Action Research Project: Determining the Power of Previous Experiences

When brainstorming ideas on what would be beneficial to research, I began to think of my freshman class and the different experiences each of those students have had. Throughout my student teaching experience I have been in charge of grading the freshman SAE books. This has given me a sneak peak into their interest areas and where they spend time outside of school.

I wanted to design a research project that would determine the effect that previous experiences have on new learning. A large portion of my freshman class have livestock entrepreneurship SAE projects, so I saw my livestock judging unit as a good match. On the first day, students were given a survey asking questions on what experiences they have had with pigs, lambs, steers, and dairy cattle. These are the species we discussed in this unit. The numbers worked out perfectly. My section of 12 students were divided equally. Six students had prior experiences with these species and six students had no prior experience with the animals. The groups were arranged as follows: 2 teams with 2 experienced students, 2 teams with 2 inexperienced students, 2 teams with 1 experienced student and 1 inexperienced student.

http://adams.uwex.edu/4-h-youth-development/youth-livestock-sale/

Students were all given the same instruction while I introduced the different species so limit the variables. At the end of the unit, students were evaluated in their groups on their ability to judge classes of the four species. The scores for each team were recorded and graphed to search for any trends.

I found that in this case previous experiences had little effect on the students performance level. This is not what I had expected at all. At the beginning of this study, my hypothesis was that the students who had raised market animals before would preform better that students who haven't had any experiences yet. Although the students did not perform better overall, they were noticeably more familiar with the anatomy of the four different species. I believe this did have a positive influence on the quality of the reasons students gave. You need to know the language in order to talk evaluation.

http://blog.cauvin.org/2013/09/5-ways-companies-make-product-decisions.html

I would like to conduct another study the same way but assess the students before the unit as well. This would give me a baseline starting point as to where all students began knowledge wise. This would allow me to see the growth of all the students and further determine the effects of prior knowledge.

SLLC 2017

Several weeks ago I was given the opportunity to travel to the SLLC Conference in Harrisburg with Mr. Kessler and Ms. Spurrier. We made the trip down on a Sunday to grade state proficiency awards for the previous year. This was a great experience that will benefit my future students. Just seeing and witnessing how the proficiencies are graded gives me a much better understanding on what is evaluated. These are graded the same at the national level as well.

There are a couple different stances you could take on volunteering to help with this. Some people believe that teachers only do this so they can see exactly what their kids need to do in order to win. The amount of state winners is seen to reflect the quality of the program. I mean, what teacher doesn't want a lot of winners? However, this is not entirely true. For myself, I see this as an opportunity to determine the most important parts of the application. This provides more guidance as to what is seen as important and what is not. You can then stress the importance of each portion respectively.



http://www.brianvellmure.com/2014/01/09/anatomy-growth-insights-fuel-dynamic-growth-organization/

As educators we are always looking to better our instruction for our students. You would be surprised by the many different ideas that are developed by our students. Each of these proficiencies provides a story that we could take ideas from for future students. Taking advantage of opportunities like this allow for growth as teachers and facilitators. I look forward to helping with this process in the future and continuing to learn.

PAAE North Region Meeting

Attending the regional PAAE meeting stimulated my reflection on how much can be done when great agriculture teachers get together. During the meeting fellow educators met to discuss different competitions and opportunities for their students at the regional and state levels. The following areas struck me the most as a future educator.

1) This group of teachers are extremely supportive of each other. Everyone wants to see students become successful no matter what school they attend. I felt this at the area CDE contests. There were a couple students from other schools that I wanted to give advice to. I had to hold myself back because this was a competition.

2) This network of teachers are very resourceful and can get things done. They are "movers and shakers" so to say. When you bring this many knowledgeable agricultural leaders together and compile their resources and resource people, tasks can be accomplished quickly. These tasks could range from finding judges for public speaking contests to sharing lesson plans as a community.

3) This is a great place to talk with people just like you! Everyone here knows the struggles that teachers go through on a day to day basis. This is a great place to crack a few jokes or share some stories that only Ag teachers will relate.


http://www.goodmorningquote.com/inspirational-teamwork-quotes-sayings/

Going forward I believe that it is essential to remain an active member of the PAAE. Membership provides countless benefits for not only the teacher but all the students as well. This association provides many opportunities for improvement in the world of agricultural education. It is important that we take contribute and take from these opportunities.

Student Teaching Week 14: Tying it All Together

Over our Easter Weekend, I spent a lot of time reflecting on just how important education is. A person’s education, formal or informal, will contribute to their success no matter what they choose as a career. The knowledge students grow through high school will stick with them for the rest of their lives. Knowledge looks many different ways. If you are knowledgeable in mechanics you may be able to repair your car, saving you money. If you are knowledgeable in health and fitness you may be able to remain in shape and live longer. If you are knowledgeable in the stock market you may be able to make money through investments. There are benefits for all types of education.


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It continues to bewilder me on how some students do not see the value in education. But then I take a step back and think about my high school days. Was I the same type of student? Did I try my best and understand how my education will affect my future career? The honest answer is; I was in the exact same shoes. So how do I blame the student? Pretty hypocritical right? I did what was needed to get good grades, but I did not work to reach my full potential. Looking back, I wish I applied myself more than I really did.

So what can I do to expand the students’ perspective of high school education? As agriculture teachers we have an upper hand because of ag education’s “hands on nature.” Our instruction is infused with hands on experiences whether it be completing a butt weld or making cheese. All of these experiences can help our students determine what their interests are.

I could see field trips to different industries being beneficial to developing our students’ perspective on education. Maybe I take students interested in machining and welding to a fabrication shop, such as Pikrite. Maybe I take my students interested in plant science to the local greenhouse to hear from the operators. These people who are already in the industry are generally more than willing to share their educational experiences and provide advice.

http://www.quotesofdaily.com/quote-about-the-importance-of-education/quote-about-the-importance-of-education-1000-images-about-educational-quotes-on-pinterest-education/

It is important that our students see how their education will help them in the future. Often times we get wrapped up in “Covering” material we deem important. This material is important, however we need to make sure we back up and address the “Why” for each lesson. Make the material relatable for each student. If they see it as adding value to their life they will be much more engaged. As I enter my last week of student teaching I want to address the “Why” in every lesson.

Student Teaching Week 13: The Importance of Hands on Reinforcement

Yesterday I was given the opportunity to take a group of my freshman to the Penn State Spring Pig and Lamb Sale. We have already completed units on livestock judging, raising pigs, and are now are finishing up our unit on raising project lambs. This alignment in experiences made the sale experience extra valuable to my students' learning. 

Upon arriving I instructed my group to pick out two pigs and two lambs that they would like to purchase. They were to discuss their choices with their classmates and then share their thoughts with Mr. Kessler and I. I thought they did a really good job sorting both species and had respectable reasons given their experience level. 

Another teachable moment was when I showed them how to carry pigs properly. You do not want to be responsible for hurting someones $200 show pig. I explained the importance behind this concept. There was slight hesitation in washing them up and helping carry them to the buyers' trucks, but the students rose to the occasion like they normally do. I was impressed with how well these freshman boys did carrying pigs that were probably half their weight.

The boys cleaning up the pigs for the sale.

On the ride back from State College, I began to reflect on the days events. I couldn't help but think how cool it is to see students take interest in agriculture. These students gave up the first day of fishing season just so they could go to this pig/lamb sale and learn. These days, many of our students would rather stay penned up in the basement playing video games. Seeing kids take the initiative to go on these trips is really satisfying as an educator. Maybe I am reaching some of them? Getting and keeping our students involved outside of the school day is one way we can keep them out of trouble.

It is becoming more and more apparent that teaching agriculture is a lifestyle and not just a job. I look forward to many more trips like this.

Student Teacher Visit: Miss Hack at Pequea Valley High School

Kayla demonstrating propagation by cuttings.

On Friday, I had a great experience visiting one of my cohort members, Ms. Kayla Hack. Pequea Valley has an outstanding agriculture program located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The rich history of agriculture in this community shows through in the students and school staff. I was extremely impressed with the well-manored and courteous attitudes of the Pequea Valley students. These students have promising futures in any area they wish to pursue.

I am very excited for Kayla’s future students! She is an extremely well rounded teacher that has already began to show levels of mastery in my opinion. Kayla is a great facilitator and the hard work she puts in afterhours comes to life in the classroom. She is extremely dynamic and always knows what questions to ask. Among all these great qualities, the one that strikes me the most is Kayla’s ability to connect with all students. Watching her teach makes it obvious that she has established great classroom rapport. She really knows her students and has done a great job giving them the support they need. It is clear that her cooperating teachers, Mr. Doug Masser and Ms. Jasmine Vansant, have done an outstanding job mentoring her and have built a great program.

Kayla showing her engines class how to gap spark plugs.

As I travel to different schools and agriculture education programs I always look for things I can take and implement in my future program. Pequea Valley really does a great job teaching all areas of agriculture. They do a great job incorporating hands on experiences that range from food science experiments to welding projects. I was very impressed with the program as a whole, and I hope to build a program that is as well rounded as Pequea Valley.

Student Teaching Week 12: Make Learning Fun

I am not going to lie. At the beginning of last week I was burnt out. Working late into the night and teaching the next day can takes a ton of energy out of you. Students also expect you to bring the same amount of energy to the classroom each and every day. Coffee is a great tool but it can only take you so far. Some of my lessons were starting to loose creativity and kinda stunk in my opinion. This lead me to doing a little soul searching.

https://elissagoodman.com/lifestyle/are-you-burning-the-candle-at-both-ends/

When reflecting on things and the experience has a whole, I thought back to what an older retired Ag teacher had told me. He said to "make things fun, make it enjoyable for the kids and teach them some life lessons along the way." This got me thinking and recalling my experiences in high school. The best memories took place back in the Brockway Ag Shop. Mr. Norman did a great job giving us real hands on opportunities. The fun/hands-on activities are what we remember and take with us.

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Going into the rest of the week it was my goal to create activities that were much more engaging and got students up out of their seats. I feel like I accomplished this as I capped it off with a butter making lab on friday. The students literally "ate it up" along with two loaves of bread. Not every lesson can be packed full of these activities. We must still take the time to establish the basic knowledge through small amounts of lecture. However, we must make a constant effort to create more engaging experiences for our students. We must continue to improve our balance of instruction. This week I am looking to keep improving in this aspect and develop as a teacher.