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cje ›› 2010, Vol. 29 ›› Issue (07): 1458-1462.

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Comparisons of agroecology textbooks from China and the United States.

LUO Shi-ming   

  1. Department of Ecology, Agricultural College, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
  • Online:2010-07-08 Published:2010-07-08

Abstract: In order to understand the development trend of agroecology teaching, the related textbooks written by the authors from China and the United States in recent 30 years were compared and analyzed. The common features of the textbooks are: (1) proposing new directions for agricultural development to overcome the unsustainable problems facing by industrialized agriculture, (2) setting theoretic framework of agroecology on agroecosystem level, and (3) introducing alternatives of industrial methods, which can coordinate the social, ecological, and economic effects of agriculture. The differences of the textbooks from China and the US are: (1) the examples cited in the US textbooks are not only from the country, but also from abroad, many of which are from the US authors themselves, and the ways of the arrangement and expression in the US textbooks are quite personal, while the examples cited in the China’s textbooks are mainly from China, and from the second hand research reports, (2) the theoretical framework and the arrangement logic are more stable and rigid in China’s textbooks but more flexible in the US textbooks. The development trends of the textbooks from the two countries are: (1) paying more attention to balance the contents of basic ecology and agricultural practice, (2) introducing more practical methods and new research results, (3) emphasizing more on the organizational aspects of the society for agricultural sustainable development; (4) strengthening the practical skills of students through laboratory experiments and field activities, and (5) utilizing more visual and internet resources. The reasons for these phenomena were discussed.

Key words: Tibet, Beijing, Wheat, Planting in the different location, Quality variation