Maine has a strong and growing aquaculture sector. While the state’s long standing working waterfront is facing many challenges, aquaculture provides an opportunity for the future of working waterfronts. Nevertheless, aquaculture remains largely unknown as a career choice to young Mainers at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. Developing career aspirations early and often and ensuring that educators have the tools and resources to successfully teach are integral to a successful future aquaculture workforce and sustainable rural communities in Maine. Benefits of agricultural education in the classroom have long been known: it reduces the divide between farm and table, enhances food security, increases awareness of agricultural careers, and helps to develop an informed consumer base and communities. Maine’s aquaculture sector is starting to leverage these benefits too, but currently, aquaculture education depends on the interest of individual teachers, with only a limited number of educators and school districts embracing an integrated approach to incorporating aquaculture education into their curricula.
The purpose of this project is to improve access to and awareness of educational materials, including technical support for schools and educators. In addition to developing and distributing aquaculture curricula to Maine elementary, middle, and high school classrooms, the Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center (MAIC) supports teachers with classroom implementation through professional development programming such as workshops, summer immersive experiences for educators, and webinars. This professional development programming aims to build the confidence and knowledge base of teachers.
To date, two curricula have been developed: a seaweed curriculum and a bivalve curriculum. Both curricula were designed to provide educators with easily accessible activities that fit within learning standards for grades K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and high school. The MAIC led a cross-organizational coordinating team who each came to the effort with their own expertise and resources. Here we describe the development, implementation, and extension of this educational effort, including the creation of the seaweed and bivalve curricula, our strategy for connecting with teachers across the state, and the process of bringing aquaculture education resources to Maine students.