2013 Teach Ag! Society Essay Event Results

Austin Young
 and 2013 student teacher Mackenzie McCollum

The Teach Ag! Society essay contest has been a part of the Pennsylvania State FFA Convention for the past four years. Students entering the contest must plan, design, and teach a lesson about agriculture to an agricultural class of their choice. Their teacher helps them with their lesson plan and guides them along the process of being a teacher for a class. The student then has to write an essay about their experiences during the process. To enter the contest the student submits their essay, lesson plan and pictures, which are graded by a group of selected individuals at Penn State. The top four contestants are announced before the State Convention registration then the final placing is announced at the Pennsylvania State Convention in June.

Facilitators at the Wii Night after the announcement of the winners

This past June, the contest saw a record number of participants with 45 applications sent in. Meagan Slates, Presidents of the Teach Ag! Society, was in charge of the essay contest this year. She comments that “A lot of the feedback that was given in the essays was that the students really looked up to their teachers and wanted to give it a try. I was surprised at the repeat number of participants from last year. With the help of their teachers most of the students really enjoyed teaching a class. All the students essays were great and choosing a winner was really difficult!” Meagan is a senior in Agriculture Education and as she enjoys advocating for agricultural education, she thinks that getting students excited about teaching is really important.

Some of the students entered the essay contest because they wanted the experience teaching or they wanted to see what it felt like to be in their teachers shoes. Regardless of the reason the students entered the contest, they definitely learned a lot about the teaching process.

Austin Young teaching the class

Austin Young, from Central Columbia High School is the first place winner this year. This is an excerpt from his winning essay:

“Agricultural education is vital to our nation’s youth because it teaches students 21^st century thinking skills which will aid them in being more employable in today’s increasingly competitive career market. In order for one to realize how agriculture affects every facet of society, agricultural literacy at an early age is essential. That is why society needs innovative, agricultural educators within our school systems.” 

Austin said that entering the contest gave him an opportunity to explore the career and was supported by his teachers Mr. Doug Brown, Mr. Curtis Turner, and his student teacher at the time Ms Mackenzie McCollum. Winning, he said has “reassured me that the career of being an Ag educator is one of the most important jobs in a society that would not be able to make it through one day without agriculture.” He also pointed out again that there is a shortage of agricultural educators nationwide and the need for Ag educators is more important now than ever. “ That is why this contest is so important. It gives students the opportunity to see what it is like to be an agricultural educator, which will hopefully propel them into a career of teaching America’s youth about agriculture.”

Katie McLaughlin and Victoria Herr in their
Teach Ag! shirts from the essay contest.

Victoria Herr, a senior at Penn Mannor High School, entered the contest because she wants to be an agricultural teacher some day. She thought that by entering the contest she would get a good feel for what being a teacher requires from an individual. “This contest taught me a lot about the skills needed to be a teacher such as writing good lesson plans, keeping the students engaged, and being prepared to answer any questions they may have. It also taught me that not all students are on the same learning level and as an ag teacher you must ensure that everyone is following along at a good pace for themselves”. 

Another student, Katie McLaughlin from Juniata High School entered the contest because at one point she had wanted to be an agricultural teach but her plans have changed. Although Katie will not be a teacher she will “always be teaching in the form of avocation.” Katie also said that the contest taught her a lot about what agricultural teachers do. Her teacher at Juniata is a part of a one teacher program with 110 kids to keep track of. She also has 11 different classes to teach in an 8 period day, all with different lesson plans. “I believe all teachers face challenges and we as students need to realize that our teachers truly want what is best for us. The essay made me realize how much Mrs. Morgan cares and it taught me to say thank you for everything she has done for our program.”

The top four winners of this years event were:
1st Place Austin Young, Central Columbia HS,
2nd place Amber Gabel, Newport High School,
3rd Place Lisa Boltz, Northern Lebanon High School, and
4th Place Victoria Daltroff, North West Area High School.

Meagan Slates wishes to continue increasing the contests and hopes to break the 45 entry record next year. Please keep an eye out to be ready to participate and apply next year! The Nation Needs You!

To learn more about starting on the path to having a career that makes a 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 at TeachAgPSU, on Facebook, or on our blog!

Jeanne Case

Student Blogger

2014 Dover HS Student Teacher

Twitter: JRose_Case

PAAE Summer Conference - Student Teacher Style

[Editor's Note: Every year, we conduct an orientation for cooperating teachers, university supervisors, and teacher candidates to ensure that everyone is on the same page for the upcoming year/internship. We purposefully conduct this at the summer conference of the agricultural teachers association to introduce students to the professional organization. Below is the perspective of one 2014 teacher candidate, Ms. Jeanne Case, who will be student teacher at Dover High School. Follow the adventures of this student teaching group on Twitter at #psuaged14]

A couple weeks ago I attended the Pennsylvania Association of Agricultural Educators (PAAE) conference in Manheim, PA. Since I am interning with the PA Farm Bureau this summer and am living in Harrisburg I was a simple 45 minutes away from the conference – or so I thought. As per typical Jeanne, I got lost and was late despite giving myself an extra 15 minutes when I left home. Thankfully one of my peers, in my student teaching cohort, Mr. Billy Saylor, called me and gave me directions and I did not miss that much of the conference.

My peers and I started the conference meeting with our student teacher mentors and talked about what the perfect student teaching experience would look like. Ideas were thrown around, such as our individual experiences with different aspects of FFA – ACES, SLLC, chapter meetings, CDE’s, etc. We also thought it would be good to go to department meetings, meet with the principal and other teachers in the building, as well as attend a school board meeting. Respect of the students, teachers, and each other was also an important subject. Some people seem to think that the student teachers have to be in competition with each other since we are graduating at the same time and looking for jobs. This year we are striving to work together, to really help each other out, to work as a family and a team. We should be building each other up rather than breaking the group down.  Drama is not an option in our cohort.

After we met with the teachers and Dr. Foster and Dr. Ewing, we split off for some focused instruction for teacher candidates with leaders of the program and recent graduates like Ms. Laura Rice, Ms. Mackenzie McCollum and Mr. Doug Masser. They tried to calm our fears of the upcoming semesters. They also stressed how it is important to dress tastefully because we may have the opportunity to meet important people and it is important to present yourself well because everything is an interview. We went over appropriate clothing for different events.  Dr. Foster is not the best at expressing what girls should be wearing –" uh, nice pants and a shirt" - is not a detailed enough answer for a girl.  Ms. Rice and Mackenzie were really helpful. The individuals running this session also stressed that if we keep up with our work, rather than waiting until the end of the semester, that student teaching really is manageable and will not “kill us”.

Student teacher, Billy Saylor, with the winery grapes

We also received our own teacher " big idea"  books to keep track of any ideas that we may want to use later or things that we will want to look up to implement in the classroom.

Following lunch we split into different groups and went to a session that was hosted by teachers from across the state. I went to an electrical lesson where three different teachers shared how they teach electrical wiring in their class. All of them did it completely different but it still got the same point across.Students learn things differently and it was nice to see different ways to teach the same subject. It will be important to keep that in mind during our teaching career as some techniques may work with some students and not with others – it is good to keep an open mind and be willing to change your teaching style to help a student learn.  Insanity is defined as doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

As PAAE is an agricultural conference we. of course, have to support ALL aspects of the agricultural industry so we went on an industry tour of a local winery. We toured the farm then got to learn how they process the grapes on the farm and make their product. We even got to sample that product with a little swirl, smell and sip. To bring out the different flavors there were local cheeses and crackers provided as different foods change the taste palate of your mouth and create a different experience.

Student teachers listening to a presentation about the wine industry in PA

To end the evening we had dinner at a local auction barn and played Minute to Win it. Teams were made up of teachers and student teachers alike as we battled to win. It was a good bonding experience for all involved, the participants and spectators alike. Lots of the games were quite silly and it got everyone out of their shells, mingling and forming connections, which is what conferences and networking events are all about. Here are a few example videos of competition in action!!

Dr. John Ewing in the infamous "Pencil Snatch". Mad Skills

Mr. Herb Hoffeditz puts his nose in it!

Our Teacher Educators Team Up. Dr. John Ewing & Dr. Daniel Foster

2014 Student Teachers Billy Saylor and Caleb Wright Exhibit Team Work!

The second day of the conference and the last day for the student teachers had us attending more workshops to learn of opportunities that we can provide to our future students such as certifications, dual enrollment and tests to prove that our students are learning adequately, to name a few.

We were also able to listen to issues happening in the state, such as state days and other events. There was time to network with different teachers from across the state and make connections and friendships. I even met a woman whom I had talked to previously via email and facebook that is an alumni of the Greek organization I am involved with. It turns out that she was in the house the same time as my mom and that she and my mom actually worked together in the pasture research lab sorting different types of weeds. My mom even went to her wedding and took wedding photos for her. I love to network and make connections and I also love to meet alumni as they just seem to pop up out of nowhere and provide excellent resources. I also met another man who is actually the father of my student teacher mentor; I had talked to him on the phone last fall to interview him for a project in one of my AEE classes. It was very nice to be able to put faces to names.

We, the student teachers, ended our portion of the conference with a meeting to discuss why it was important that we were there and the importance of professional organizations. Agriculture is such a small industry while being so large.  It is important to help each other out and share ideas, as it helps the industry to constantly grow in the forward direction.  On behalf of this spring’s student teachers I know that we were very appreciative of the opportunity to attend the conference, to make friends and to learn a lot about the profession that we are about to enter. It was a great jump start to the fall semester!

To learn more about starting on the path to having a career that makes a 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 at TeachAgPSU, on Facebook, or on our blog! 

Jeanne Case

Student Blogger

2014 Dover HS Student Teacher

Twitter: JRose_Case

IMPACT by Mackenzie McCollum

I spent my last day eating entirely too many donuts, cupcakes, and confetti cake and going through massive amounts of tissues because I was emotionally out of control. I could NOT imagine student teaching anywhere other than Central Columbia High School. My cooperating teachers have impacted me more in the last four months than I thought was humanly possible. 

As teacher, you spend a lot of your time thinking about how to positively impact the lives of the students that you see every day. You hope that you make a difference. You hope that you impact all of your students, but at the end of the day, you know that it has been a success if you have reached just one student and changed just one life.  It was not until yesterday, that I realized what a profound impact my students had on me. That one life that was changed indefinitely was mine.

Teaching agricultural education at the secondary level with Doug Brown, Curtis Turner, and Jen Fisher has solidified my desire to go into the agricultural education profession.  But it has been the students that made me realize how much I am going to love this career. Those students ignited a fire in me to go out and do everything that I can to spread agricultural literacy and make the kind of impact on my future students that my students from Central Columbia have made on me.   Just like I told one boy, the only two things that you have control over in life is your effort and attitude and that is enough to make you successful at whatever you choose to do.

Last night, I wrote every student that I taught a thank-you note, but no amount of gratitude for the experiences that I have shared at Central Columbia is enough. If you want the chance to make a difference in the lives of your community’s youth & ultimately change your own life, consider a career in agricultural education.

Submitted by:

Mackenzie McCollum

@McCollumMac

2013 Student Teacher

Central Columbia

National Championship!!! Penn State Alpha Tau Alpha wins National Quiz Bowl Competition

Indianapolis – Five dedicated Agricultural and Extension Education (AEE) majors saw their hard work pay off on October 25 in Indianapolis, Indiana as they were crowned National Champions in a National Quiz Bowl Event. Students in any agriculturally related student organization in universities across the nation could compete in the event hosted by the National Alpha Tau Alpha (ATA) organization.   Alpha Tau Alpha is a National Professional Honorary Agricultural Education Organization which plays a vital role in preparing individuals who wish to pursue careers in Agricultural and Extension Education. Alpha Tau Alpha chapters exist in more than thirty one states across the United States and pride their organizations for outstanding and diligent work in professional development, fundraising, community service and fellowship. Penn State's Eta chapter was founded in 1931.

From Left to Right: Ashley Tressler,
Jeanne Case, Caleb Wright,
Mackenzie McCollum, Emily Urban

Each year, the National ATA Organization holds competitive events during the ATA Conclave, which is held in conjunction with the National FFA Convention. Penn State's team consisted of five students, Mackenzie McCollum, senior and 2013 Student Teacher; Caleb Wright, junior and 2014 Student Teacher; Ashley Tressler, senior and 2013 Student Teacher;  Jeanne Case, junior and 2014 Student Teacher; and Emily Urban junior and 2014 Student Teacher; as the alternate. 

The team endured four rounds of competition in their quest for a national championship.. During the competition, questions were asked to test the students knowledge in three areas; Technical Agriculture, Professional Education, and Agricultural Education. Each round of play consisted of four teams with four members each. The top two teams at the end of the round moved to the next round. Each round consisted of 18 toss up questions, six from each area listed above. Each toss up question was worth two points. Each toss up question was followed by a bonus question, where a team could receive up to four points for the correct answer.

The team anxiously waiting for the next question.

While the competition was tough, Penn State’s well rounded team prevailed, which is not surprising considering the amount of practice they put in to prepare themselves for the competition. Teammate Caleb Wright claims, “Competing in quiz bowl was an awesome experience. The team was able to represent not only the University, but the College of Agricultural Sciences and the AESE Department as well. Bringing home the championship was icing on the cake! Preparing as a team was a great way to forge new friendships and build on the ones already formed. Agricultural Education at Penn State and throughout the country is a close knit group, so any chance to learn more about your future colleagues is always a blast.”

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.

McCollum, AEE Senior and 2013 Student Teacher, excited to make impact at Central Columbia

Although she grew up on a farm, Mackenzie McCollum only enrolled in one agriculture class throughout her entire high school career. That class, during her senior year, made her think twice about her future career path when making decisions about what to study in college. Mackenzie began her career at Penn State by studying Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences; however, she soon changed her mind, and switched her major to Agricultural and Extension Education. “Although I didn’t take the traditional path as most AEE students do, including being and active high school FFA member, I feel this has given me a unique perspective on agricultural education and the importance of FFA, the intra-curricular student organization affiliated with agricultural education program. I changed my major because I love to teach, and the diversity found in agricultural education creates endless opportunities.”  

Mackenzie’s minor is in International Agriculture. Mackenzie will graduate from Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences in May with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Agricultural and Extension Education, a Pennsylvania teaching certification, and a set of experiences and resources that will enable her to feel confident in taking on the real world.  Before graduating in May, Mackenzie Mccollum, will venture off to complete her last major task as a Penn State undergraduate. She will engage in her student teaching internship for 13 weeks this coming spring semester. She will be guiding students in grades 9-12 in the agricultural department at Central Columbia High School in Columbia County, PA. Central Columbia has a three teacher agriculture program with two teachers at the high school level and one at the middle school level.

To prepare for student teaching, Mackenzie is engaged in the classroom, learning about various teaching strategies, classroom management, and the different modalities of learning. She is also gearing up for student teaching by delivering lesson plans each week  in her contextual learning laboratory and is vigorously writing lesson plans, all while keeping in constant contact with her cooperating teacher, Mr. Doug Brown.

Mackenzie says “The program I will be student teaching in focuses heavily on agri-science and agricultural mechanics. In the classroom, they place a lot of emphasis on agronomy, forestry, wildlife, and animal sciences.” While at Central Columbia, Mackenzie will be teaching over eight units of instruction, including but not limited to: Plumbing, Introduction to Electricity, Food Science, FFA Leadership, and Woodworking. She claims, “I am most excited about interacting with the students on a daily basis, just being able to teach in a real classroom setting, and being involved with FFA as an advisor. Without a strong background in agricultural mechanics, I feel a little anxious about teaching so many courses related to that topic, but feel that Penn State has done a really great job to prepare me for my student teaching.” Mackenzie is also excited about traveling to National FFA Convention this October with the Central Columbia FFA Chapter. She will be provided with a great amount of experiences to best assimilate what it’s really like to be in the profession of teaching agricultural education.

Along with Mackenzie, there are 13 agricultural and extension education students that will be student teaching this coming spring at high schools across the state of Pennsylvania. Their mission is to improve agricultural literacy and teach about the many facets of agriculture and the important role the industry plays in our everyday life. They will be a mentor and advisor to many students, teaching many life skills, while learning many valuable lessons as students themselves. Throughout their student teaching experiences and beyond graduation, these students will be supported with many professional development opportunities offered by the Center for Professional Personnel Development.

To learn more about starting on the path to having a career that makes positive impact on the lives of students across the globe tby becoming an agricultural educator, please contact the agricultural teacher education program at teachag@psu.edu. Follow us on Twitter at TeachAgPSU, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PSUTeachAg, or on our blog at http://teachagpsu.blogspot.com

2012 PSU-OSU Teach Ag Adventure

Written by: Mackenzie McCollum, Class of 2013

Students exploring the greenhouses at W.B. Saul High School.

It is hard to narrow down my favorite experience but one of my favorite parts of the trip was visiting and comparing the different schools.  We first visited Milton Hershey. It was incredible to see the facilities and opportunities with which they provided their students. Our tour guide informed us that students could enter with only the clothes on their back and the school would clothe, feed, and provide them medical care. In addition, each student lives in a private home with "house parents." We learned that upon graduation, each student was given $500 to purchase anything they wanted to include in their "senior bag," as well as a laptop and an $80,000 scholarship if good grades were maintained. 

Next we visited the agricultural program at Conrad Weiser. This program focused heavily on science-based curriculum which was evident upon viewing their laboratory, greenhouse, library, and biotechnology facility. The program also had a vineyard and barn. The program exemplified the importance of science within the agricultural industry. Mr. Serfass encourages his students to read and pursue experiments that intrigue them. 

Finally, we visited W.B. Saul, an inner city agricultural high school. This program was amazing because they had their own meats lab, multiple barns, riding arena, and classrooms devoted to each facet of agricultural education. We were fortunate enough to teach a lesson encompassing the importance of higher education. It was awesome to interact with students attending a strictly agricultural high school in the middle of a large city!