Evaluating Formats of OSHA 10-hour Safety Training for Learning Outcomes in High School Students

Abstract

Youth working within agriculture experience disproportionately high rates of injury and fatality compared to adult workers, reflecting ongoing challenges related to limited experience and inconsistent safety training. In response, formal safety training programs, delivered online or in-person, aim to increase awareness of agricultural hazards. As online training options expand, and high schools seek versatile instructional approaches, understanding how delivery format influences learning becomes increasingly important. The mode of content delivery may shape students’ knowledge retention, motivation, and future application of safety practices; however, limited research has examined how training modality affects these outcomes. This study evaluates high school students’ knowledge gain and safety motivation after completing the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) 10-hour safety training course designed for teens and is available in online and in-person formats. The objectives are to: 1) describe students’ safety-related knowledge, motivation, and intent to engage in safe practices at three intervals, pre-training, post-training, and two months post-training; and 2) compare these outcomes across instructional modalities at the same intervals. Ohio high school agriculture teachers offering the OSHA 10-hour General Industry course will be recruited in spring/summer 2026 and will deliver the training in the format of their choice. A target sample of 500 students (approximately 18 classrooms) will provide sufficient power for statistical analysis. Students will consent to share their electronic assessment scores for research purposes. Data collection will occur Autumn 2026, with pre-tests administered before training, post-tests at course completion, and final post-tests two months later. Descriptive statistics will address objective one, and repeated measures MANOVA will address objective two. Findings will advance understanding of how OSHA 10-hour safety training and its delivery modality affects youth preparedness to recognize, mitigate, and respond to agricultural hazards. Examining changes over time will clarify patterns of retention, a factor strongly associated with behavioral change and injury reduction. These results will help safety educators communicate the relative benefits of online and in-person platforms to curriculum designers, supporting broader distribution of accessible, scalable safety interventions. Ultimately, this work aims to reduce preventable injuries among young agricultural workers; a population consistently overrepresented in farm-related morbidity and mortality reports.