Topics in Agricultural Education and Leadership
The Topics in Agricultural Education and Leadership course (AG_ED_LD 4001), taught by John Tummons, an associate teaching professor in the Division of Applied Social Sciences, teaches students about a variety of specialized topics related to agricultural education. Students have the opportunity to educate Missouri high school students as well, through the Agriculture Education on the Move program.
Sept. 25, 2022
Written by Logan Jackson , Photography by Logan Jackson
The Topics in Agricultural Education and Leadership course (AG_ED_LD 4001), taught by John Tummons, an associate teaching professor in the Division of Applied Social Sciences, teaches students about a variety of specialized topics related to agricultural education. Students have the opportunity to educate Missouri high school students as well, through the Agriculture Education on the Move program.
Agriculture Education on the Move (AEOTM), a program of Missouri Farmers Care, began in 2011 as a way to bring free, hands-on agriculture education to third and fourth grade students throughout the state. The AG_ED_LD 4001 course allows Mizzou students to teach and interact with high school students throughout the state.
CAFNR’s most recent partnership with AEOTM allows more than 100 Missouri high school FFA students to come to the Mizzou campus for a one-day curriculum training. This year’s FFA Partner Training Day was held in mid-September and put CAFNR agricultural education majors in the driver’s seat, with those students leading the entire training.
High school FFA students lead the AEOTM curriculum in their local communities, teaching elementary students the importance of agriculture and where their food comes from. The program lasts 10 weeks and includes hands-on activities, as well as discussions on crop and livestock production, soil and water conservation, and careers in agriculture. The purpose behind the FFA Partner Training Day was to have CAFNR lend its expertise in teaching to the high school students and help prepare them to teach the 10-week program.
The teaching sessions were broke up into different sections, with agricultural education majors leading a variety of discussions related to crops, animals and science.
Along with the learning opportunities, agricultural education majors showed the hands-on section of the AEOTM curriculum.
The AG_ED_LD 4001 course allows agricultural education majors the opportunity gain actual classroom experience.
The training touches on service learning, a key part of the RISE Initiative. The RISE Initiative states that all CAFNR undergraduate students will take part in at least one signature experience while on campus: Research, International, Service Learning and Experiential Learning.