and science interest among elementary students through a combination of online modules and a hands-on classroom project. A total of 111 students completed baseline surveys (T1), with 78 completing post-module assessments (T2) and 49 completing post-project assessments (T3). Agricultural literacy, module-specific knowledge items, and individual and situational interest were measured using validated Likert-scale instruments. Content knowledge scores remained stable (T1: 6.64 ± 0.21; T2: 6.67 ± 0.49). Individual interest remained neutral between T1 and T3, whereas situational interest increased modestly and remained stable. Students who self-reported low agricultural knowledge scored significantly lower on content knowledge measures (p < 0.05). These findings suggest that online interventions may support content understanding but have limited impact on shifting individual interest, highlighting the need to integrate reflection, relevance, and teacher facilitation to sustain engagement.