ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Levels of STEM Integration through Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources
Author: Wang, Hui-Hui
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: STEM Education,Interdisciplinary Approach,Agricultural Education,Food,Natural Resources,After School Programs,Preservice Teachers,Knowledge Level,Program Effectiveness,Lesson Plans,Relevance (Education),Teacher Education Programs,Nonformal Education,Informal Education,Elementary School Students,Skill Development

The purpose of this action research study was to develop a rubric that identified levels of integrated science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) lessons through agriculture, food, and natural resources (AFNR) lessons that were developed and implemented in afterschool programs by preservice informal educators. The research study expanded on the knowledge base by identifying three levels and six features of integrated STEM through the context of AFNR. Using the rubric, we analyzed 10 mini-units, consisting of 27 lesson plans, of STEM integrated AFNR lesson plans that were developed by preservice informal educators. There were three major findings. First, teaching AFNR content and skills was the main focus of integrated STEM lesson plans. Second, the lesson plans attempted to use real-world problems to connect students' learning to use content knowledge and skills to solve the problem, yet failed to connect other disciplines. Finally, students who had previous teaching experiences in non-formal and informal settings achieved the highest scores, but students who were in formal teacher preparation programs had the lowest scores in terms of developing integrated STEM through AFNR lesson plans.
Early Field Experience Course Students&apos; Perceptions of School-Based Agricultural Education Laboratory Environments
Author: Wells, Trent
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Agricultural Education,Experiential Learning,Photography,Preservice Teachers,Student Attitudes,Laboratories,Student Projects,Teaching Methods,Program Effectiveness

Laboratory instruction is an important component of school-based agricultural education (SBAE) programs (Phipps, Osborne, Dyer, &amp; Ball, 2008). Early field experience (EFE) coursework can be an important component of agricultural teacher preparation programs (Retallick &amp; Miller, 2007). Through the use of a modified photovoice technique, we sought to identify the perceptions of students (i.e., preservice teachers) enrolled in an EFE course in relation to the laboratory environment component of the SBAE model. Students enrolled in a 40-hour EFE course photographed a laboratory environment at their placement site and completed a 250-word descriptive/reflective summary of the laboratory. Through open coding of the summaries, three prominent themes emerged: (1) project-based learning is widely used for instructional purposes; (2) laboratory environments are set up and arranged in particular fashions based on needs; and (3) laboratory environments are arranged as settings for effective learning. Within the photographs, the agricultural mechanics laboratory was most commonly identified as a laboratory environment. The EFE students identified laboratory environments are not always traditional in their scope, and classrooms can serve as laboratory environments. We recommend photovoice be further used as a tool to explore students' perceptions of the realities of modern SBAE programs.
The Development of Preservice Agriculture Teachers&apos; Pedagogical Content Knowledge through a Greenhouse for Teachers Course
Author: Wooditch, Amanda M.
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Preservice Teacher Education,Preservice Teachers,Pedagogical Content Knowledge,Agricultural Occupations,Agricultural Education,Agricultural Engineering,Horticulture,Student Attitudes,Self Efficacy,Teacher Competencies

The purpose of this qualitative research study was to explain the development of preservice agriculture teachers' PCK [Pedagogical Content Knowledge] for the concept of plant fertilizers within a content-focused methods course. The emergent central phenomenon was an overall lack of PCK development for plant fertilizers, highlighted by five main themes that impeded the development. Preservice teachers felt less self-efficacious in horticulture content knowledge and possessed a greater desire for horticulture content knowledge over pedagogical knowledge. Additionally, the preservice teachers exhibited development of horticulture content knowledge and mathematics content knowledge through the unit. Finally, the lack of a content knowledge foundation inhibited the development of PCK in preservice teachers, despite the purpose of the course and vision of the instructor. Recommendations include more purposeful integration of PCK at the preservice level, utilization of tools like the CoRe rubric (Loughran, Mulhall, &amp; Berry, 2004) during lesson planning, increased field experience imbedded in the teacher preparation program, and a more careful examination of the preservice teachers' pre-existing content knowledge base prior to enrollment in the content-focused methods course.
Urban and Rural Latino Students&apos; Experiences in Agricultural Education: Toward Defining Rural Privilege
Author: Elliott, Kristopher M.
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Agricultural Education,Hispanic American Students,Rural Schools,Urban Schools,Student Experience,Access to Education,Barriers,Social Bias,High School Students,Access to Information,Enrollment

Agricultural Education programs continue to become more diverse and dynamic. However, diversity does not necessarily ensure equity or inclusion. As such, many programs strive to increase inclusive programming and ensure all students fully actualize the three-circle model of school based agricultural education. In some programs, students from rural and non-rural backgrounds coexist in a single setting. As part of a larger parallel mixed methods multiple case study investigating the experiences of Latino students in Agricultural Education, the data from this sub-study found certain inequalities between the rural and non-rural students in three of the four cases. Three sub-themes emerged from the data: 1) Students from non-rural backgrounds may not possess the same understanding of agriculture and agricultural education as their urban counterparts; 2) Lack of privileged information may present a barrier to access, enrollment, and involvement in secondary agricultural education programs; and, 3) Students from non-rural backgrounds tend to report fewer opportunities and more barriers to fully actualizing the three-circle model. Thick, rich descriptions are provided of the participants' perceptions of these inequalities. Furthermore, researchers offer a working definition of Rural Privilege along with suggestions for practice and further research.
Interactionist and Interventionist Group Dynamic Assessment (GDA) and EFL Learners&apos; Listening Comprehension Development
Author: Safa, Mohammad Ahmadi
Date: 2018-10-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Alternative Assessment,English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Listening Comprehension,Foreign Countries,Language Tests,Control Groups,Experimental Groups,Pretests Posttests,Group Activities

Drawing on sociocultural theory, this study explored the impact of interactionist and interventionist approaches to group dynamic assessment (GDA) on Iranian intermediate English as a foreign language (EFL) learners' listening comprehension development. To this end, 90 intermediate EFL learners were divided into two experimental and a control group. To ensure homogeneity of the proficiency level of participants, an abridged version of a sample TOEFL Junior Standard Test was administered to the participants. The listening comprehension section of the TOEFL Junior Standard Test served as the pre and post -tests. Participants of each major group were then assigned into five subgroups of four and two subgroups of five members. During 13 treatment sessions, in the first experimental group the researcher participated in the subgroups' class activities and applied interactionist approaches to interact and assist the group members in their listening comprehension activities. In the second experimental group, based on the sandwich model of interventionist approach to dynamic assessment, the researcher, while participating in the groups' activities, provided the group members with a range of more implicit to explicit appropriate feedback. However, in the control group, the traditional summative forms of assessment were applied and interactive or interventionist DA assessment were avoided. The analyses including one sample T-Tests, ANOVA, and Tukey HSD post-hoc revealed that interactionist GDA was the most effective procedure for the intermediate EFL learners' listening comprehension development. Moreover, although interventionist GDA procedure seemed to be more effective than NDA procedure of the control group, the superiority was not statistically significant. The findings underscore the primacy of interactive patterns of GDA and imply that the more the practitioners side away from unilateral and authoritative approaches of pedagogy in favor of the interactive and cooperative approaches, their educational endeavors will be more effective and consistent with the pedagogical objectives set for the listening comprehension development of EFL learner.
Employee Perceptions of Branding Materials and External Communications for a State Forestry Organization
Author: Settle, Quisto
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Forestry,Employee Attitudes,State Agencies,Positive Attitudes,Institutional Mission,Television,Workshops,Web Sites,Printed Materials,Radio,Information Sources,Communications,Comparative Analysis,Merchandise Information

The purpose of this study was to assess the Florida Forest Service (FFS) employees' perceptions of the organization's external branding materials through an online survey. Employees had positive perceptions of the mission statement, including it being accurate and differentiating FFS from other organizations. Perceptions of the new change were relatively neutral. Employees believed the public received most its information about FFS from television, workshops, websites, and print articles. Employees believed television, websites, and print articles were the most important communication channels for FFS to communicate to the public in general. Employees believed television, radio, and websites were the most important for emergency information. While employees believed FFS's external communications were important, they did not consider the communications effective or consistent. There are three recommendations for practitioners: use multiple channels of communication to reach the public, understand target demographic groups when selecting communication channels, and consistently represent the brand in external communications. There are three recommendations for research: assess the relationship between employee and public perceptions of which communications channels should be used, compare employees' perceptions of the importance of different communications channels to actual effectiveness of the different communications channels, and continue research into internal perspectives of public organizations' brands.
Assessment for Learning in Language Education
Author: Green, Anthony
Date: 2018-10-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Outcomes of Education,Teaching Methods,Student Evaluation,Feedback (Response),Evaluation Methods

This paper describes the growing interest in assessment for learning (AfL) approaches in language education. It explains the term, traces the origins of AfL in developments in general education and considers the evidence for its claimed impact on learning outcomes. The paper sets out some of the challenges involved in researching, implementing and evaluating AfL initiatives in the context of language teaching and learning and considers how this may impact on our field in the future.
Assessing the Technical Expertise and Content Needs of Alabama Agriscience Teachers
Author: Clemons, Christopher A.
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Secondary School Teachers,Teacher Attitudes,Agricultural Education,Expertise,Pedagogical Content Knowledge,Faculty Development,Teacher Characteristics,Teacher Certification,Correlation,Leadership Training,Program Administration,Teaching Methods

The purpose of this study was to assess secondary agriscience teachers' perceptions, expertise, and importance of agriculture content areas in the curriculum. To accomplish this study the following objectives framed the investigation: describe Alabama secondary agriscience teachers by personal characteristics including teacher certification pathway, describe Alabama secondary agriscience teachers by professional development needs, and explore the relationships between Alabama secondary agriscience teachers by professional development needs and personal characteristics. The population was representative of agriculture teachers in Alabama teaching agriscience education in grades 9-12. The data collection instrument included four thematic units: FFA/Leadership Development/SAE, Technical Agriculture, Program Management, and Teaching and Learning. Findings were evaluated using analytical triangulation between statements and individual item analysis. The areas of professional development needs were determined by the mean weighted discrepancy score (MWDS) in the four thematic categories. Alabama agriscience teachers identified competency areas with the highest MWDS as: FFA/Supervised Agricultural/Leadership Development (MWDS = 3.04), Technical Agriculture (MWDS = 2.48), Program Management (MWDS = 2.17), and Teaching and Learning (MWDS = 2.00).
A Profile of Exemplary Rural Agricultural Entrepreneurship Education Programs
Author: Heinert, Seth B.
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Profiles,Entrepreneurship,Case Studies,Rural Areas,Agricultural Education,Teaching Methods,Experiential Learning,Business,Vignettes,Awards,Competition,Risk,State Standards,Course Content

Entrepreneurship in rural areas has been seen as a potential tool to mitigate rural outmigration. Entrepreneurship has long been a part of the comprehensive model for school based agricultural programs in the United States, often emphasized through Supervised Agricultural Experience Programs (SAEP). Using case study methodologies, this study sought to identify programmatic characteristics of exemplary rural agricultural entrepreneurship education programs. Results revealed: (a) entrepreneurship was taught Primarily through SAEP and (b) entrepreneurship was taught a limited amount through coursework. Results also showed that experiential learning related to entrepreneurship was seen primarily through four examples: SAEP, written business plans, scenarios, and Shark Tank type presentations. Recommendations for practice and future research are provided.
Classroom Assessment Literacy for Speaking: Exploring Novice and Experienced English Language Teachers&apos; Knowledge and Practice
Author: Tajeddin, Zia
Date: 2018-10-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Language Teachers,Experienced Teachers,Beginning Teachers,Speech Communication,Student Evaluation,Teacher Attitudes,Guidelines,Knowledge Base for Teaching,Evaluation Criteria,Evaluation Methods,Content Analysis,Formative Evaluation,Summative Evaluation,Accuracy,Vocabulary Skills,Pronunciation,Language Fluency,Role Playing,Communicative Competence (Languages)

Despite many studies on assessment literacy, scant attention has been devoted to classroom assessment literacy for speaking. To bridge this gap, the present study set out to explore novice and experienced English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers' classroom assessment literacy for speaking. Twenty-six novice and experienced EFL teachers first completed three scenarios to collect data about their practices for speaking assessment. Afterwards, they went through semi-structured interview to elicit their speaking assessment knowledge. Both scenarios and interviews were framed using Xu and Brown's (2016) six-component framework of teacher assessment literacy. The focus of this study was on the teacher knowledge base, which is the second component in this framework and consists of knowledge of assessment purposes, content/criteria, and methods. Novice and experienced EFL teachers' scenario data were content analyzed through a summative approach, which led to the discovery of formative assessment and diagnostic assessment as their knowledge of assessment purposes in practice. Moreover, this analysis shed light on the teachers' six assessment criteria in practice, including accuracy, fluency, vocabulary, pronunciation, communication, and content. As to the teachers' assessment methods in practice, the findings revealed their use of role play, monolog, picture story, and questions and answers. The interview data were transcribed and content analyzed through a summative approach as well, which resulted in three main categories of assessment purposes: formative assessment, diagnostic assessment, and summative assessment. Besides knowledge of assessment purposes, the interview data substantiated the scenario findings about the teachers' assessment criteria and their beliefs about various assessment methods such as role plays, monologs, and authentic tasks. Although divergence between novice and experienced teachers' beliefs was moderate, the data demonstrated more consistency in the experienced teachers' assessment literacy for speaking. The findings imply that EFL teachers need awareness of their underlying knowledge about speaking, which is the product of their past education and language teaching experiences.
Agricultural Mechanics Lab Safety Practices in South Texas
Author: Chumbley, Steven Boot
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Laboratory Safety,Agricultural Engineering,Agricultural Education,Safety Education,First Aid,Teacher Competencies,Teacher Attitudes,Safety Equipment,Secondary School Teachers,Teacher Education

A pressing concern in all agricultural mechanics courses is safety. Lab activities have an inherent propensity to cause serious injury. The safety practices which are taught by teachers are largely dependent on the equipment in the laboratory and the resources available to the program. Various researchers have indicated that problems have existed in the safety instruction of agricultural mechanics for some time. This study sought to determine how safety is taught, what equipment instructors use and attitudes towards teaching safety of agricultural mechanics teachers. The majority of instructors were certified in first aid and felt confident to use that training in the event of an emergency. The average teacher was found to teach high enrollment labs and furnished at no cost to the student eye protection in the form of safety glasses with side shields. It was found that teachers agreed that safety instruction in the lab was important, especially involving power tools, electricity, and industrial quality eye protection. Agricultural programs should be evaluated regularly for inadequate conditions that may exist in facilities, equipment, and safety. Additional research is needed targeting what barriers potentially exist with teachers using recommended safety practices in the instruction of agricultural mechanics.
Thinking Development Techniques Used by Pre-Service Turkish Language Teachers in Informative Text Writing
Author: Cetin, Didem
Date: 2018-09-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Preservice Teachers,Language Teachers,Turkish,Writing Assignments,Thinking Skills,Cognitive Processes,Writing Processes,Cognitive Development

The purpose of the current study is to determine the pre-service Turkish language teachers' level of using thinking development techniques while writing informative texts. In the study, descriptive analysis-based qualitative method was employed. The study group determined by means of purposive sampling method is comprised of a total of 33 fourth-year students attending the Department of Turkish Language Teaching at the Education Faculty of Mugla Sitki Koçman University in the spring term of 2015-2016 academic year. In order to collect the data in the study, discussion and video display activities were performed with the pre-service teachers and then they were asked to write informative texts. The produced texts were analyzed to explore their level of using thinking development techniques. At the end of the study, it was concluded that the pre-service Turkish teachers had used the providing examples technique the most while writing informative texts and it is followed by the defining, showing witness and comparing techniques. Moreover, it was found that the pre-service teachers were limited to some certain thinking development techniques in terms of their level of using thinking development techniques.
Analysis of the Relationship between Pre-Service Teachers&apos; Value Orientations and Empathic Tendencies
Author: Akin, Mehmet Ali
Date: 2018-09-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Preservice Teachers,Student Attitudes,Values,Empathy,Correlation,Gender Differences,Intellectual Disciplines,Foreign Countries,Student Characteristics,Personality Traits

This research aimed at analyzing pre-service teachers' value orientations and empathic tendencies. It was based on quantitative, descriptive and relational approach. Pre-service teachers' value orientations and empathic tendencies were evaluated according to the variables including gender, subject area and types of education. Following this evaluation process, the correlation relationship between value orientations and empathic tendencies was examined. According to the independent variables, it was found that pre-service teachers' value orientations show significant differentiations for some value dimensions as opposed to the other value ones. Besides, pre-service teachers' empathic tendencies show significant differences with regard to gender, subject area and types of education variables. Based on gender variable, a significant difference occurs in favor of the female pre-service teachers and a significant difference takes place in favor of those pre-service teachers graduated from nonformal education in respect to types of education variable. The correlation value for pre-service teachers' value orientations and empathic tendencies are significant and low. It was revealed that the relationship between the value orientations and the empathic tendency dimensions are positive and low for some value dimensions and negative and low for the other ones.
Identifying Generational Differences to Target Extension Programming When Discussing Genetic Modification
Author: Beattie, Peyton N.
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Genetics,Agricultural Engineering,Extension Education,Food,Generational Differences,Public Opinion

Genetic modification (GM) science has received considerable pushback from consumers despite the research finding GM products are safe for consumption. This may be partly due to the disconnect between consumers and farms since most consumers are disconnected from the farm by at least three generations. The largest consumer population is composed of millennials, which is the generation furthest removed from the farm which may mean they need to be educated differently about GM science than other generations. The purpose of this research was to determine if there were generational differences regarding the perceived attributes of GM science to inform the development of extension programs designed to educate consumers about GM science. A survey was used to collect consumers' perceptions of GM science. The respondents were grouped into generational classifications and perceptions between groups were compared. The findings revealed generations do perceived GM science differently and extension programs should be designed for specific generational audiences.