Mission: The
mission of agriculture education is to prepare and
support individuals for careers, build awareness, and
develop leadership for the food, fiber, and natural
resource systems.
Structure:
Agriculture education combines
Classroom Instruction, Supervised
Agricultural Experience, and the FFA organization
through integral instruction. The agriculture education
model is supported by both federal and state law. Nevada
Agriculture Education is currently developing skill
standards for its courses.
Classroom Instruction
covers agriculture science and advanced sciences, and
gives students a practical approach to the theories of
science and how they are used in agriculture, the
largest science industry in the nation.
Supervised Agricultural
Experience is the hands-on, work-based learning part
of the model. It allows the students to learn industry
skills through an ownership or non-ownership enterprise
project that is overseen by their instructor.
The FFA (Future Farmers
of America) organization is the training and testing
area of agriculture education. FFA evaluates the skills
that students learned through agriculture education by
using Career Development Events. It also sharpens
students’ speaking and leadership skills.
FFA
Basics National FFA (www.ffa.org) Learn how to start an FFA Chapter.
Integral Nature of FFA and Agricultural Education Instruction
The half million–member FFA student organization has long been
recognized as an integral part of public instruction in agriculture. As such,
it is intracurricular to the program,
working hand-in-glove with contextual classroom/laboratory instruction and
experiential learning as part of a complete agricultural education program. The
roots of this time-tested approach run deep. Preparing students for entry into
productive careers in the science, business and technology of agriculture—or connecting them to relevant postsecondary
educational pathways—depends on the delivery of
all components of the three-circle model of secondary agricultural education.
Smith Hughes Act of 1917
The Federal government
played an instrumental role in the formation of FFA. In 1917, the U.S. Congress
passed the Smith-Hughes Vocational Education Act, thereby creating the Federal
Board for Vocational Education. The Act led to the establishment of programs of
education in agriculture for high school students. Federal funds flowed to
states for the promotion of “vocational agriculture” education. The Act stipulated
that “students of vocational agriculture, in addition to their studies in
school, must have in operation a program of supervised practice for at least
six months of the year.”
Future Farmers of America Formation in 1928
Within 10 years of
the passage of the Smith-Hughes Act, most states had created vocational
agriculture programs for high schools, and many had developed supporting
organizations for students. Regional and national competitive events had become
important educational complements to the instructional programs. Under the
leadership of individuals from the Federal Board for Vocational Education in
Washington, D.C., a series of conferences led to the creation of the Future
Farmers of America in 1928. Dr. C. H. Lane, Chief of the Agricultural Education
Service of the Federal Board for Vocational Education, was elected as the first
national FFA advisor. In order to provide a national headquarters for FFA in
the Agricultural Education Service, the FFA constitution specified that the
national advisor would be the Chief of the Agricultural Education Service and
the national executive secretary would be a member of that staff. Today’s
National FFA Constitution and Bylaws are explicit in stating that the
organization will function as “an integral part of the organized instructional
programs in agricultural education which prepare students for a wide range of
careers in agriculture, agribusiness and other agriculture-related
occupations.”
A committee formed
in 1929 to improve the administration of FFA issued a report to the Federal
Board for Vocational Education and noted that “The original premise upon which
we base our recommendation is that the program of the Future Farmers of America
is an integral part of and should be inextricably linked with vocational
education. As such, it merits the
guidance and leadership of teachers in communities, of supervisors in states,
and of your agricultural education service for the Nation.”
1950 Federal Charter for FFA
In 1950, the U.S.
Congress clarified the relationship of FFA to the Office of Education by
issuing a Federal Charter to the organization. Signed by President Harry S. Truman,
Public Law 81-740 placed five members of the Federal Agricultural Education
Service on the FFA board of directors along with four state supervisors of
agricultural education. Federal leadership of FFA was meant to ensure the
student organization was utilized in support of agricultural instruction in
public schools. By this time, the integrated model of agricultural education was
firmly established to include 1) classroom and laboratory instruction; 2)
supervised agricultural experience (SAE); and 3) national student organization
activities (FFA) that are intracurricular to the educational program.
Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical
Education Act
In 1984, the U.S.
Congress authorized the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act.
Its purpose was to provide federal funding and leadership to increase the
quality of career and technical (vocational) education within the United States
in order to help the economy. Most recently revised in 2006, the Perkins Act
today stipulates that “career and technical student organizations…are for
individuals enrolled in a career and technical education program that engages
in career and technical education activities as an integral part of the instructional program.” Among other
purposes, Perkins funding is meant to enhance state leadership in “support of
career and technical student organizations, especially with respect to efforts
to increase the participation of students who are members of special
populations.” Through Perkins, the U.S. Department of Education provides
direction and underwriting to state and local units delivering an integrated
model of agricultural education.
U.S. Department of Education/National FFA
Organization Memorandum of Understanding
In March 2008, the Office
of Vocational and Adult Education, U.S. Department of Education, concluded a
Memorandum of Understanding with the National FFA Organization. The document
underscores the importance the Department places on the student organization
component of agricultural education as “benefitting students, communities and
the industry of agriculture by providing well-educated, productive individuals
for the work force who are capable of leading innovation.” Through the Memorandum,
the Department attests “that formalized instruction, supervised agricultural
experience, and premier leadership, personal growth and career success [from
the FFA mission] are key components of an integrated agricultural education
program that connects technical instruction, work experience and the school
community.” The memorandum also restates that, by law, the Secretary of
Education is designated to serve as chairman of the National FFA Board of
Directors, along with four other members of the Department and four state
supervisors of agricultural education.
Statement of Troy Justesen, Former Assistant
Secretary for the Office of Vocational and Adult Education, U.S. Department of
Education
In a 2006 letter to
the Career and Technical Education community, Dr. Troy Justesen, Assistant
Secretary for the Office of Vocational and Adult Education, U.S. Department of
Education, elaborated on the role of student organizations in career and
technical education. Dr. Justesen affirmed that the “Office of Vocational and
Adult Education (OVAE) recognizes the educational programs and philosophies
embraced by CTSOs [Career and Technical Student Organizations]” are “an
integral part of career and technical education instructional programs.” He
added that “OVAE recognizes the concept of total student development as being
necessary for all career and technical education students to assume successful
roles in society and to enter the labor market.” OVAE would, according to Dr.
Justesen, “facilitate technical and supportive services to assist [CTSO]
organizations through state agencies in their efforts to improve the quality
and relevance of instruction, develop student leadership, enhance citizenship
responsibilities, eliminate sex and race discrimination and stereotyping, and
serve students of special populations.”
National Quality Program Standards for
Secondary (Grades 9-12) Agricultural Education
The National Quality
Program Standards for Secondary Agricultural Education were developed to ensure
consistent delivery of high-quality agricultural education programs across the
nation, focusing on relevant instruction, rigorous clear goals, continuous
program improvement and development of essential skills for student success.
Developed under the auspices of the National Council for Agricultural
Education, the standards help educators and administrators evaluate local
programs and develop clear goals for program improvement. Central to a
standards-based curriculum and reinforced throughout the national standards is
the requirement to provide a complete, integrated model of agricultural
education including classroom/laboratory instruction, experiential learning
(SAE) and student leadership and personal and career development (FFA). Put
another way, all enrolled agricultural education students must have a relevant
SAE and be active FFA members. FFA activities are not merely “student
development”; they provide active application and opportunities to reinforce
classroom/laboratory instruction and SAE through hands-on learning and
competitive event reinforcement.
For almost a century,
the three-circle model of agricultural education has been hailed for connecting
theory with practical application and motivational reinforcement necessary for
student success. By integrating personal, academic and career development
experiences, the agricultural education profession today offers local school
systems a proven program to enhance student achievement, boost graduation
rates, prepare a 21st century workforce, guide students to
postsecondary opportunities and develop leaders who will build local
communities and secure agriculture’s next generation.
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