10 Application of Learning: Supervised Agricultural Experience
Mike is interested in animals. He raised rabbits and mice for a local pet shop during his first two years in an agriculture program. During his junior year he worked in the pet shop as a part of his supervised agricultural experience program. During his senior year he worked for a dog groomer. He hopes to own his own business or teach agriculture after further education.
Students studying agriculture apply what they learn in the classroom not only in laboratory but also in their supervised agricultural experience programs. These experience programs provide a wealth of relevant problems for study in class. Many useful interest approaches can also be developed from these student experiences.
Supervised agricultural experience consists of all the agricultural activities of educational value conducted by a student outside of class for which systematic instruction and supervision are provided by parents, the agriculture teacher, employers, or other adults. It is supervised. It is agricultural because it helps the student learn about agriculture. It is experience, or “learning by doing,” or experiential, because it allows students to apply practices and principles learned in the classroom and to develop new skills and abilities.
OBJECTIVES
After studying this chapter, you will be able to
- Explain the need for supervised agricultural experiences.
- Work with students in developing supervised agricultural experiences.
- Relate instruction and supervised practice.
- Supervise agricultural experiences of students.
Throughout the rest of this chapter “supervised agricultural experience” is referred to as “supervised experience or SAE.”
NEED FOR SUPERVISED EXPERIENCE
The need for supervised experience in agricultural instruction is established because of improved learning, student personal development, and career and technical development.
Supervised Experience and Learning
Students with programs of supervised experience learn more in agricultural courses. This greater learning might be caused by several factors. Students with programs of supervised experience have a greater need to learn. They also have the opportunity to practice what is taught in the classroom.
An agriculture student had limited space for a project but desired to raise hogs. She built a portable hog house in the agricultural mechanics laboratory and used an existing concrete area at her home to assemble the portable unit. She fenced in a small lot and raised three groups of feeder pigs per year. The project enabled her to learn much about swine production and marketing, as well as related mechanical skills. The profit from the project was a major factor in the student attaining the state FFA degree.
Personal Development
Different types of supervised experience may develop different abilities. Most types contribute to the personal development of students. Supervised experience provides opportunities for students to work, earn money, achieve a degree of financial independence, and assume increasingly greater responsibility. Students who participate in supervised practice are provided with an opportunity to develop their managerial ability. Those with entrepreneurship or production projects plan work, develop budgets, work with financial agreements, make decisions, solve problems, put plans into action, and keep records. A student develops his or her program by displaying initiative, a trait essential in management of one’s self and others.
Work habits are developed and practiced in supervised experience. Students on work experience programs work under the supervision of employers, the teacher, and parents in establishing desirable work habits. For all projects managed by a student, he or she must set work goals and organize the available time to accomplish the goals. The result is often improved work habits.
Abilities in cooperation are developed by participation in supervised experience. The teacher, parents, work supervisor and students cooperate in planning and evaluating programs of supervised experience. During work experience, students must cooperate with employers and employees because goals may be accomplished in relationship to others rather than in isolation. Thus, human relations skills are also learned and practiced.
As discussed previously student self-concept development is critical in teaching and learning. During supervised experience students are expected to budget the financial aspects of supervised experience. They set goals and work to attain them. This ability to follow through on what has been planned is important in the personal development of individuals.
In summary, supervised practice is an integral component of instruction in agriculture. Traits developed include
- Ability to assume responsibility
- Willingness to follow good work habits
- Readiness to show initiative
- Ability to get along with others
- Willingness to learn on the job
- Flexibility[1]
Career Development
Programs of supervised experience are important in the career development of students. Opportunity is provided for a student to grow gradually into a career. Various occupational choices can be explored by supervised experiences. Students can then make intelligent career decisions.
Earning money is a part of most supervised experience programs. Students learn to develop budgets and to spend money wisely. They can accumulate savings as they invest toward future goals. Students are supervised in financial planning as they earn money either through work experience or ownership programs.
Work experience is advantageous to students as they seek employment. They have a personal job reference. Many employers desire individuals who have had a previous work record. Students participating in supervised experience have been making productive use of their time. They have a real advantage over others when competing for placement and advancement.
Supervised experience provides students with an opportunity to develop a special area of expertise. Some students may learn to do experiments in agricultural science, others may specialize in landscaping, others may specialize in machinery reconditioning, others may choose sales, and still others may select swine production, to name only a few. Supervised experience is a form of individualized instruction in which students can develop competence in areas of interest to them. As they gain technical skills, they prepare for occupations for which their specialized expertise is desirable.
SUPERVISED EXPERIENCE AND TEACHING
The effectiveness of programs of supervised experience varies with the extent to which they are used in teaching and learning. The interrelationship of classroom, laboratory, supervised agricultural experience (SAE), and FFA activities enhances learning. The teacher needs to orchestrate student involvement in these essential aspects of the agricultural instruction program.
Relating Instruction and Practice
Teachers of agriculture have the responsibility of demonstrating to students that supervised experience is important for learning to take place. Integration of supervised experience can be accomplished by using the situations of students as interest approaches in introducing topics of study, as sources of problems for study, and in applying what is learned.
Interest Approaches. Programs of current and former students can be effectively used to stimulate interest in a topic. For example, a teacher introducing a unit in wildlife management might use slides of a project conducted by a former student to provide cover for pheasants. A unit on merchandise display might be introduced by showing Power Point images produced from digital images of displays built by former students at their places of employment. A wood construction unit could be introduced by describing a home improvement project of a current student that won an FFA proficiency award. A sales skills unit could be introduced by having a panel of students describe their roles in selling products to customers. Problems and achievements of current and former students are effective in stimulating student interest.
Sources of Problems. The problem-solving approach to teaching assumes realistic problems are used as a basis for instruction. In agricultural instruction, a major source of problems is the supervised experience of students. Teachers of agriculture must draw on the experiences of their students in formulating problems for classroom instruction. In order for this to be possible, students must be encouraged to develop supervised experience relating to the course of study of the program in which they are enrolling. This assumes, of course, that the curriculum has been planned in accordance with community and student needs.
As the teacher visits students in their homes, work places, and school labs, pictures should be taken and notes kept concerning problems the students encounter and solutions to those problems. These can then be filed for later use as the teacher plans units of instruction. A written plan on wiring a charging circuit in agricultural mechanics can be based on resolving the problem of a class member who needed to accomplish this task as a part of a supervised experience program. Instruction in the control of greenhouse pests can be based on solving the problem of a student who is placed in a greenhouse environment for a supervised experience. The problem of how to fell a tree can be studied in relation to a student’s timberstand improvement project. In order to be effective in basing instruction on student problems, a teacher must first have students develop realistic projects and then be thoroughly familiar with the work of the students during their programs of supervised experience.
Application of Learning. Students who have learned should show a change of behavior (see Chapter 2). Learning that is applied in practice is learning that has been assimilated. Many teachers close a unit of instruction by having students develop a plan of practice. The plan of practice specifies the way students will apply what was learned in the classroom in their supervised experience, FFA participation, or laboratory experience.
A unit of instruction on weed control may result in a plan for controlling weeds in a row crop production project, recommendations for applying agricultural chemicals for use in sales work in an agricultural business, or a plan for controlling weeds on lawns or golf courses. A plan for applying instruction in supervised experience should be a part of most instruction in agriculture.
TYPES OF SUPERVISED EXPERIENCE
Project work can usually be classified into the three general areas of ownership programs, placement or cooperative programs, and improvement or skill development projects.
Ownership Programs
Students studying agriculture may select three types of ownership programs. Ownership programs relate to the career interests of the students and to the course of study. The three types of ownership programs are production projects, group enterprise projects, and entrepreneurship projects.
Production Projects. A production project is a business venture for experience and profit involving the production of some type of crop or animal. A student may produce a greenhouse crop of mums, a field of cotton, feeder pigs, chinchillas, or a truck crop of tomatoes. Rather than producing the product only once, the student usually is encouraged to carry the project through multiple production cycles on a continuing basis. The teacher assists the student through supervisory visits on a year-round basis if needed, depending on the production cycle of the enterprise.
The student is expected to have a financial interest in the project, either as a full owner or as a partner with parents or others. The production project provides opportunity for the student to learn gradually about agricultural production and also accumulate assets allowing him or her to enter farming or an agricultural business, or to further his or her education.
An agriculture student became interested in gardening. He raised vegetables, including tomatoes, sweet corn, potatoes, peppers, peas, and cabbage. His specialty, however, became strawberry production. The size of his plot required that labor be hired to assist with picking the crop. He sold his produce at a roadside stand. He annually sold several thousand quarts of strawberries and placed high in the state FFA proficiency competition.
Group Enterprise Projects. Group enterprises often provide opportunities for students to have ownership projects. A group enterprise is similar to a production project; however, a group of students share in the management decisions and work related to the project.
A farm management class started a cooperative to provide experience in livestock production and management and to learn more about agricultural cooperatives. A governing board and a manager were elected. The students bought shares. They raised broilers and feeder pigs. They worked according to a schedule developed by the manager so that each student did an equal amount of feeding and cleaning. The class made decisions about the projects, with members sharing equally in the profits.
Group enterprises may also be used when students are unable to have a project at home. For example, a group of students can raise bedding plants in the greenhouse that can be marketed by wholesale or retail means. Any project that can be managed by an individual student can also be adapted for use as a group enterprise.
In one school, four students leased land to raise a cash crop of soybeans. The students each put an equal amount of money into a joint bank account. The business was managed according to a formal agreement among the involved students and their parents.
Entrepreneurship Projects. Entrepreneurship projects are those in which students own, organize, and manage businesses for the sake of profit. This type of project is well suited to most off-farm areas of agriculture. A student who is interested in and is studying agricultural mechanics may start a lawn mower, chain saw, or tool repair and reconditioning business. A student interested in landscape and turf work may develop a home lawn and landscape service business. A student desiring to work as a park naturalist can profit from carpentry skills by building and selling picnic tables and wood signs similar to those used in parks. A student interested in forestry can start a business cutting and selling firewood. A floriculture student can develop a business in servicing weddings. Entrepreneurship provides opportunities for students to learn needed technical and managerial skills. All ownership projects allow students to make decisions and apply the instruction received in class.
Placement or Cooperative Programs
Students may be placed on farms or in agricultural businesses or industries for supervised practice. The primary purpose of the placement is the learning and application of needed agricultural knowledge and skills. An important secondary purpose is that students are able to learn to earn and manage money. A placement program is often referred to as cooperative education. This is because the business, represented by the employer, and the school, represented by the teacher, cooperate in providing the needed learning experiences for the student. Some use the term placement to refer to experiences gained outside of school time and the term cooperative education to refer to supervised experiences which involve some release time for the student during the school day. In either case, the teacher should ensure that the experience is supervised. This supervision includes making sure a placement agreement has been developed and signed. It also includes assisting the employer and the student in creating an education development plan for the work experience program.[2] Just as with other types of supervised experience, all work of students should be related to classroom instruction.
Sarah has been placed on a dairy farm near her home for two years. She works six nights a week feeding and bedding the young calves, steers, yearling heifers, and forty-five milk cows. Other tasks include giving medical injections, grooming cattle, and delivering calves. She assisted in crop production—raising corn, soybeans, wheat, and oats. She helped bale hay and straw, and exhibited cattle at two county fairs. Sarah hopes to become a farm manager or possibly work for a breed association after further education in dairy science.
Improvement and Skill Development Projects
Improvement and skill development projects are designed to provide opportunities for students to learn and practice skills, and improve their surroundings in home or business.
Improvement Projects. An improvement project may be developed by a student to improve the efficiency of an enterprise or of an entire business; the appearance or real estate value of the farm or place of business; or the appearance, value, comfort, and convenience of the home of the student.
Parents or an employer usually finance this type of project, with no degree of ownership by the student. Some examples are
- Garden improvement
- Lawn improvement
- Home landscaping improvement
- Interior landscaping of the home or business
- Home shop improvement
- Nature trail development
- Sheep enterprise improvement
- Home painting
- Home library development
- Business product display improvement
- Records analysis
Most students in applying instruction can use similar improvement projects. For example, following a unit on gardening, students could be encouraged to apply the instruction by having an improvement project on gardening.
Skill Development Projects. Skill development projects are often called supplementary practices. Students learn specific skills by completing these projects or practices. They enable students to broaden their experiences beyond ownership, placement, and improvement projects. The skills, or competencies, are usually performed to learn tasks needed for agricultural careers. Table 10-1 is a list of skills that students can perform for skill development or supplementary practice.
| Specialty program | Example skills |
|---|---|
| Agricultural production | 1. Take a soil sample 2. Inseminate cows 3. Operate a tractor 4. Prepare seedbed before planting 5. Calibrate planting equipment 6. Castrate pigs 7. Probe for back fat 8. Dock lambs 9. Worm sheep 10. Keep feed records |
| Agricultural mechanics | 1. Operate arc welder 2. Pour concrete 3. Lay concrete block 4. Tune up a multicylinder engine 5. Overhaul a small gas engine 6. Set up a plow 7. Adjust clutch linkage 8. Change oil and filters 9. Cut metal using oxyacetylene 10. Wire an electrical circuit |
| Horticulture | 1. Prune trees 2. Identify common shrubs 3. Make a corsage 4. Propagate using cuttings 5. Transplant seedlings 6. Water greenhouse plants 7. Prepare a landscape plan 8. Grade,rake,andlevelalawn 9. Wrap and stake trees 10. Read blueprints |
| Agricultural products processing | 1. Operate churn 2. Test milk for butterfat content 3. Slaughter lambs 4. Trim hams 5. Grind beef 6. Use scales 7. Sanitize facilities 8. Cut fish 9. Candle eggs 10. Set machine |
| Forestry | 1. Plant trees 2. Operate chain saw 3. Operate bulldozer 4. Operate skidder 5. Identify lumber 6. Grade lumber 7. Fell trees 8. Set backfire 9. Delimb trees 10. Operate winch |
| Agricultural business, supplies, and service | 1. Complete sales slip 2. Use telephone 3. Balance rations 4. Mix feed 5. Test grain moisture content 6. Operate scales 7. Bill customers 8. Develop sales displays 9. Clean seed 10. Bag fertilizer |
| Renewable natural resources | 1. Inventory fish populations 2. Evaluate fish habitat 3. Take water samples 4. Analyze water samples 5. Mow lawns 6. Clean swimming pool 7. Paint buildings and equipment 8. Maintain nature trails 9. Analyze effluent 10. Identify wildlife species |
| Small animal care | 1. Feed animals 2. Groom dogs 3. Restrain animals 4. Order supplies 5. Take blood samples 6. Perform euthanasia 7. Identify fish 8. Clean and disinfect pens 9. Identify parasites 10. Identify animal heat signs |
Table 10-1: Example skills for supplementary practice
DEVELOPING INDIVIDUAL PROGRAM PLANS
As students enroll in agriculture courses, the teacher works with them and their parents in developing a plan for supervised experience. Much of the instructional program in agriculture is designed for teaching approved practices that are widely accepted by the industry. Most students, therefore, should be encouraged to develop programs that relate to instruction and also to their unique interests and abilities.
Career Goals
A first step in planning supervised experience is the selection of one or more career objectives by the student. Students should be encouraged to make tentative career choices, at least concerning the areas in agriculture of most interest to them. Figure 10-1 provides students the opportunity to specify two career objectives in horticulture and realistically examine the needed experience, education, and capital to reach their goals. There is space for two job classifications that relate to each career objective. The planning of supervised experience in relation to career objectives makes the program meaningful and relevant for students.
List on this page the careers in horticulture in which you would like to be employed upon graduation. Be sure to talk your plans over with your teacher and your parents. Your plans should cover the period from the present until you enter your chosen occupation. After you have identified a horticultural area as an occupational goal, determine the experience, education, and capital required to be successful in at least two job classifications under each area.
OCCUPATIONAL GOALS:
After completing my education I hope to work in one of the following horticultural areas. (If you have more than one choice indicate by 1, 2, or 3.)
Retail floriculture
Floriculture production
Landscaping
Turf
Nursery
Equipment and mechanics
Garden center
Vegetables and fruit
Floriculture wholesale
First occupational goal:
Job classification:
Experience needed:
Education needed:
Capital required:
Other costs:
Job classification:
Experience needed:
Education needed:
Capital required:
Other costs:
Second occupational goal:
Job classification:
Experience needed:
Education needed:
Capital required:
Other costs:
Job classification:
Experience needed:
Education needed:
Capital required:
Other costs:
Figure 10-1: Career goals in horticulture
Source: Waldman, Dennis. (n.d.) Horticultural Record Book. The Ohio Curriculum Materials Service. Used with permission of The Ohio State University and released under CC BY NC SA 4.0.
Yearly Plan
A yearly plan for supervised experience also needs to be developed by each student. Figure 10-2 is a planning form for use in a two-year horticulture program. The use of such a form encourages realistic planning toward career objectives. An example of a soundly constructed plan using another format is shown in Figure 10-3. The teacher, to encourage supervised experience that relates to the instructional program, can use planning of this nature.
CAREER GOAL IN AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION
There is much more to job satisfaction than “how much money the job pays” or “how hard one has to work.” Each job consists of many characteristics that eventually determine how satisfying the job will be.
Completing the following information will help you to develop a procedure for studying a career choice. Your agricultural education department, school library, guidance services, local employment offices, and especially employers and employees in a prospective occupation are sources to survey.
Career goal:
Job classification:
Job description (nature of the work):
Industry visits made to learn more about the characteristics of my career goal:
| Date | Person or business visited | Hours spent | Major information acquired about characteristics of occupation or occupational skills |
|---|---|---|---|
What are the current local, regional, and national employment opportunities for this career?
What are the estimated local, regional, and national employment opportunities for this career in the next 5-10 years?
Figure 10-2: Planning supervised agricultural experience program
Source: General Record Book (1991) The Ohio Curriculum Materials Service, p.1. Used with permission of The Ohio State University and released under CC BY NC SA 4.0.
| 9th grade | 10th grade | 11th grade | 12th grade | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Production enterprises | ||||
| Sugar beets | 1⁄2 acre (0.2 hectare) | 5 acres (2 hectares) | 15 acres (6 hectares) | 20 acres (8 hectares) |
| Pinto beans | 2 acres (0.8 hectare) | 10 acres (4 hectares) | 30 acres (12 hectares) | |
| Corn | 1 acre (0.4 hectare) | 10 acres (4 hectares) | 15 acres (6 hectares) (ensilage) | 25 acres (10 hectares) |
| Alfalfa | 5 acres (2 hectares) | 12 acres (4.8 hectares) | 25 acres (10 hectares) | |
| Swine | 1 gilt (bred) | 2 gilts 1 sow and litter 8 market hogs |
5 gilts 10 sows and litters 50 market hogs |
25 sows and litters 100 feeder pigs 200 market hogs |
| Improvement projects | ||||
| Repaired hog house. Built mail box. Built new steps for home. Painted garage. Cleaned up form. |
Rebuilt hog fence. Painted woodshed. Seeded lawn and shrubs. Painted farm machinery. Graveled driveway. Built windbreak. |
Controlled 2 acres of weeds. Put new windows and door in granary. Repaired electric wiring system. Painted tractor. Put new roof on barn. Built fence around lawn. |
Eradicated pests. Tested soil. Controlled pests (rats). Built septic tonk. Put kitchen sink and bath in home. Improved dairy herd by use of artificial insemination. |
|
| Supplementary practices | ||||
| Treated seed. Sharpened tools. Dehorned calves (15). Tested milk. Prepared seedbed. |
Castrated calves (20). Castrated sheep (100). Treated barley seed. Sprayed fruit trees. Togged ewes. |
Judged livestock. Mixed dairy feed. Docked lambs. Wormed sheep. Mixed concrete. |
Trimmed cattle feet. Showed sheep. Showed grain. Made form gates. Vaccinated sheep. |
|
| Agricultural mechanics projects | ||||
| Built hog feeder. Built tool box. Built 20-ft (6.1-m) ladder. Built show box. Soldered radiator. |
Built sawhorse. Made chisels for shop. Built farrowing house. Built rack for oil drums. Built homemade concrete mixer. Hard-surfaced cultivator attachments. |
Built stock racks. Timed tractor engine. Built feed bunk. Built automatic watering trough. Surveyed for ditch. Built squeeze chute. Built trailer. Built welding table. |
Built hog feeder. Built hog house. Painted tractor. Built manure loader. Built weed burner. Built grain trailer. Built grain elevator. Built weed sprayer. |
|
Figure 10-3: Types of supervised agricultural experience projects. Source: Amberson, Max L., and Anderson, B. Harold. (1978) Learning through Experience in Agricultural Industry, New York: McGraw-Hill, p.39. Reproduced under fair use.
Involving Others
Many programs must be conducted at the home or farm of the parents. Others may be conducted elsewhere with approval of the teacher. The parents should always understand and support the student as she or he becomes involved in supervised experience. The agriculture teacher, through supervisory visits and parent conferences, assists in the development of this understanding and support.
Employers in agricultural business and industry and agricultural agencies should also be made aware of the needs of students for supervised experience. Their support is needed for programs through which students learn about the world of work in agriculture through observation and placement experiences. The teacher must nurture the support of the business community and ensure that the provided experiences are educationally sound.
Some teachers have found it useful to involve lending institutions. These agencies can help students develop meaningful programs because of sufficient financial backing.
Students with Limited Resources
Some students need special assistance in developing programs. They may be in urban or inner-city areas, or they may be students in rural areas without access to land, buildings, equipment, capital, or parental cooperation. Students in this category require extra supervision by the teacher.
Placement in a business, agency, or on a farm can be of great value to a limited-opportunity student. The student gets firsthand experience in performing skills in a real working situation. It is important that transportation be available for the student. The employer must understand the need for the student to learn and not expect an experienced employee.
Cooperatives can be organized and participated in by limited-opportunity students as a class project. Facilities in the community or at the school are necessary. The teacher often assumes a major supervisory responsibility.
Students having limited opportunities may often conduct gardening projects. The scope of such a project should be sufficient to produce a salable product for marketing.
One young student began with a halfacre plot growing tomatoes, peas, peppers, green beans, and other vegetables. He built a cold frame to start the plants. He later built a small greenhouse from corrugated fiberglass. He sold his produce to local customers. He showed his produce at the state fair, receiving high placings.
Small animal projects may be used with students having limited resources. They require less housing space, less expensive feeding equipment, and fewer financial resources. Small animals, though, provide students with the opportunity to learn about animal reproduction, nutrition, management, and marketing. Students can raise rabbits, chinchillas, rats, mice, gerbils, chickens, or other species, but may need assistance in developing a profitable market.
Many students having limited opportunity at home may need to make greater use of the school laboratory in applying instruction (see Chapter 9). Teachers can also provide opportunities for students to conduct scientific experiments relating to agriculture in the school facilities.
CONDUCTING SUPERVISORY VISITS
Effective supervision is required for students to develop relevant programs of supervised experience. By definition, supervised agricultural experience programs are to be supervised. The supervision is provided by parents, the teacher, and, in some cases, an employer. Supervision is provided by the teacher in visits to the home of a student, in visits with the employer and student at the place of employment, and through working individually with the student to set goals and resolve problems. The major purpose of visits is to provide individualized instruction. A secondary purpose is to develop essential relationships between parents, employers, and teachers, who are the partners in the instruction of the student.
Orientation Home Visit
An orientation visit to the home of each entering student prior to the beginning of the school year is highly recommended. Such a visit enables the teacher to become familiar with the environment of the student. The teacher can orient the student and family to the nature of agricultural instruction and the need for supervised experience. The visit can be used to motivate the student to plan an outstanding program. Many teachers prepare a notebook containing photographs to illustrate various aspects of the agricultural instruction program, including student participation in supervised experience. Such a notebook can be effective in communicating with students, parents, and employers. Tentative selection of projects should be encouraged during the orientation visit.
Program Planning Visit
The agriculture teacher should, at a minimum, annually visit each student to assist in planning and further developing the program of supervised experience. Student long- and short-term goals should be developed and revised. Based on resources available to the student, a program should be planned to assist the student in reaching short- and long-term goals. The plan should set forth how the program will develop from year to year. Program planning visits provide excellent opportunities for career guidance and counseling.
Instructional Visits
Instructional visits are conducted periodically to provide individual instruction and supervision. Visits of this nature can be used to help the student overcome obstacles. They may also be used to encourage the use of approved practices and to assist in implementing plans of practice developed by the student in the classroom. The teacher can gain information from instructional visits that can be used to make classroom instruction more relevant.
Instructional visits usually provide an opportunity for the teacher and the student to discuss the records relating to the program. The teacher can assist in advising how records might be improved.
Some teachers schedule a minimum of one instructional visit to each student per grading period. This enables an accurate assessment of progress for evaluation purposes and encourages students to have a year-round program of supervised experience. It is recommended that teachers set aside a specific time or times each week for visits. Many schools provide the teacher with one period per day for this purpose. A schedule of visits can be prepared and shared with students so they know when they will be visited, and so that they see that all students are being treated equally. More efficient use of time and travel can usually be accomplished by visiting more than one student each trip. Teachers should keep records of observed projects, including the scope, the amount of effort put forth by the student, and the condition of each project. These records will provide support for the points awarded on the evaluation form in Figure 14-7 (see Chapter 14) and the supervised agricultural experience portion of the grade determined using the form in Figure 14-9 (see Chapter 14).
Employer/Employee Visits
Teachers must conduct visits to orient employers to the agricultural instruction program and to solicit their involvement in providing work experiences for students. A notebook similar to that used in home visits is helpful in describing the program and showing how it might be beneficial to the business as well as the school.
Once a business has agreed to participate in the program and has accepted a student, certain forms need to be completed. A placement agreement and an educational development plan are essential. Figure 10-4 is a placement and educational development agreement. This agreement is designed to protect the interests of the student, the employer, the parents, and the school (represented by the teacher). Various forms are available for this purpose; however, the teacher should ensure that all parties understand all essential aspects of the agreement.
PROGRAM
This agreement is to (1) define clearly the conditions and schedule of experience whereby student (name) is to receive experience in and (2) serve as a guide to the cooperating parties: the (company or agency) and the (name of school).
Public Schools, in providing the student with opportunities for education and training in the basic skills of the occupation and the technical information related to it. In order that a systematic plan that provides for well-rounded education can be followed, a schedule of work experiences and a course of study paralleling it have been agreed upon by the employer and representative of the school.
The student agrees to perform diligently the work experiences assigned by the employer according to the same company policies and regulations as apply to regular employees. The student also agrees to pursue faithfully the prescribed course of study and to take advantage of every opportunity to improve their efficiency, knowledge, and personal traits so that the student may enter a chosen occupation as a desirable employee at the termination of the training period.
In addition to providing practical instruction, the employer agrees to pay the student for the useful work done while undergoing training according to the following plan:
- The beginning wage will be $ per for hours per week, which amount is approximately percent of that paid competent full-time employees in the same occupation in the community.
- A review of the wages paid the student will be made jointly and periodically by the employer and coordinator at least once each semester for the purpose of determining a fair and equitable wage adjustment consistent with the student’s increased ability and prevailing economic conditions.
The training period begins the day of 20 , and extends through 20 . There will be a probationary period of days during which the interested parties may determine if the student has made a wise choice of an occupation, and if the training should be continued.
This plan has been reviewed and recommended by the Local Advisory Committee. It may be terminated for just cause by either party.
APPROVALS
Student:
Parent or guardian:
Chairperson, local advisory committee:
Name of employer:
Name of company or agency:
Teacher-coordinator:
Date:
To whom it may concern:
The enclosed training agreement is for the following student-trainee:
Student trainee:
Date of birth:
Social security number:
Grade:
Available work hours:
Occupational objective:
Training period beginning:
Training period ending:
Training Agency:
Address:
Phone number:
Department in which employed:
Sponsor/phone number:
Parents or guardians:
Home address/phone number:
Place of business/phone number:
Teacher-Coordinator:
Home address/phone number:
School address/phone number:
The attached is a training agreement for career technical education programs at School. This agreement includes the definite responsibilities to be accepted by the employer, the school (represented by the teacher-coordinator), the parents, and the student.
Copies of the agreement will be on file with the employer and in the teacher-coordinator’s office.
Signed (Teacher-coordinator)
STUDENT AGREEMENT
The student-trainee agrees to:
- Do an honest day’s work, understanding that the employer must profit from the labor to justify hiring a student and providing this cooperative training experience.
- Accept the training station as procured by the teacher-coordinator.
- Do all jobs assigned to the best of their ability.
- Be punctual, dependable, and loyal to the school and business where employed.
- Follow instructions, avoid unsafe acts, and be alert to unsafe conditions.
- Be courteous and considerate of the employer, their family, customers, and others.
- Keep the records of the cooperative training program and make the reports that the teacher-coordinator and the employer require.
- Be alert to perform unassigned tasks which promote the welfare of the business.
- Assume responsibility for getting to and from work according to the work schedule.
- Notify the training sponsor and the school by 10:00 a.m. if absence is unavoidably necessary.
- Present themself to the training station only on those days when classes were attended all that day.
- Work at least 15 hours (minimum) during the school week.
- Maintain good work habits both in school and on the job.
- Maintain a neat and clean appearance at all times.
- Contact the teacher-coordinator before resigning and under no circumstances resign the position at this training station without first discussing this action with the teacher-coordinator.
I have read and understand the purpose and intent of this training agreement.
I UNDERSTAND THAT ANY VIOLATION OF ANY PART OF THE ABOVE AGREEMENT MAY RESULT IN MY BEING DROPPED FROM THE PROGRAM, AT THE DISCRETION OF THE TEACHER-COORDINATOR.
Signed (Student)
TRAINING STATION OWNER-MANAGER AND/OR SPONSOR AGREEMENT
The employer agrees to:
- Teach the student-trainee the trade or business as circumstances permit, and insofar as possible, route the student through the different activities of the business.
- Assist the teacher-coordinator in planning the training program for the student.
- Train the student to do the jobs in the safest and most efficient manner.
- Avoid subjecting the student-trainee to unnecessary hazards.
- Assist the teacher-coordinator in making an honest appraisal of the student’s performance at least once a quarter (each 9 weeks).
- Report student-trainee progress intermittently to the teacher-coordinator.
- Require the student to be on the job regularly except:
- On regular “no school” days such as school vacations and legal holidays.
- When unusual circumstances such as illness make it necessary for the student to be absent.
- Supervise the student-trainee for a minimum of 15 hours per week.
- Confer with the teacher-coordinator before dismissing the student-trainee for unsatisfactory performance.
- Pay wages which are comparable to wages paid apprentices and other beginning employees for the occupation in which the student-trainee is to receive training.
We have read and understand the purpose and intent of this training agreement.
Signed (Owner-manager)
Signed (Training sponsor)
PARENT AGREEMENT
The parent agrees to:
- Allow the student-trainee to work in the training station during hours and days as specified in the work schedule.
- Assist the student-trainee in getting to and from work according to the work schedule.
- Assist in promoting the value of the student’s experience by coordinating with the employer and teacher when needed.
- Assume full responsibility for any action or happening pertaining to the student-trainee from the time of leaving school until reporting to the training station.
We have read and understand the purpose and intent of this training agreement.
Signed (Parent)
TEACHER-COORDINATOR AGREEMENT
The teacher-coordinator, on behalf of the school, agrees to:
- Give related instruction at the school enabling the student-trainee to better understand and carry out duties and responsibilities in the training station.
- Visit the student-trainee on the job periodically for the purpose of supervising the person to ensure that the person gets the most out of the cooperative training experience.
- Work with the employer, student-trainee, and parents to provide the best possible training for the student-trainee.
- Visit the employer at any time the employer deems it desirable.
I have read and understand the purpose and intent of this training agreement.
Signed (Teacher-coordinator)
Figure 10-4: Sample cooperative education agreement
Source: Adapted from Amberson, Max L., and Anderson, B. Harold. Learning through Experience in Agricultural Industry. New York: McGraw-Hill, pp. 116-119; and adapted from the form developed by the Department of Vocational Education, Texas Education Agency. Reproduced under fair use.
The student, the employer, and the teacher should cooperatively develop an educational development plan. It specifies the skills or competencies the student will achieve as a result of the employment experience. There are various forms for educational development plans. One that is satisfactory is shown in Figure 10-5. This plan specifies the areas in which the student will work, the jobs to be accomplished (skills to be developed), estimated time to develop competence, dates, and an evaluation of the work. The teacher will need to work with the student and the employer to revise and update the plan as needed.
Name: School: Career objective: Small engine mechanic
| Department or area of work | Jobs to be accomplished | Time to develop | Dates | Evaluation completed (satisfactory) | Evaluation completed (repeat) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Servicing small engines | Identify types of small engines Clean small engines Service carburetor air cleaners Service fuel strainers Service crankcase breathers Lubricate small engines Refuel small engines Service spark plugs Check and adjust carburetors Check compression Check and service batteries |
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| Starting and operating engines | Start engines procedures Operate and adjust engine speed and load |
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| Storing engines | Eliminate storage hazards | ||||
| Maintaining starters | Repair rope-wind starters Repair rope-rewind starters Repair windup starters Repair 120 volts ac starters Repair direct-current starting and generating systems |
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| Maintaining and repairing ignition systems | Maintain and repair magneto and solid-state ignition systems Maintain and repair battery-ignition systems |
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| Repairing fuel systems | Repair fuel tank assemblies Repair fuel pumps Repair carburetors |
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| Repairing governors | |||||
| Repairing valves | Repair valves on 2- and 4-cycle engines | ||||
| Repairing cylinders, tons, and rod assemblies | Check the cylinder and piston and rod assembly for proper operation Repair pistons, rods, rings Check and repair cylinders |
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| Repairing lubricating mechanisms in 4-cycle engines | |||||
| Repairing crankshaft assemblies |
Figure 10-5: Supervised agricultural experience plan for a small engine mechanic
Source: Amberson, Max L., and Anderson, B. Harold. (1978) Learning through Experience in Agricultural Industry, New York: McGraw-Hill, p.129. Reproduced under fair use.
The teacher must visit the employer and the student employee to maintain relationships, ensure the work experience is in accordance with the agreement and educational development plan, obtain problems for class discussion, assist the student with work-related problems, and evaluate the student’s learning.
In placing students with employers, the teacher may need to discuss subminimum wage provisions, work permit requirements, and restrictions concerning hazardous jobs. The local or state employment office can help the teacher learn about such legal requirements.
One important aspect of the employer visit is student evaluation. Employers must be taught how to evaluate students. Otherwise, one employer may rate a student worker high when another employer is rating a better performing student low. Evaluation of supervised experience is discussed in greater detail in Chapter 14.
RECORDS INSTRUCTION
Students are responsible for budgeting and keeping financial records of income and expenses. By analyzing the records, they can devise ways of improving their programs.
Selecting, planning, and conducting programs of supervised experience provides a means to teach agricultural records in a realistic way. Students who were surveyed concerning the value of record keeping rated the following abilities highest:
- Determine profit and loss
- Analyze production costs
- Keep useful records
- Maintain up-to-date records
- Maintain accurate records
- Keep neat records
- Appreciate the value of records
- Cultivate initiative in record keeping[3]
The preceding list suggests that students believe they are developing ability in keeping records but do not perceive records as useful in decision making. Teachers should use information from student records in class instruction to emphasize the usefulness of such information.
Records should be kept on all aspects of supervised experience. Record books in agricultural courses are useful for ascertaining ownership, cooperative placement, improvement, and skill development projects.
Ownership Project Records
Ownership record books vary widely from state to state, but there are common elements. The common elements include a budget for each enterprise, an agreement among interested parties, beginning and ending inventories, a record of receipts, a record of expenses, a labor record, and a summary and evaluation.
A teacher will find it effective to use a practice record book and have students record all the items in a hypothetical situation. The teacher may prepare a diary of events containing essential information to be recorded in the record book. The teacher can then teach record keeping as a unit of instruction, keeping the class together. On completion of the practice book each student can then enter items from his or her project in the regular record book.
Ownership records might be taught in seven problem areas
- Budgeting
- Developing business agreements
- Taking inventory
- Recording receipts, expenses, and major events
- Determining overhead and operating costs
- Summarizing records
- Analyzing and evaluating records
These problem areas can be spread over two years of agriculture instruction. They should be taught just ahead of students making similar entries in their own books.
Cooperative Placement Records
The primary record to be kept on cooperative placement is the monthly work record. Here the student records daily the work performed on the various types of projects. Wages are recorded by pay period. The major records to be kept include skills or jobs performed, type of project for which the work was performed, and wages, if any. Students should be encouraged to list skills or jobs performed as specifically as possible.
Additionally, students should be taught to summarize their annual earnings and prepare a financial statement.
Improvement Project Records
Keeping improvement project records can be taught in a manner similar to that of keeping ownership records. The teacher can have all students complete a set of practice records on the same project. Then each student can complete a form for each project being conducted. The record should include an agreement between interested parties, a budget, a diary or work record, and an evaluation.
Skill development or supplementary practice records can be kept simply by recording the skill on a monthly work record similar to that used for cooperative placement. Some teachers add a column for the student and teacher to evaluate the quality with which the skill was performed.
SUMMARY
Supervised experience as an integral part of agricultural instruction is essential. Supervision requires teacher time and effort, but the payoff is worthwhile in terms of student development. Teachers believe in supervised experience because of its value in teaching and learning.
Types of supervised experience include ownership programs (production projects, group enterprises, and entrepreneurship projects), placement or cooperative programs, and improvement and skill development projects. Students should be encouraged to develop career goals, develop yearly plans, and involve parents and employers. Students with limited resources may require extra attention on the part of the teacher. Supervisory visits need to be conducted to orient students and parents to the program, assist in program planning, and provide instruction. Record keeping is an integral and essential component of supervised experience.
FOR FURTHER STUDY
- Conduct a supervisory visit with a teacher of agriculture. Observe whether the visit was used for orientation, program planning, instruction, or evaluation. Record your impressions. List problems that might be used for later class instruction. List possible interest approaches for later use in the class or laboratory. What laboratory projects might be needed to improve the students’ supervised experience program?
- Observe an agriculture class. List approved practices that could be used by students to improve their supervised experience programs.
- Examine some student record books. From the books, make a list of ownership projects, improvement projects, and skill development projects.
- Examine a local course of study. From the topics taught, suggest projects that should be encouraged. The projects should be relevant in applying instruction.
- Amberson, Max L., and Anderson, B. Harold. Learning through Experience in Agricultural Industry. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1978, pp. 18–19. Out of Print. ↵
- For examples of cooperating center agreements and supervised agricultural education plans, refer to Amberson and Anderson, op. cit. pp. 116–119, 129–131, and to Figures 10-4 and 10-5 in this book. ↵
- Davis, Duane L., and Williams, David L. The Agricultural Education Magazine. September 1974, 64. ↵
