Development and Validation of an Agricultural Literacy Instrument Using the National Agricultural Literacy Outcomes

This study was conducted to develop a standardized agricultural literacy assessment using the National Agricultural Literacy Outcomes (NALOs) as benchmarks. The need for such an assessment was born out of previous research, which found that despite numerous programs dedicated to improving agricultural literacy, many students and adults remain at low or very low levels of literacy. Low literacy levels lead to negative associations with the production and processing of food, clothing, and shelter, as well as misinformed public perceptions and policies. Agricultural literacy researchers recognized that the development of a standardized assessment for post-12th grade, or equivalent, could unify both research and program development efforts. The assessment was developed by forming two groups of experts. Teaching experts and agricultural content experts worked together in an iterative process. They crafted 45 questions using research methods and models. The 45 items were placed in an online survey to be tested for validity by a participant group. During the Fall 2018 semester, 515 Utah State University students between the ages of 18-23 years old participated in the online assessment. The participant data assisted in determining which questions were valid and reliable for determining agricultural literacy, as aligned to the NALO standards. Additional demographic information was also collected from participants. The demographic items asked students to self-report their level of exposure to agriculture and their self-perceived level of agricultural literacy. The study concluded that two separate 15-item Judd-Murray Agricultural Literacy Instruments (JMALI) were valid and reliable for determining agricultural proficiency levels based on the NALOs. Participant scores were reported as a single proficiency stage: exposure, factual literacy, or applicable proficiency. The study also determined that students who had a “great deal” or higher level of exposure to agriculture also had a strong, positive correlation with a “good” or higher level of agricultural literacy. Findings show participants who reported a “good” level of agricultural literacy shared a positive correlation with either performing at a factual literacy (middle) or applicable proficiency (highest) level on the assessment. The results suggest JMALI instruments have the potential to assist in improving current agricultural education endeavors by providing a critical tool for determining the agricultural literacy proficiency stages of adult populations

Developing and Piloting a Design Guide for Outdoor Classrooms in Utah

The outdoor classroom design guide can help applicants successfully apply for the Utah Outdoor Classroom Grant introduced by the Office of Outdoor Recreation (OOR) in 2021. The design guide includes case studies, design resources, and critical information for community involvement from statewide locations and will serve as a free public resource

A pilot randomised controlled trial of personalised care for depressed patients with symptomatic coronary heart disease in South London general practices: the UPBEAT-UK RCT protocol and recruitment.

ABSTRACT: Background: Community studies reveal people with coronary heart disease (CHD) are twice as likely to be depressed as the general population and that this co-morbidity negatively affects the course and outcome of both conditions. There is evidence for the efficacy of collaborative care and case management for depression treatment, and whilst NICE guidelines recommend these approaches only where depression has not responded to psychological, pharmacological, or combined treatments, these care approaches may be particularly relevant to the needs of people with CHD and depression in the earlier stages of stepped care in primary care settings. Methods: This pilot randomised controlled trial will evaluate whether a simple intervention involving a personalised care plan, elements of case management and regular telephone review is a feasible and acceptable intervention that leads to better mental and physical health outcomes for these patients. The comparator group will be usual general practitioner (GP) care. 81 participants have been recruited from CHD registers of 15 South London general practices. Eligible participants have probable major depression identified by a score of ≥8 on the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale depression subscale (HADS-D) together with symptomatic CHD identified using the Modified Rose Angina Questionnaire. Consenting participants are randomly allocated to usual care or the personalised care intervention which involves a comprehensive assessment of each participant’s physical and mental health needs which are documented in a care plan, followed by regular telephone reviews by the case manager over a 6-month period. At each review, the intervention participant’s mood, function and identified problems are reviewed and the case manager uses evidence based behaviour change techniques to facilitate achievement of goals specified by the patient with the aim of increasing the patient’s self efficacy to solve their problems. Depressive symptoms measured by HADS score will be collected at baseline and 1, 6- and 12 months post randomisation. Other outcomes include CHD symptoms, quality of life, wellbeing and health service utilisation. Discussion: This practical and patient-focused intervention is potentially an effective and accessible approach to the health and social care needs of people with depression and CHD in primary care. Trial registration: ISRCTN21615909

Evaluating the Effectiveness of an Agricultural Literacy Elementary Preservice Teacher Workshop

The Agriculture in the Classroom (AITC) program seeks to increase agricultural literacy through K-12 education. The use of the Agricultural Literacy Logic Model, as an organizational tool, is the framework for determining how to increase agricultural literacy among teachers and students. Preservice education is one of the prescribed outputs or interventions for improving literacy. Annually, the AITC program conducts elementary preservice workshops for nearly 700 teachers at eight higher education institutions. The workshops have been conducted for nearly a decade and to date, no evaluation data of this program has been collected or analyzed. Rather, program leadership considered invitations back each year, by professors, as indicators of impact. This research examines the perceived increases in agricultural literacy among preservice teachers (after engaging in a three-hour workshop), the overall workshop experience, participant interest in a follow-up survey, and the use of materials among the preservice participants after their first year of teaching. Results indicated that participants reported an increase in agricultural understanding in all surveyed areas. The highest averages occurred in topics related to gaining a deeper appreciation for agriculture; increasing understanding in the resources that produce food, clothing, and shelter; and the value of agriculture in daily life. Participants further reported that the topic of agriculture was relevant for their teaching and that they were more likely to explore the website than commit to using specific resources. Lastly, it was determined that participants were likely or very likely to integrate agriculture into their instruction and planned to use the AITC website and related curriculum resources. Twenty-four percent stated they would be willing to be part of a follow-up study

Engaging Students through Issues-Based Topics

This session presents teaching strategies for student engagement that increase understanding and help students broaden their personal perspectives when addressing issues in agriculture. Designed to include all styles of learners, these hands-on strategies give students ownership of their learning. Issues-based topics can be taught using creative techniques, like readers’ theater, futures wheel, concept maps, infographics, social media positions, decision matrices and many more, that give students opportunities to share their voices and think critically. These strategies will also help students who may feel vulnerable expressing their opinions or openly changing their opinions. The session will discuss options for instructors with large and small class sizes. This session is a great connecting piece to the Facticity conversation and seminars that occurred during fall and spring semester

Opening Remarks and Welcome

Opening remarks for the Empowering Teaching Excellence Conference 2023

Interweaving Success Skills & Content: How to Better Meet Students Where They Are

Many students struggle to learn new academic skills when they enter higher education. This situation has been made worse the last few years as students have experienced significant upheaval in their education. Students who have done well in high school or those that have been impacted by changes to their educational experience due to the COVID-19 pandemic may begin to fall behind, get discouraged, and lose confidence in their academic abilities. As a result, many instructors often wrestle with the tricky balance of supporting students in academic skill development or catching students up without compromising the time needed to cover important course content. Many resources are available to help students acquire new academic skills and develop a growth mindset. Still, it\u27s often challenging to connect the right students to the right resources. One solution is to integrate academic skill development with course content. In this session, four experienced university faculty members will discuss specific strategies and methods they have used to integrate academic skills into their courses that have developed from necessity over the last few years. A variety of examples, ranging from philosophy to nutrition, will demonstrate how academic skill development can be integrated in any course. Participants will leave this session with tools and strategies that they can immediately utilize within their own courses

Interdisciplinary Approaches to Navigating ChatGPT

The rapid development of generative AI promises to forever change the way we teach. As we know, writing is more than a product—writing is a way of learning and creating new meaning. How might teachers and students respond productively to generative AI, both to consider new ways of writing and to ensure students learn course outcomes? This workshop will focus on approaches to navigating generative AI from a variety of disciplines: Business, Agriculture & Applied Science, Community Advocacy, Engineering, and Writing Studies. The workshop will begin with presenters from each discipline providing a brief overview of the pedagogical challenges and possibilities of utilizing AI for teaching and student learning. Following this overview, presenters will join participants for small-group discussions to develop discipline-specific strategies for navigating AI in the classroom. Guiding questions: How might we use AI responsibly as a tool for learning? What potential benefits does AI have for your discipline? What ethical considerations might we consider? (e.g., HIPPA, confidentiality, intellectual property) How can we communicate limitations of AI to students? How do we make AI inclusive to all students? What from this workshop can you take back to your department? (e.g., AI\u27s connection to strategic plans or assessment

Hitting Pause: Practical Ways to Incorporate Reflective Learning Experiences in Teaching

The objectives of this presentation are to (1) to demonstrate practical ways to effectively incorporate \u27pauses\u27 (reflective learning experiences) into teaching and (2) to highlight the powerful benefits of faculty-based Learning Circles. A Learning Circle is a community of faculty who meet on a regular basis to share ideas for active teaching strategies and discuss research and literature focused on effective pedagogy. The presenters have been participating in a Learning Circle at Utah State University since September 2018. As part of a larger group, they spent several months reading and discussing the book, Hitting Pause, by Dr. Gail Taylor Rice and worked together to understand and effectively implement \u27pauses\u27 in a variety of course types, sizes, and formats. Pauses or \u27lecture breaks\u27 are an example of an innovative teaching approach that facilitates student-centered learning, deep processing and meaningful reflection, student engagement, and student empowerment. The presenters will discuss some of their favorite \u27pauses\u27 and talk about their biggest challenges for application