From field to classroom and back. Policies, practice, and knowledge transmission

This chapter examines the development of agricultural education for children in Europe from the mid-eighteenth to the mid-twentieth century, placing it within the broader processes of agricultural modernisation, economic transformation, and state-building. Drawing on an interdisciplinary approach combining economic history, rural history, and the history of education, it explores the relationship between agricultural knowledge, educational policies, and the transmission of practical skills to younger generations. Particular attention is devoted to three interconnected dimensions: the role of public institutions in promoting agricultural education, the international circulation of pedagogical ideas and teaching practices, and the training of elementary school teachers. Through a comparative European perspective, the chapter highlights the diversity of national experiences and the complex interactions between state intervention, local initiatives, and rural communities. It also examines the contribution of agricultural education to human capital formation, technological change, and the construction of social and cultural identities. The chapter argues that agricultural education developed through gradual and uneven processes, shaped by economic needs, political objectives, and institutional constraints, rather than following a uniform path towards modernisation.