Preface
What is public education in agriculture like? What factors influence the effectiveness of teaching and learning? Why should problem solving be a major emphasis in teaching agriculture? How does one decide what content to teach, when to teach it, and for how long? How does one plan for effective teaching? What are some good techniques that every teacher of agriculture should have the ability to use? How does a teacher develop an appropriate classroom climate by managing student behavior? Agriculture teachers need to have students apply what is learned; how can learning be applied in the laboratory, in supervised agricultural experience programs, and in the FFA organization? What special provisions are needed in teaching students who are disadvantaged and disabled, or in teaching adult students? What techniques are helpful in assessing the extent to which students have learned?
Competence in teaching methods, along with competence in the technical subject matter, is essential to be effective as a teacher of agriculture. This book has been designed to be of use in preservice and in-service education courses. The authors assembled from a broad range of teacher education institutions solicited course syllabi, which served as the basis for the content of this book. Part I deals with the foundations for methods of teaching agriculture; Part II, the methods for teaching and learning; Part III, the application of learning; Part IV, the special needs of unique populations; and Part V, the procedures for evaluating teaching and learning. The book should prove useful as a text or reference in courses related to teaching methods, introduction or orientation to agricultural education, course or program planning, supervised agricultural experience, youth organizations or FFA, laboratory management, teaching students who are disadvantaged or disabled, teaching adults, and evaluation of learning.
The authors acknowledge the contributions of Carrie Schlechter for reading each chapter and keying in edits, Nancy Ray for creating and redesigning graphics, and Will Waidelich for supplying supporting documentation.
Preface was written in 2004 for the original third edition.
