Source: Shelley School District #60 submitted to NRP
THE AG SOLUTIONS MODEL FOR SECONDARY CURRICULUM ENHANCEMENT
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
SERD GRANT
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
0195817
Grant No.
2003-38414-13274
Cumulative Award Amt.
(N/A)
Proposal No.
2003-03385
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Jul 1, 2003
Project End Date
Jun 30, 2005
Grant Year
2003
Program Code
[OW.P1]- (N/A)
Recipient Organization
Shelley School District #60
(N/A)
Shelley,ID 83274
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
The Ag Solutions proposal is intended to establish horticulture classes that implement the Ag Solutions curriculum. These classes will be used to refine the curriculum and to serve as demonstration sites for interested educators. These classes will be geared to all students including those with special needs.
Animal Health Component
100%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
100%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
90360993020100%
Knowledge Area
903 - Communication, Education, and Information Delivery;

Subject Of Investigation
6099 - People and communities, general/other;

Field Of Science
3020 - Education;
Goals / Objectives
The Ag Solutions proposal is intended to establish horticulture classes that implement the Ag Solutions curriculum. These classes will be used to refine the curriculum and to serve as demonstration sites for interested educators. These classes will be geared to all students including those with special needs. Develop and disseminate a curriculum that incorporates aspects of place, learning and service. The curriculum will expose teachers to methods, ideas and examples of this type of teaching. Students will learn about their place, will learn valuable skills and will then be encouraged to use those skills to help improve their place. The curriculum will help teachers teach not only horticultural skills but also communication, problem solving, team work and self discipline. The dissemination will include both hard copy and web-based versions. Expand the number and quality of community partnerships. Students will continue to conduct projects involving electronic weed mapping, tissue culturing sensitive plant species for government agencies and cultural methods for weed eradication. Projects will be expanded to include experimental agriculture projects. A community advisory board made up of agribusiness people will be established to help identify potential projects and students will be enlisted to help carry out those projects. The community projects will be used as demonstrations for visiting or inquiring educators. Develop methods for insuring that the Ag Solutions model can continue after the USDA monies have stopped. A general store is currently under construction as part of an historical park in a county park not far from the high school. This store will be used to sell products students develop as they participate in various aspects of this grant. Proceeds from the sale of student items will be used to fund future projects. Encourage entrepreneurship. As students begin developing products for sale in the general store, they will begin to see opportunities for private entrepreneurship. As students become involved with community projects, they will see further opportunities for entrepreneurship. As part of this grant students will be provided with information on how to run a business and will also be encouraged to develop their own businesses.
Project Methods
The project directors will first organize enrollment for Ag Solutions classes for the 2003-2004 school year. These classes will need to be available for students of all ability levels. Part of the classroom organization will involve integrating the ideas from the Ag Solutions proposal with the Idaho horticulture curriculum. Time will also be spent in evaluating, selecting and organizing projects that can be incorporated in the classroom. Project directors will also develop a plan including a timeline for the development of the Ag Solutions curriculum. Project directors will determine how the resources provided by this grant can best be used. Project directors will also establish a detailed evaluation plan including time lines. The project Directors (with assistance from community volunteers) will divide up the following areas of responsibility: curriculum development; dissemination of curriculum; selecting, evaluating and implementing community projects; fund raising; and entrepreneurship. Action plans for each of these responsibilities will be established including a method of evaluation. The evaluations will be reported to the principal, superintendent/school board and to the community on a regular basis. The detailed plans the project directors establish will then be submitted to the principal and assistant principal for review and approval. The principal will be responsible for allocating teaching personnel so the goals of the grant can be met. The principal and assistant principal will also provide direction as to administrative evaluation methods and reporting practices between the project directors and the administration. The principal and project director will then meet with the superintendent to present the details of their joint planning efforts. These details will be reviewed by the superintendent and necessary changes will be made. The plans will include evaluation methods to be used, the role of the superintendent and board and reporting methods and timelines. An advisory board will be established made up of students, parents, government agencies, and agribusiness people. This advisory board will be tasked with helping determine suitable agriculture experiments, helping to evaluate the success of the Ag Solutions model, and helping to disseminate the results of the effort to the public. It is anticipated that the general store will be completed as early as the summer of 2003. Once completed, the store will be used to sell student-generated products. The first year will serve to help us learn how best to conduct the affairs in the store and the second year will be used to generate sufficient income to maintain the efforts of the Ag Solutions program.

Progress 07/01/03 to 06/30/05

Outputs
This project had 5 major objectives. 1. Complete and implement the Ag. Solutions curriculum. The curriculum was completed and implemented during eh 2004-2005 school year. The curriculum was then revised for future use. 2. Disseminate the curriculum. The curriculum was disseminated at the state level and we are attempting to see the curriculum posted on a national web site. 3. Establish meaningful service projects. The Ag. Solutions curriculum contains suggestions for service projects our students have successfully implemented. Also the experimental farm provides students with community service projects. 4. Establish methods for future fund raising. Many of the projects undertaken at the experimental farm have been funded by local farmers who want to see the experiments conducted. For example, farmers have asked us to test a new variety of fertilizer to see if it warrants possible use. 5. Promote entrepreneurship. Many of the projects students work on have the potential for development into community businesses. For example, students are learning how to program the irrigation pivot to maximize water-use efficiency. Expertise in this area has great potential for developing into a future business. PRODUCTS: The main product is the Ag. Solutions curriculum. This curriculum has been built on three levels. Level one is the knowledge level and provides students with background information. Wherever possible, level one uses information about the local environment. Level two is the skill level. Students develop skills by taking some of the topics covered in level one and going through hands-on activities. In level three, the service level, students are provided with opportunities to use the skills developed to help serve their community. The curriculum includes PowerPoint presentations and adaptations for students with special needs. OUTCOMES: One of the major outcomes focuses on the development of our experimental farm. The farm is a two-acre plot that has been established to conduct experiments of interest to local farmers and to teach community people about horticulture-related topics. An irrigation pivot, equipment, and 3200 yards of top soil have been donated to make the farm a reality. The farm has fields, garden areas, orchards and flower beds. We use these resources to perfomr experiments of local interest and to teach the community gardening, pruning, grafting, etc. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: The resources devloped as a result of this project have been made available to the science and ag teachers in our school district. The resosurces have also been made available to ag instructors at local colleges. A presentation was given during the Idaho state ag teachers summer conference in June of 2005. At that conference, The Ag. Solutions curriculum was given to over 50 ag teachers. Steps have been taken to see that the curriculum is posted on web sites that are accessed nationally FUTURE INITIATIVES: 1. We are taking steps to see that the Ag. Solutions curriculum is made available to ag. teachers all over the country. 2. We are expanding the curriculum to be used for students as young as 2nd grade and for home-schooled children. 3. We are expanding the experimental farm to include additonal areas and additional capabilities.

Impacts
Parts of the Ag. Solutions curriculum have been used successfully by a few teachers already. We expect the curriculum to have a significant impact on the teaching of horticulture as a result of the dissemination efforts made at the ag teachers summer conference. The service projects have been quite successful. Students and community members have benefited greatly as a result of the projects undertaken. We expect the benefits to expand greatly as more teachers implement the Ag. Solutions curriculum..

Publications

  • The Ag Solutions Curriculum 2005


Progress 10/01/03 to 09/30/04

Outputs
Does not apply PRODUCTS: The Ag Solutions curriculum has been written and implemented during the 2003-2004 school year. The curriculum is being rewritten and the revisions are being implemented during the 2004-2005 school year. This curriculum gives educators ideas on how to incorporate lessons on place as well as ideas on how educators can incorporate service-learning in their classroom. OUTCOMES: The Experimental Farm is now in operation and experimental crops have been grown. This Farm has 2 acres under a computer-programmed pivot. Eventually the pivot will be programmed to deliver water as soil moisture sensors sense the need. The Farm also includes an orchard where students and the public can learn how to care for fruit trees, grafting techniques, etc. The Farm also includes smaller test areas where students can experiment with grasses and ornamental plants. The general store, where student products are sold to benefit the program, has also been completed. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: A community outreach day called Inherit Idaho was held in August of this year. During that event, local farmers and ranchers, agribusiness people, educators, and the general public were invited to see and experience the Experimental Farm. The Ag Solutions curriculum is being distributed through the ag educators network as well as by various government agencies. For example, lessons on weed issues that are contained in the Ag Solutions curriculum have also been included in the BLM's weed curriculum and are being distributed by that agency. FUTURE INITIATIVES: The Experimental Farm will be further developed to provide students with resources for conducting meaninful agriculture research. The Farm will also be used to teach the general public lessons on such topics as composting, aquaculture, low-water landscaping, etc. In the summer of 2005, our school will host the annual Idaho Ag Instructors conference. Ag instructors from all over the state will be able to receive the Ag Solutions curriculum and will be able to see how the curricululm is used in conjunction with experimental research.

Impacts
Impacts for students- Students have learned much about thier place and have been participants in meaninful ag research. Impacts for educators- Teachers have been able to see the Ag Solutions curriculum in operation at the Farm and at Shelley High School. Impacts for agribusiness people-local farmers and ranchers have been able to see the results of experiments that are of interest to the agricultural community. Impacts for the general public-The public has been able to visit the Farm or visit the high shcool to learn about new ag methods or established techniques.

Publications

  • No publications reported this period