ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Beliefs and Attitudes of Secondary Agriculture Teachers about Global Agriculture Issues
Author: Hurst, Sara D.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Beliefs,Global Approach,Agricultural Education,Secondary School Teachers,Teacher Attitudes,World Views,Randomized Controlled Trials,Behavioral Objectives,Learning Experience,Teacher Surveys

The purpose of this study was to explore the beliefs and attitudes of secondary agriculture teachers regarding global agricultural issues. A randomized national sample of 417 teachers were surveyed using a modified version of the International Agricultural Awareness and Understanding Survey (Wingenbach, Boyd, Lindner, Dick, Arispe, &amp; Haba, 2003). Results revealed agriculture teachers had positive personal beliefs about global agriculture. Teachers also had favorable attitudes about what students should learn related to global agricultural issues. Teachers mostly learned about global agriculture through activities that do not require travel, with watching television and professional development workshops as the most frequently reported activities. Few teachers had traveled outside the United States. Teacher beliefs and attitudes about what students should learn did vary based on selected international experiences, with teachers who had participated in international experiences having slightly stronger beliefs and more favorable attitudes. However, these differences had little practical significance.
Paxton Revisited: The Essence of the Lived Experiences of Urban Agricultural Education Students
Author: Brown, Nicholas R.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Urban Youth,Agricultural Education,High School Students,Student Experience,Phenomenology,Transformative Learning,Learning Theories,Influences

The rapidly growing world population and need for more food and agricultural knowledge has inspired city dwellers to explore urban cultivation practices such as vertical farming and community gardening. Ultra-modern approaches to growing crops and livestock in urban high-rise buildings has sparked the imagination of scientists, agriculturists, and engineers as well as rural and urban citizens in recent years. With this new piqued interest for urban agriculture, secondary urban Agricultural Education programs are in a prime position for growth. However, more research is needed to inform the profession regarding quality Agricultural Education growth in American cities. The purpose of this transcendental phenomenology was to discover the essence of the shared experiences of urban students who were persistently enrolled in Agricultural Education. The findings, conclusions, implications, and recommendations associated with the study are reported as five interpretive themes of meaning including: (a) disorienting experience, (b) critical assessment, (c) shared experiences, (d) thoughtful planning, and (e) projected transformation. The essence of the shared lived experiences of Thomas High School Agricultural Education students was discovered through the lens of the Transformational Learning Theory and can be described best as a Journey Toward Transformation.
The Effects of Target Word Properties on the Incidental Acquisition of Vocabulary through Reading
Author: Reynolds, Barry Lee
Date: 2016-11-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Vocabulary Development,English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Novels,Teaching Methods,Recall (Psychology),Incidental Learning,Word Frequency,Statistical Analysis,Native Language,Adults,English,Reading Processes,Chinese,Multiple Regression Analysis

The primary aim of this investigation was to determine what combination of target word variables (frequency, patternedness, length, cognateness, lexicalization) could best predict the difficulty of incidentally acquiring vocabulary through reading. A group of adult English First Language (EL1) (n = 20) and adult English as a Foreign Language (EFL) (n = 32) learners were given a copy of an unmodified English novel containing nonce words to read within two weeks. After reading, they were given an unexpected meaning recall translation assessment measuring acquisition of 49 target nonce words. Results indicated that previously unknown frequently occurring shorter length cognates incidentally encountered are more likely to be acquired and retained by adult EFL learners and it was generally easier for EL1 learners to acquire and retain more frequently occurring lexicalized cognates. Results also indicate that the frequency of exposure to target words mattered more to the EFL and less to the EL1 learners. Correlations between patternedness and assessment results for both groups were not significant, further indicating no statistically significant effect of repeated surrounding contexts on incidental acquisition. Pedagogical and methodological implications are discussed.
An Evaluation of the Self-Efficacy Theory in Agricultural Education
Author: McKim, Aaron J.
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Self Efficacy,Agricultural Education,Teacher Persistence,Faculty Development,Comparative Analysis,Evaluation,Student Teachers,Student Teaching,Literature Reviews

This research sought to evaluate the use of the self-efficacy theory in agricultural education. A total of 30 studies, published between 1997 and 2013 using self-efficacy as a theoretical foundation were compiled and analyzed. The findings of these studies were compared to expected outcomes identified by the self-efficacy theory, specifically the positive relationship between Bandura's four identified self-efficacy building experiences and increased self-efficacy as well as the relationship between self-efficacy and career persistence. This synthesis highlights important considerations for the use of self-efficacy theory in agricultural education, including a shift from mastery experiences to vicarious experiences in the teacher development process and specific considerations for the establishment of social persuasion between cooperating and student teachers. Finally, based on the comparison of past research in agricultural education and self-efficacy theory, recommendations are made for future research that will continue the articulation of this theory in both research and practice within agricultural education.
Exploring the Relationship between Self-Efficacy and Career Commitment among Early Career Agriculture Teachers
Author: McKim, Aaron J.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Teacher Persistence,Agricultural Education,Self Efficacy,Teacher Effectiveness,Classroom Techniques,Teaching Methods,Student Leadership,Science Instruction,Mathematics Instruction,Effect Size,Regression (Statistics),Teacher Surveys

The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences in career commitment and perceived efficacy among early career agriculture teachers as well as the relationships between early career agriculture teachers' perceived efficacy and career commitment. Five areas of self-efficacy were investigated among early career agriculture teachers in five western states: classroom management, instructional strategies, leadership of students, science teaching, and math teaching. Only small effects were found on four of the five self-efficacy variables based on years of teaching experience. Using multiple linear regression analysis, a predictive model for early career agriculture teachers' career commitment was developed. The final model explained a total of 20% of the variance in early career agriculture teachers' career commitment. Two areas of self-efficacy were identified as significantly related to early career teachers' career commitment, teachers' sense of efficacy in classroom management and science teaching. These findings implicate a need for increased emphasis on classroom management strategies and science teaching strategies throughout agriculture teacher development. Recommendations are made for potential self-efficacy building experiences based on Bandura's theory of self-efficacy.
Can Scientific Reasoning Scores Predict the Likelihood of SBAE Students' Intent to Pursue a STEM Career, a Career in Agriculture, or Plan to Attend College?
Author: DiBenedetto, Catherine A.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Science Process Skills,Abstract Reasoning,Scores,Predictor Variables,Probability,Agricultural Education,Intention,Occupational Aspiration,Science Careers,Agricultural Occupations,Academic Aspiration,STEM Education,Inquiry,Vocational Interests,Regression (Statistics),Secondary School Students

Demands placed on teachers and students continue to increase in order to develop the skills required of the 21st century workforce. There continues to be a need to utilize curriculum and instruction to inspire students to engage in STEM majors and careers. Improving instructional methods and providing opportunities for students to question and problem solve, through the use of inquiry-based instruction (IBI) can increase scientific reasoning abilities. This instructional approach may assist in improving, not only the academic achievement of students, but it may encourage students to plan to attend college and develop potential career aspirations for agriculture and STEM. This research used the scientific reasoning scores from 663 students enrolled nationwide in school-based agricultural education programs (SBAE) to predict students' likelihood to indicate plans to pursue a career in agriculture, STEM or plan to attend college. The findings reveal scientific reasoning scores predict students' likelihood to indicate intention to pursue a STEM career and plan to pursue college. Implications from this research suggest SBAE instructors should continue their efforts to incorporate IBI into instruction in order to engage students to think critically and solve real world problems, while exposing students to the skills requisite for STEM major/career access.
Preservice Agriculture Teachers' Perceived Level of Readiness in an Agricultural Mechanics Course
Author: Blackburn, J. Joey
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Agricultural Education,Preservice Teachers,Preservice Teacher Education,Student Teacher Attitudes,Readiness,Metal Working,Welding,Longitudinal Studies,Trend Analysis,Land Grant Universities,Agricultural Skills,Mechanical Skills,Skill Analysis,Ability,Grades (Scholastic)

This longitudinal trend study sought to compare the perceptions of preservice agricultural education teachers, enrolled in a Metals and Welding course at a land grant university, on their welding related skills at the beginning of the semester to their final course grade at the end of the semester. Preservice agriculture teachers (N = 240) who completed the course between the Fall 2006 and Spring 2012 semesters served as the population for the study. Although the course is designed, specifically, to facilitate learning in metal fabrication, not one preservice teacher in any semester perceived an excellent ability in performing the welding related skills. However, skills related to shielded metal arc welding and gas metal arc welding were rated higher than those related to gas tungsten arc welding or oxyacetylene welding. The course instructor should be made aware of this discrepancy and encourage students to seek additional experiences in metals and welding. Further, the course instructor should continue to collect these data at the beginning and end of the course to determine the impact these changes have on students' ability to perform and teach the skills as future instructors. Similar studies should be conducted in other areas of agricultural mechanics, such as small gasoline engines, plumbing, and agricultural structures.
Biology in the Agriculture Classroom: A Descriptive Comparative Study
Author: Despain, Deric
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Agricultural Education,Comparative Analysis,Biology,High School Students,Secondary Education,Science Curriculum,Science Tests,Scores,Statistical Analysis,Standardized Tests,Knowledge Level,Hypothesis Testing

Agricultural education can take scientific topics to higher levels, emphasize scientific concepts, involve hands-on learning, and develop interrelationships with the other sciences, thus making the living and non-living world around them relevant for students, potentially supporting a STEM curriculum. As such, in 1996, Utah deemed agricultural biology an adequate substitute for general biology in preparing Utah high school students to meet state biology requirements. The appropriateness of that decision was not tested until this 2014 descriptive comparative post-test only analysis of 2008-2012 data from the Utah State Office of Education Data and Statistics. As seen in this study, not only did agricultural biology students tend to score lower than their general biology counterparts, in multiple cases this difference was significant (p = 0.05), indicating a potential gap within the agricultural biology curriculum. Further, there were cases where Cohen's d was = 0.2, indicating at least a small effect size. This suggests that reevaluation is needed to ensure that biology standards taught in agricultural biology classes are better aligned with content tested by the biology portion of the Utah end-of-course core biology test standards.
Agricultural Opinion Leader Communication Channel Preferences: An Empirical Analysis of Participants of Agricultural and Natural Resource Leadership Development Programs
Author: Lamm, Kevan W.
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Communication Strategies,Leadership Training,Predictor Variables,Agricultural Occupations,Statistical Analysis,Preferences,Web Sites,Meetings,Telecommunications,Social Media,Alumni,Questionnaires,Online Surveys

In the information rich society of the 21st century consumers have had access to many different communication channels where they can find information about agricultural topics. Individuals seek information that fulfills their needs and opinion leaders have been identified as a solution to communicating with audiences about complex topics. However, previous research has neglected to focus on the most effective means of communicating with opinion leaders. Using level of opinion leadership as a predictor of communication channel preference within a Uses and Gratifications framework a sample of 3,234 agricultural opinion leaders were surveyed. Descriptive statistics revealed that web pages and meetings are most preferred while Twitter, conference calls, and other communication channels are least preferred amongst agricultural opinion leaders. Furthermore, inferential statistics illuminated the importance of clearly defining an intended audience. Specifically, although opinion leaders are differentiated from non-opinion leaders within their networks there are additional levels of opinion leadership that may warrant consideration when selecting a communication channel.
Adoption of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) by Agricultural Science and Extension Teachers in Abuja, Nigeria
Author: Alabi, Olugbenga Omotayo
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Information Technology,Agricultural Education,Instructional Materials,Teacher Characteristics,Foreign Countries,Statistical Analysis,Technology Integration,Likert Scales,Probability,Word Processing,Extension Education,Educational Facilities,Teaching Experience,Access to Computers

This study examined adoption of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) by agricultural science and extension teachers in Abuja, Nigeria. Specifically, the objectives are to: identify the background and demographic characteristics of agricultural science and extension teachers in the study area; examine the factors influencing adoption of ICTs by respondents and determine the challenges or constraints militating against adoption of ICTs by respondents in the study area. Data were collected from 60 purposively selected agricultural science and extension teachers in the study area. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics SPSS 19.0, Likert scale, t-test and Logit model. Ages, teachers' experience, access to ICTs were significant factors influencing adoption of ICTs by respondents at 1% probability level. Teachers' attitude, teachers' awareness significantly influences adoption of ICTs by respondents at 5% probability level. Word processors are perceived useful in setting tests and examination question papers, while, photocopy machine was perceived ease to use to make copies of teaching materials. Access to appropriate ICTs equipment and lack of infrastructure such as irregular electricity supply are the major challenges. The study recommends easy access, awareness and use of ICTs by instructors and regular supply of electricity to improve and stimulates adoption of ICTs by respondents.
Peer Review in Agricultural Education: Interrater Reliability of Manuscript Reviews for the 2014 National Agricultural Education Research Conference
Author: Shoulders, Catherine W.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Peer Evaluation,Agricultural Education,Educational Research,Interrater Reliability,Publications,Conferences (Gatherings)

This study analyzed 336 peer reviews of 112 manuscripts submitted for possible presentation at the 2014 National Agricultural Education Research Conference (NAERC). There were scoring errors on 6.8% of the reviews; the most frequent errors were failure to record a score or assigning a score above the range of points possible for one or more of the review criteria. The coefficient of variation (CV) for same-paper ratings of manuscript quality ranged from 3.94% to 96.43% with a mean of 19.65% (SD = 15.22%). The interrater reliability for same-paper evaluations of manuscript quality was 0.15. The CVs for reviewer same-paper reject-accept recommendations ranged from 0.00% to 98.97% with a mean of 38.80% (SD = 22.72%). The interrater reliability for same-paper reject-accept recommendations was .09. On 82 (73.21%) manuscripts all three reviewers agreed on the manuscript's relevance to agricultural education. Mean manuscript quality scores explained 68.3% of the variance in mean reject-accept recommendations leaving 31.7% of the variance unexplained. There were no significant (p &gt; 0.05) differences by academic rank in ratings of manuscript quality, reject-accept recommendations, or assessments of relevance to agricultural education. The authors offered recommendations for improvement of the NAERC manuscript review process.
Preservice Agricultural Education Teachers' Experiences in and Anticipation of Content Knowledge Preparation
Author: Rice, Amber H.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Preservice Teachers,Agricultural Education,Teaching Experience,Pedagogical Content Knowledge,Agriculture,Phenomenology,Student Teaching,Teacher Role,Semi Structured Interviews,Teacher Education,Teacher Education Programs

This study explored the experiences of preservice agriculture teachers in content knowledge preparation for pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) development. The researchers employed a phenomenological approach in which six preservice teachers were interviewed the semester prior to student teaching. The researchers found there was general dissatisfaction with the majority of agriculture content courses among preservice teachers in terms of quality, quantity, and transferability of content. Interest in agriculture content areas, their views of expertise, and what they want their students to gain from their teaching were found to be possible influencers affecting the PCK development of preservice agriculture teachers. These findings provide support for further research to explore gaps in content knowledge and the professions' understanding of PCK development in novice agriculture teachers. Recommendations include considering ways to incorporate content knowledge in pedagogy courses or working with content faculty on developing assignments to help preservice teachers learn content in meaningful ways.
Advising an Urban FFA Chapter: A Narrative of Two Urban FFA Advisors
Author: Martin, Michael J.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Faculty Advisers,Urban Culture,Narration,Student Organizations,Youth Agencies,Barriers,Change Strategies,High School Students,Secondary School Students,Interviews,Group Membership,Motivation,Learning Activities

Advising an urban FFA chapter can be a challenge for urban agriculture teachers. The contextual differences between the rural-oriented FFA and urban FFA members can make bridging the gap difficult. This narrative study sought to explore how the urban context shapes the work of an FFA chapter from the perspectives of two FFA advisors at the same school. Both advisors had the same viewpoint about what experiences their FFA members should have, which included competitions and events beyond the local chapter level. Yet, they struggled to meet this goal. Their FFA members who attended the National FFA Convention discussed the need to feed local, food insecure people as an opportunity for their FFA chapter. This revelation did not make the advisors feel more confident; rather, they were still frustrated that their members could not find success beyond the chapter level in FFA activities such as career development events (CDEs) and supervised agricultural experience programs (SAEs). This meant that the definition of success for the FFA Chapter fell to the FFA advisors and not their members. Implications from this research include the role of advisors' past experiences in shaping how they conceptualize their FFA chapter activities and success.
Determining the Effects of Reflection Type and Cognitive Style on Students' Content Knowledge
Author: Blackburn, J. Joey
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Reflection,Cognitive Style,Creativity Tests,Problem Solving,Agriculture,Agricultural Education,Preservice Teachers,Experiential Learning,Experimental Groups,Statistical Analysis,Laboratory Experiments,Pedagogical Content Knowledge,Teaching Methods,Science Education,Science Instruction

The purpose of this exploratory, experimental study was to determine the effects that the type of reflection-in-action and students' cognitive style had on content knowledge of preservice agriculture teachers (N = 57) at Oklahoma State University. Students' cognitive style was assessed using Kirton's Adaptation-Innovation Inventory (KAI). Students were classified as either more adaptive or more innovative. Students were assigned randomly to either a verbal or written reflection-in-action group in the completely randomized 2x2 design. A Lab Aids® classroom kit, based on the principles of biofuels, served as the content for the treatment. The findings of this study indicated that cognitive style and type of reflection-in-action did not affect students' knowledge scores in an agriscience laboratory positively or negatively. As such, teachers can utilize either type of reflection-in-action without detriment to student learning. As this study was exploratory in nature, it is recommended that it be replicated with a larger sample size to increase generalizability. Additional research should focus on pairing students of similar and opposite cognitive styles to determine how their problem-solving ability and performance on tests is affected.