On my first day of student-teaching at Milton
Hershey, I got the best advice for student-teaching from the High School
Principal, Mr. Weber. He looked at me
straight in the eye and said, “This experience will fly by—make sure you make
an impression each day so you can look back and see what your students have
achieved.” This statement was indeed true
throughout my experience and I’m glad I heard these words of wisdom at such a
great time during this internship. With
that thought in mind, I will reflect on some of the most ‘impactful’ moments
during my time student-teaching at Milton Hershey.
The
most memorable moment during my student-teaching experience was teaching FFA
History and the Creed. To gain the
interest and respect of my Freshmen classes, I created an “FFA Jacket
Challenge” that would award an FFA Jacket to the first student that stood up in
class and recited the entire FFA Creed perfectly. This announcement spread like wildlife
between the rest of the agriculture students and a network of support emerged
for the Freshman students vying for their very own FFA Jacket. Each day, upperclassmen would come to class
and ask, “Did anyone recite the Creed today?”
It was amazing to see how one simple challenge created electricity and
hype between all the agriculture classes.
After weeks of practicing, 2 brave students accepted my challenge and
earned their very own FFA Jacket. Word
spread quickly that 2 students were successful and the same electricity and
buzz were evident again in my classes.
During my final week of student-teaching, I presented each student with
their freshly-pressed FFA Jackets and saw their eyes light up as they put on
their jacket for the first time. I look
forward to seeing the journey that these two young FFA members will embark on
over the next 3 years.
Another
impactful moment was participating in the 2013 State Legislative Leadership Conference (SLLC) Community Service Project
with the FFA members on the trip. As we
first approached our community service site, I was worried that my students
were not going to be 100% engaged in the service project. However, when groups were assigned given
tasks, it was my students that took the lead and jumped right into the tasks
and quickly befriended FFA members from other chapters. Words cannot describe how proud I was of my
students as they accepted a challenge, developed a plan of action, and worked
together to achieve it. When I asked
students at the end of the conference what their favorite portion of the
conference was, they quickly responded with the community service project
because they got to help someone else in need.
This response made my heart smile because I knew that these students,
through Agriculture Education, would leave the classroom as productive, caring,
and hard-working members of the agricultural industry. This experience truly exemplified the “Living
to Serve” segment of the FFA motto and gave members a chance to become involved
in a project larger than them.
Finally,
I watched as students took pride in their Agriculture Education program and
spoke to over 200 8th grade students during the annual 8th-Grade
CTE Tour. Students had been preparing
for this event for weeks and when the time came, their hard work and
persistence had paid off as they created an engaging environment for students
and chaperones alike. The students
received many compliments for their work during the tour and did a phenomenal
job of representing Agriculture Education.
It was amazing to see how the students had banded together to take pride
in their Agriculture program and promote it to other prospective students. I have never seen a group of young people
speak with such confidence and determination to recruit next year’s Freshman
class. It was an awesome feeling to know
that I helped the students achieve such success.
In
conclusion, I never realized the difference that one person could make in such
a short period of time. I have seen
students come to life and find their ‘niche’ in Agriculture Education. After watching the above accomplishments, I
firmly believe that Agriculture Education has the potential to make a positive
difference in the lives of each student enrolled in an Agriculture class. Whether a student finds a new interest in
agriculture or gains confidence in Public Speaking, Ag Education provides
numerous avenues to make a difference in a young person’s life. Through my student-teaching experience, I’ve
learned that a little effort on the part of the instructor can go a long way to
help a student and give them an incentive to achieve.
To learn more about starting on the path to having a career that makes positive impact on the lives of students across the globe by becoming an agricultural educator, please contact the agricultural teacher education program at teachag@psu.edu. Follow us on Twitter @TeachAgPSU, or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PSUTeachAg.
@DJR_131
Student Blogger
2013 Student Teacher
Milton Hershey High School
PSU AEE M.S Candidate
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