NAAE Convention Reflection

Las Vegas, Nevada, here we come!

Several weeks ago, I had the opportunity to travel to Vegas to join fellow ag teachers at the NAAE annual convention. Here are my top 3 take aways from this experience

Networking

I got to meet other preservice teachers like myself during the FAST symposium (Future Agriscience Teacher symposium). We engaged in activities around inquiry based instruction, hands-on "agtivities", and CASE curriculum. We also got to listen to various speakers about their thoughts and experiences with teaching agriculture. 

As far as networking goes, I got to learn a little bit more about agricultural education programs across the country, and meet ag teachers who gave good advice. I joined in committee and regional meetings and got to connect with teachers from Pennsylvania. 

Professional Development

Of course, one goal of the convention is professional development workshops. I went to several workshops throughout the week. Some of the notable ones are the LGBQT inclusion, aquaponics, vet checks workshops. I enjoyed each of these and was able to snag some cool resources from them too!

Community

Meeting all of those teachers and those involved with the NAAE shows me that despite how many teachers there are, there is a strong community of teachers who are always willing to help and support. There were many teachers who would share their e-mail addresses, twitter handles, and business cards just to help me out. They are all so welcoming to new ag teachers.

I am truly excited to join in the ag ed family and to be a part of a group as welcoming as this. I would definitely recommend other preservice and ag teachers to go to this event!

I would like to thank Penn State and PAAE for providing me with this opportunity. I wouldn't have been able to attend without their support. 

Life Knowledge: The Sneak Peak Experience

My lesson for Life Knowledge was about goal setting and personal vision. I taught students on the importance of setting goals and how to write S.M.A.R.T. goals. 

The Life Knowledge lesson was an overall good experience. If you read my blog on my microteaching experience, my struggle was time limits. I was doing microteaching at the same time as my Life Knowledge lesson so I wasn't able to fully reflect and make adjustments. But even getting more class time was really helpful. 

I led them through a fun little icebreaker and then I had them come up with their own definitions of what they believe personal vision is. Afterwards, I gave a short presentation on components and parts of a S.M.A.R.T. goal. Then I had them do a race where they had to apply their goal setting skills. I would have liked to have them go through this for a little bit longer, and have a deep reflection time as well as give them time to write their own goals. But I had to shorten those in order for them to wrap up and do their learner satisfaction forms. 

I think I over planned, and while that isn't always a bad thing (it's good to have something else planned in case students finish early) I think I wanted to get through all of it and so I felt it was a little rushed in the end. I think there were things I could have cut out in order to reach my objectives. 

The students seemed pretty receptive to hands-on activities, but during lecturing time, they were a little more shy. I'm still figuring out how to ask engaging questions. I am also figuring out how to handle it when students don't answer and give me blank looks. A piece of advice from Mrs. Pontius was to call on students specifically. I hate the idea of doing this because I don't want to put students in an uncomfortable position if they really don't know. But Mrs. Pontius said you can tell pretty easily if they really don't know, in which case they can phone a friend. 

Hopefully I can pick up on those cues and be able to adapt as needed. I now know my goals this year are time management and questioning. 

Microteaching... How much do they really know about cattle?

The Top 3 Things I Learned from Microteaching at Juniata High School

I planned three lessons on the cattle industry for an introductory ag class. I wanted to start with general terminology and providing students with clear definitions of bovine terms. Then I was going to introduce them to some breeds of cattle which would lead into my lesson on selective breeding. Finally, I would begin to touch on methods of raising both dairy and beef cattle. The classes were 40 minutes long and it was a one-on-one so each had their own iPad in addition to the ag department having Chromebooks. The school also used Google Classroom. 

1. Slow it down; break it down

The first day I started off with general terminology. Some words included knowing the difference between a cow and a heifer, others were more in depth such as ruminant animals or castration. While I didn't explain the whole digestive or surgical process, I introduced them to words I would expect that they would come across as the week went on (also words that they might recognize from past lessons or will hear in future lessons).

I went through my powerpoint on terminology pretty quickly for a few reasons. One was just nerves. But mostly because I gave them access to the powerpoint with their iPads so they didn't need to take notes.. they had it right in front of them and could reference anytime they needed. I also knew having a 40 minute class was going to make me pressured to get through my objectives for that day so I wanted to make sure we had time for the application activity later. I also felt that these words were fairly basic or easy to remember. In fact, I was worried that the lessons was too easy. So I didn't want to spend a long time going through a boring powerpoint. 

I did, however take some pauses and ask questions for the students such as "why do you think farmers use castration?" and things like that which got them thinking a little. They were reluctant to answer at times, but I thought they were just shy.

Later, Evy mentioned to me that she noticed some confused looks on their faces as I went through the powerpoint--something I must not have noticed (I think it was the nerves). So this whole time I was thinking that this lesson would be simple where in fact, it was a little more on the challenging side for them. I learned that I need to slow it down for them, take a breath and really look around the room and see how they are taking the information. Also just break down the information, even if it looks like they might understand. 

On the plus side, I did a Go Get It E-moment with them and they LOVED it. I think it also helped solidify what they just learned which was great. As far as clarity goes for giving directions, I think I nailed it too!

2. Technology is your friend... and your enemy

Growing up in an era where schools had the huge plastic box called a desktop computer (you know, the ones that took 5 minutes to load and the only games were minesweeper?), I was certainly not used to a one-on-one school district. So I was worried about what the technology situation would look like. For the most part, they were pretty productive on them. I would have them look up information for their bellwork or use it for some of the projects they did. However, there were a few individuals that were goofing off on their iPads or phones. I was floating around the room often so I was able to catch it often, but it was still a huge distraction for some students. And some of those students were the ones who constantly finished last. 

It's hard coming into someone else's classroom and not knowing all of their rules (even with a day of observing) and trying to lay down the law. I believe I did a good job in controlling the situation when it happened. I think I should have followed up with the next "step". But if it's their iPads, who I am to take them away? And now they don't get any work done. So who really wins? Technology is certainly a blessing and a curse. 

3. Time is of the essence

By the time all of the students get settled, come back from the bathroom, begin their bellwork, and are ready to start the class, 10 minutes might have gone by. Then to go over it and get into the interest approach, and transition into the lesson takes even more time. By the end of the day, I found that I could barely get through one objective... and I might have had two or three! There is not enough time in the day and I have no idea how teachers get through their lessons and feel like their students have learned something. They must certainly be magical. 

I know I tend to over plan activities, but I still envisioned certain projects going much quicker than they did. Students needed more time finishing assignments and I had not anticipated that. So I would start by saying that I would give them five minutes for something but they needed ten. I kept pushing it because I thought I was being adaptable. 

Mrs. Morgan suggested having a specific time for when they were to be done by and sticking to it. They could finish it later, but in order to make progress, they needed to continue moving through the lesson. I think this will be valuable for me as I try to teach 42 minute classes in the spring. Some lessons can be adaptable, but the rest can either be finished for homework, after school, or the next day. I might have to work in some "work days" or "catch up days" just in case this happens. Not sure of other teachers' perspectives on this, but it's just a thought. 

Reflection

I was glad for the experience to microteach. There are some challenges as far as not knowing the students beforehand and not knowing the classroom management views of the teacher, but I liked having the trial and error experience. I think the biggest lesson for me was getting a feel of what exactly 40 minutes feels like and knowing how to use my time as effectively as possible. 

Lab Trial #4: Inquiry Based Instruction

Question or Problem

How can Inquiry Based Instruction be used as a tool in the classroom?

toggletime.net

...engaging in IBI activities... researching IBI... hypothesizing that students will be independent learners as IBI is implemented...

Testing the experiment

The lesson I prepared was about determining pH levels in soil and how it affects plant appearance and growth. Using a Lab Aid kit, I had the students use the chemicals (called "Plant Nutrients", "Plant Mass", "Soil Aluminum", and "Agricultural Lime") and develop a hypothesis on what would happen to the chemicals when combined. They weren't given anything to test specifically for pH, rather, they were to determine what chemical provided would have an effect on the plant. It was supposed to change the color of the liquids depending on how much of each was added. I had them work in groups and design their own experiment.

sebamedusa.com

Analysis and results of data

Inquiry Based Instruction (IBI) is something that does not come easily to me. I am so conditioned to having specific procedures and knowing exactly how I'm going to be graded. I am not used to creating my own learning (if you can think of IBI like that) much less teach it. I was itching to help and teach rather than sit back and let the students take control.

saintermediate.blogspot.com

As much as I prepared and tried to plan for any confusion or gaps, I couldn't foresee the issues that would happen when I turned students loose after explaining what they were to do. I think part of the struggle with my lesson was trying to turn very explicit instructions with the Lab Aids kit into something that had zero directions. I practiced with the chemicals beforehand and tried several combinations based on what I thought my students would do. These combinations still produced pretty accurate results so I wasn't worried about them not getting it 100% in line with the procedures that came with the kit.

When I first introduced the lab, the students were expecting to use pH testing strips. It was then that I realized that my objective didn't match my goal for that lesson... not exactly. Yes, it was a pH lab, but this particular lab wasn't testing pH levels, it was comparing how agricultural lime raises the pH. The change in color was to show that the lime was bringing up the pH; making it more basic. This only created confusion, understandably, and they were struggling to create a hypothesis if they didn't know what exactly it was they were going to see when they tested it. 

quotesgram

Based on the feedback I got, I think I did a pretty good job of staying cool, reworking their task, and getting them to test something. Once they started working with the chemicals they did start to notice how the chemicals changed the color. However both groups only tested one or two things instead of having multiple test trials. I think they might have been able to figure out the goal if they had tested more than one combination of the chemicals.  

Conclusion

I think I have the idea of Inquiry Based Instruction down and I have a picture of all that can be done with Inquiry. I think the biggest fear (not just mine alone) is trying to plan as much as possible beforehand and play out every possible scenario ahead of time, and then arrive at the lesson only to find out that students don't understand or you didn't consider that they would try testing x instead of y. 

I really liked the idea of the lab I did. I don't know if it was really meant to be an Inquiry lab, but I think there might be aspects of it that could be. I also think I needed to reform my objectives and goals of the lab. I will say that the rest of the lesson was going to go more specifically into pH where they would look at what they've found and compare the colors to charts which would reflect what pH results look like. So this lab was only a snippet of the whole lesson. I hope to get more practice and to observe teachers who use IBI, but for now I think I'm still trying to feel it out. I do hope I can one day get my students to start truly thinking critically and not being so dependent on myself as the teacher. I think that is something so valuable for them to learn.

Teach Ag Twitter Chat: Growing Global Competency in Classrooms

This time of year seems especially busy for the 2017 cohort. So many events are all shoved into the lovely fall month of October!

One of those events is our Teach Ag Chat. My group and I did ours about growing global competency. How do we get students more aware of global issues, cultural differences, and agriculture outside of the US and Pennsylvania?

Here were our questions for the twitter chat:

Thoughts on the chat 

I think our chat went really well. We had a lot of participants ranging from students, to organizations, to ag teachers, and we had many representing from other states and universities. There was great conversation going on, offering ideas on getting more students involved in the world around them. 

Below is a link to the storify and blog on the twitter chat by George Dietrich:
http://teachagchat.blogspot.com/2016/10/october-27th-increasing-global.html

Thoughts on the experience

Twitter chats are tough! Using tweet deck is really helpful for some organization, and having the questions planned ahead of time and having them post automatically (set on a timer) helps to eliminate lags or human error, but it's still difficult to juggle. Being the thorough person that I am, I like to take time on my answers and really think about them. I could have planned out ahead of time what my answers were going to be, but didn't, so perhaps that's what I should think about for next time. However, if everyone planned out their tweets ahead of time so that they had time to read responses, then perhaps the pressure of tweeting with only a 5-10 minute time frame isn't enough? Or perhaps a blog or something is a better medium for the deep thinkers such as myself.. just a thought #KIR.

To speak on the connected educator quality, I think this is a great way for people to quickly share a thought, idea, blurb, or otherwise from their experience. One question can spark another, and one person can inspire an idea. Even just knowing who the gurus of specific topics are is a great way to stay connected. Users can follow those gurus and ask specific questions if they feel they have more after the chat. There were many people from outside of Pennsylvania that I have seen on the chats that I can now feel a little more comfortable reaching out to because we've had that short conversation via the twitter chat. 

Teach Ag Twitter

Twitter in general is a source to use for a quick thought or question. While I don't think it can stand alone as a reliable source or as a way to find a wealth of information, I think it can connect users to the person or group that will get them those answers. I'm glad that agricultural teachers have this tool to connect.

Weekly Vitamins: Creating a New Recipe with Inquiry Based Instruction

Everyone knows someone that seems to be able to craft the best meal or make the most savory chicken or brew the best coffee. Perhaps that someone is a parent or grandparent or friend. While they may have all of the same supplies and ingredients as the next cook, their dish seems to come out better. You just keep wondering what recipe they follow in order to come with that result.

atmag.net

Inquiry based instruction is similar to that magical recipe. This educational technique allows learners to form their own recipes to discover and learn. They may not get the same exact results as the other groups in their class, but they learn the concept of whatever problem they are trying to solve. This relatively newer idea of inquiry based instruction (IBI) allows students to make their own dish instead of following the recipe the teacher makes them follow. 

IBI vs. Problem Solving Approach

When I first started hearing about IBI and the problem solving approach (PSA) it was difficult for me to differentiate between the two. Both techniques challenge students to solve problems, are student driven, and is facilitated by the teacher. 

batalas.co.uk

However in doing the readings for this week, I was able to pull out some small differences between the two techniques. The main thing was that with IBI, students are trying to solve a problem, but they are making their own procedures and they are evaluating their results with the scientific method (not always, but typically). In the PSA, students are more so just utilizing their resources to solve the problem posed to them. In addition, I think IBI encourages the concept of the topic the students are learning about rather than coming up with an exact answer. PSA doesn't necessarily have a right or wrong answer, but the goal of PSA is to find the best answer. It does still encourage learning the concepts and skills, however. 

Maybe these two techniques aren't separate, though. Perhaps inquiry based instruction is a form of one of the problem solving approach methods. Of that I'm not entirely sure. No matter what category it falls under, I think the main point is that teachers should be encouraging their students to seek the answers and experiment in order to learn; not allowing the teacher to tell them the information all the time. 

Emphasizing the "why"

I think it is so important for students to understand not only why the information that they are learning is important, but why they are learning it the way they are. Traditional learning, as it says in the readings, does not challenge students to find the answers, but lets them absorb the information instead. They have to learn how to learn all over again, essentially. There might be some push back on this, as some of the participants in the Journal of Agricultural Education mentioned, where it took several tries for students to get comfortable with this style of teaching. 

So if I can get my students to understand why I am facilitating in this way, I think that will make it much easier for them to want to learn and not concern themselves with finding the one right answer to pass the class.

cognition.happycog.com

A novice to inquiry based instruction

I feel as though at least one of my teachers in my past has used IBI, but I can't say I clearly remember a lesson where this has taken place. I still have so many questions regarding how it is done, so I fear that I might struggle with it initially until I work out all of the kinks. I believe that if I make it my goal to give students the chance to cook up their own plan and chew on their answers and research for a bit, they will gain much more than I could ever teach by telling them the information alone. 

Leaving Thought

"It's okay to not know, but it's not okay to not try"

--Unknown

Weekly Vitamins: The Colorful Dinner Plate of Differentiated Instruction

Anyone ever say to you that your dinner plate should have a lot of color? They weren't just saying that so it looked pretty. They were trying to get you to realize that fruits and vegetables are food items that come in many different colors, so to make sure your plate is full with many different kinds of healthy foods--not just carrots or blueberries. This is because each fruit and vegetable carries different vitamins and minerals in it that can benefit different things in the human body.

ameessavorydish.com

Just like this is important for your dinner plate, it's also an important visual to keep in mind when implementing differentiated instruction into the classroom.

The three characteristics

Differentiated instruction, as explained by the article for the reading, include readiness, interests, and learning preferences of students. 

credit.com

I like that differentiated instruction includes these components because it focuses the attention on the students and not so much standards or mandates or even teacher preferences. Students should be respected and listened to if they are to gain anything from the lesson. As hard as it sounds to have essentially a specific and individualized lesson for each student, there are some ways that the article shares which can make it easier for teachers to implement.

The power of choice

The article mentioned giving students choices but make it manageable. For example, a student can choose their research topic, but must still follow the criteria on the assignment's rubric. This is something that I learned early on.

The other thoughts that were expressed in the reading talked about reflection. Instead of asking the students if they enjoyed the assignment (and #KIR, some students who dislike school may be likely to immediately answer no anyway) ask the students what about the assignment helped them learn or what could in the future help them learn. Not only will that help the teacher reflect but it will also get the student thinking about their choices, and make them feel they are heard. 

I may have brought up this topic in previous blogs, but in my summer reading book, Teaching Outside the Box: How to Grab Your Students by Their Brains, Johnson talks about how students need to know that they have the power to choose and that instruction is specialized to them and their needs. It is then that they begin to feel comfortable. 

theodysseyonline.com

Something else relating to choice that she talks about is how teachers also have this underlying job of teaching students how to make choices or how to perform tasks. What she means is that we need to teach students how to work in groups or how to take on challenges. When I read that at first, I thought it was silly. What do you mean, teach them how to work in groups? You just get into a group, divide the work, have a discussion and present the findings. Who doesn't know how to do this? But she made the point that yeah, on the surface, group work sounds easy. But there is probably a point in my life where the teacher taught us what it meant for everyone to have a task and for everyone to do their fair share of the work, and to be held accountable.

Even in some of my college course I see students that fail at group work, and the whole group feels that weak link. Reading this article and hearing Johnson's thoughts now really makes me wonder if I'm taking for granted the skills I learned in group work or the skills I learned in taking risks.

Focus on Individualized Instruction

The idea of differentiated instruction focuses on individual instruction based on needs of the students. My above scenario of group work was just an example of individual skills I learned on how to be an effective group member. But the core of that idea is that I needed to learn my own individual traits and qualities in order to be that effective group member. 

Differentiated instruction is the teacher's ability to see those traits (as outlined by the ideas of readiness, interests, and learning preferences) and adapt that to the main instruction. 

The Methods of Teaching Agriculture textbook describes some ways teachers can implement this including student workbooks, supervised study, skill sheets, and more. Each of these allow students to express their skills and work in the most efficient way applicable to their needs. 

An empty plate; a full belly

medicaldaily.com

Trying to find the balance between equality and inclusion in the classroom on one side, and differentiation and diversity on the other side can be pretty challenging. I think there will be a lot of trial and error as I work my way through teaching, but I'm hopeful that I will be able to find the right balance between the two to maximize my students' learning. So even though my head may be full of thoughts, ideas, questions, and concerns, (or in this case, my stomach!) I know that I've been able to take a little serving of each food group and can hopefully serve up the right mixture in my classroom.

Leaving Thought

"Never discourage anyone who continually makes progress, no matter how slow" --Plato