Science Teacher Visit

I had the opportunity to visit Mrs. Gee who teaches Physics and Engineering. I shadowed her during her 8th grade engineering class that is called “Step Up.” The students were a bit wild in the beginning of class, but it was the last period of the class and these were a bunch of 8th graders. Mrs. Gee started off with a Bell Ringer to get students rolling with the class. They were in the beginning of a new instructional unit in which they were building a solar powered cart. This project required the students to work in small groups to design, marshall supplies, and construct a functioning cart that would be powered by a small solar cell. I have struggled a bit with the “team learning” idea and working effectively in groups. I spoke with Mrs. Gee afterwards about this and she gave me some advice. She told me that in her classes she constantly reinforces the idea that collaboration and teamwork is a skill that each student can develop and that sometimes it is difficult. She allows students to pick their own groups unless there is an issue and later in the semester, if a student prefers to work alone she allows it. An important part of this project was that they had to document everything that they did. This was a tool that she used to gauge participation among group members as well as to hold the students accountable. I think that this is a great strategy, and one that I would like to use in the future.

There were a few students that were disruptive but Mrs. Gee didn’t allow them to detract from the lesson and told the students that if they kept it up that she would “suck all of the fun out of [their] souls” or that she would tell their coaches that they were being a pain in her behind.  The latter remark I thought was interesting and seemed to be effective.

Student Teaching: A Final Reflection

It is pretty surreal sitting here at a computer and reflecting back on the final stage of my journey TO teacherhood. I suppose that I will now begin my journey OF teacherhood.

If I had to choose one word to describe my experience it would be challenging. I don't think that there has ever been a time where I paid so much money to work so hard other than my experience in Peru as a volunteer missionary but even though that was for two years I still paid significantly more for this experience which lasted 15 weeks.

There were a few times, especially in the beginning/middle that I contemplated whether it was worth it or if I could even do it. There was definitely a learning curve when it came to balancing being a teacher full-time, a husband and father, and completing my graduate research. Now, looking back I can confirm that, yes, it was definitely worth it and that I could not have done it without the support of my wife, the Penn State University supervisors, and my cohort.

In the beginning it was a struggle to build rapport with my cooperating teacher. I recognize that it is difficult to have a student teacher and to have a smooth transition into the classroom especially when you are so passionate about your work and you feel a great responsibility for your students. But by the end, I really do believe that we have a genuine friendship and a respect for one another as educators. It was a humbling experience, and one that I needed. I believe that my cooperating teacher recognized where I was at as a teacher and pushed me hard to be the best that I could be. I owe him a lot for accepting me as a student teacher and coaching me along the way.

I recognize that I still have a lot of room for improvement. Even at the end, I still struggle with classroom management,  but that is sort of the beauty of the ephemeral student teaching experience: that you can move on and the mistakes you made will not follow you. I know that when I am hired to teach at a school that I will do many things completely differently especially when it comes to classroom management. I am really happy with the rapport that I was able to build with my students, especially the students who I recognized as being marginalized in the school and at home. Those students are one of the main reasons that teaching high school really appeals to me: to be able to be a role model and a mentor to students who are struggling with the myriad of struggles that beset young adults.

I took some time on Friday evening before I made my drive home to go to the back of the school and reflect on the experience that had just come to a conclusion. The sun was setting and I could hear the birds and frogs making their music. It was peaceful and I was filled with happiness and gratitude for having been able to overcome many challenges and ultimately become the quality of teacher that I am today with a knowledge that I have limitless opportunities for personal and professional growth. This is an exciting time in my life and I am very excited to see what the next chapter of my life will bring.

Supervised Agricultural Experiences and the Agricultural Experience Tracker

Supervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE) are student designed projects that reflect the interest of the student. They provide experiential learning experiences for the students that reinforce learning that occurs in the classroom. SAEs are an essential part of the three circle model of agricultural education.


I had the opportunity to attend a professional development seminar that focused on keeping records from the students SAE projects. Dr. Roger Hanagriff from Texas A&M University developed a software program called the Agricultural Experience Tracker, AET, to help students keep track of their records online as well as assist in the creation of important documents such as resumes and application for awards that can be received from the National FFA. It was a great seminar facilitated by Mrs. Carol  Fay, who is an SAE expert. We explored many functions of the program including some of the more complex operations such as keeping records on animals that are raised for breeding and transactions associated with those animals.

Honestly, I love the concept of SAEs. Everything that I believe about what "true" education is and should be is addressed by SAEs: it is designed by the students according to their interests, guided by the agriculture teacher/FFA adviser to constantly adapt and improve the project, it valuable provides real-world experience that can help students gain skills and make career choices.... the list goes on.


I had the opportunity today to visit a student who is a junior at his home to learn more about his SAE. This student has multiple SAEs that involve his livestock. He raises steers to show at the fair, steers for market, and has a breeding program started to ensure that he can maintain and improve his herd over time. I had spoken to both him and his parents about his SAE in the past and then made arrangements to visit his home. His parents agreed and the students seemed happy that I wanted to visit him and learn more about his project. During the visit, the student showed me around his property and showed me the cattle that he owned along with a unique backstory for each one.

I asked him several questions about how he ensured that they were happy and healthy and that they were not damaging the pasture upon which they grazed. When I asked the student about his plans for the future, he responded that he intended to join the military and then return to the farm to manage the herd full-time. He indicated that he wanted to improve the herd by managing their genetics as well as increasing the herd size over time. He had updated record books in the AET about which he commented that he prefered to use the old fashion pen and paper record books, but recognized their importance and utility when applying for awards.

Overall, it was a great experience. The property was beautiful, the student knowledgeable and passionate, and the weather was great. I look forward to visiting more students in the future when I am running my own ag program.

Zone of Proximal Development

This past week the students have been working on writing an extensive lab report on the nutrition experiment that they had been conducting the previous 4 weeks. They were engaged in an experiment using rats as research models to test the influence of sugar water vs. milk on the growth and development of adolescent rats. Their final project was to write a lab report with an introduction in which they described what research they conducted and why it was important followed by a literature review which consisted of creating a table with major macro and micronutrients that they studied and how each nutrient influences the rats growth. They created graphs from the data that they collected and did an analysis of the data for both qualitative and quantitative that was collected. Finally, they had to write a conclusion in which they restated their hypothesis and either affirmed or rejected it as well as made recommendations for the public based on the results of their data analysis.

Did I mention that these are students in 8th grade? Needless to say some were a bit overwhelmed. To make things a little more challenging, they had to learn how to use technology to enter data and create graphs as well as create a research poster that could be used to share with others significant findings from the experiment.

I have been reflecting on what I had been taught concerning the Zone of Proximal Development. The Zone of Proximal Development helps teachers conceptualize the learners needs based on where they are. It is essential to understand as we strive to differentiate instruction so that no matter where are students are in their learning ability, they can be empowered to learn to do something new.

There were quite a few students who I could tell were getting a bit frustrated and overwhelmed at the task before them. As a teacher I needed to recognize that this was in fact a difficult assignment and that many of them had never written a lab report before.

It was a learning experience for me as well. I got to see how some students struggle with collaborating with their peers to complete this project and how others got really frustrated by the technology that they had to use. It was my responsibility to discern the individual needs of each student and provide them guidance as needed. Over all, it was a great experience, at least for me. I personally loved to see the learning that occurred and to see the students struggle a bit before figuring something out.

There is always a balance that we need to be aware of and strive for when it comes to learning. I never want students to feel that they are not intelligent enough to accomplish any assignment that I give them, but at the same time, I want them to struggle a bit, because I know that that is when real learning is happening.

I have included a file of a group of students final research poster for your enjoyment. It was created on Google Slides that was enlarged to be 48" x 36"

Link: The Influence of Milk and Sugar Water on the Growth of Adolescent Rats

A Visit to Greenwood High School to See My Old Friend Miranda Kane

Today I had the opportunity to see Miranda, or Ms. Kane aka Sugah Kane aka Raw Kane, impart some knowledge to her students at Greenwood High School. I saw some presentations designed by students in the Plant Science class in which they became the teachers, developed a PowerPoint lesson along with a guided notes sheet, quiz and a Kahoot game. That class period ended with students checking on their aquaculture and greenroof projects in the greenhouse.

Following that class we went down to the shop where students were working on finishing their welding/soldering projects and I had chance to work on improving my welding skills (which are in need of significant improvement) which I really enjoy and would like to get better at. 

Furthermore, I got to see Ms. Kane teach a lesson on Parliamentary Procedure, another content area in which my experience is lacking. I am always amazed to see students truly engaged in learning about the rules for running a meeting. Ms. Kane did a great job facilitating that lesson and making sure that all students were actively participating. 

We have come a long way. At this point the psuaged17 cohort has been teaching for 14 weeks and it has been a journey.

It is nice to see that we have made a lot of progress and that we still have a lot of the same struggles. I didn't recognize, and I think that still many people who are not involved in the educator community, do not recognize that being an educator is much more (or should be) than teaching. An exemplary educator must plan, effective and engaging lessons teach and assess those lessons as well as be competent at managing conflict, helping students on their rough days, discerning learning abilities and tailoring instruction to help students who are struggling with the content, and that is just when students are in school. Now as we are in home stretch, that understanding does not discourage or overwhelm me, but I feel that my experiences are preparing me to be a better teacher and a better person. And that thought is very encouraging.

The Spring 2017 Northern Region PAAE Meeting

Why are teachers spending their Thursday evening at a Hoss's listening to budget reports and business minutes? Honestly, at this point, I don't know, but I am thinking it has something to do with a feeling of duty, of maybe it is the  bottomless french fries and soft serve ice cream. I am really impressed with the organization and collaboration in the spirit of service. It is so easy to take for granted all of the professional development opportunities and the myriad of other experiences that, as Ag teachers, we get to experience. It is important to recognize that there are many, many passionate individuals working long hours, behind the scenes to make this occupation what it is, and to ensure that it continues to progress and meet the needs of the ever changing industries of agriculture and education.

I am sure that the teachers that sat around me at the table tonight had many other things that they could be doing, but instead they chose to spend their evening ensuring that their passion and their profession is preserved and continuously moving in the right direction.

As I prepare to enter this career, I realize that agricultural education is where it is today not by chance, but because passionate people chose to sacrifice their time and energy so that as many individuals as possible could have opportunities to learn about agriculture and be enriched by the lessons learned along the way.

On Being A Connected Educator

I remember my university professors stressing the importance of being a "connected educator." I remember being sort of annoyed hearing this for a number of reasons. When I heard "connected," I recalled articles that I had recently read about the devastating effects of social media on today's youth as occurrences of cyber-bullying was on the rise and more young people were spending more and more time fostering "relationships" with people on the internet and were reportedly inept at carrying on a normal, face-to-face conversation. I was annoyed because, in my mind, "being connected" was synonymous with being active on social media and other media outlets that to me were suboptimal in so many ways.

As my first real teaching experience comes to a close, I have been reflecting often on what being a connected educator really means and why it is important. Being connected doesn't mean that you are a social media guru of sorts, although I have found that if you know where to look, social media provides a medium for which some pretty amazing and innovative people can share their experiences and insights that are exceptionally beneficial to a new teacher. Being a connected educator means that you are open and actively pursuing new knowledge that you will use to improve whatever it is you are trying to improve. It is not limited to pedagogy or content knowledge, but all aspects of life. It includes current research that is so relevant to educators as advances in neuroscience and psychology shed new light on how we learn and the processes associated with the development of our brains.

I know recognize that it is a tragedy that many people enter the teaching profession, many times fresh out of college, with their heads full of the training that they just received and a diploma in their hands and think that the best way to teach is the way they were taught and that it will never change. "The only thing that never changes is that everything changes." I know that what I have been taught as part of my educator preparation will most likely change and change more quickly than it has in the past. For that reason, I know firmly believe, it is essential to be successful in any career and especially in education, that we are connected with great people who are passionate about their work and willing to share their successes and failures and current research that can help make our teaching more effective and empowering. I don't want to ever have a closed-mind or a fixed mindset for if I do, I can no longer progress.