Agricultural educators encounter unique teaching challenges as they teach applications of plant production in the greenhouse classroom. The teacher self-efficacy construct has been used broadly to link student learning outcomes to teachers' beliefs in their ability to attain certain instructional goals in the classroom. Few studies have used this construct to examine teacher-efficacy in the greenhouse classroom. This study uses the teacher self-efficacy construct within the agricultural educator domain. It seeks to measure change in agricultural educator self-efficacy beliefs using established self-efficacy scales to determine if a professional development experience in greenhouse operation and management effects educator beliefs in their ability to teach in the greenhouse classroom.

Changes within and outside of agricultural education were analyzed between 2009-2014 which coincided with a reduction of male pre-service agricultural teachers. Under the lens of the Theory of Gender Re-alignment, special attention was given to changes in legislation, curriculum, recruitment, and economic factors which relate to structural and cultural changes within agricultural education. The Changes identified in this study explain why male students are being outperformed by female students at a two to one ratio in regards to agricultural education degrees obtained.

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education is becoming an integral part of modern agricultural education. If the integration of STEM into agricultural education is to succeed, it is vital that educators feel confident in their ability to teach such material. This study examines Tennessee and Mississippi agricultural educators’ personal teaching efficacy and outcome expectancy levels towards STEM subjects and identifies factors that may play a role in the development of STEM teaching efficacy. Analysis indicated that educators felt most confident in their ability to teach science, followed by technology, mathematics and then engineering. Factors that influenced STEM personal teaching efficacy included the number of postsecondary STEM courses taken, gender, and CASE course completion. Regarding outcome expectancy, teachers felt similarly across the four STEM fields. The one factor found to influence STEM outcome expectancy included the number of postsecondary STEM courses taken. Recommendations for future research include exploring agricultural educators’ perceptions of engineering and its place in the agriculture industry, recognizing how engineering is taught at both the secondary and postsecondary level, understanding the experience of minorities in STEM, and identifying ways in which agricultural educators use technology in their classrooms. Recommendations for practice include offering preservice agricultural educators more engineering and technology courses, specifically highlighting how STEM concepts are used in the modern agricultural industry, and improving agricultural educator outcome expectancy levels.