TEACHING ADVANCED LIFE SCIENCES IN AN ANIMAL CONTEXT: AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE TEACHER VOICES

The purpose of this qualitative study was to determine agricultural science teacher comfort with a new high school Advanced Life Science: Animal course and determine their perceptions of student impact. The advanced science course is eligible for college credit. The teachers revealed they felt confident of their science background in preparation for teaching the course and they emphasized their intensive science background in preparing to become agricultural science teachers. Teachers indicated they had significant background in advanced science concepts, but they hadn’t used the previous knowledge and it required effort to review the concepts related to the new course. Teachers indicated they weren’t completely comfortable with the supplies and equipment necessary for teaching the various laboratories associated with the course but they were able to utilize local resources to assist them. Students interested in health occupations careers found the course fulfilling their needs. Teachers indicated that the transferable skills students gained from the course included the ability to conduct lab write-ups, function in experimental settings, work in teams, and solve problems. Introduction and Conceptual Framework Academic standards are intended to create more intellectually demanding content and pedagogy and to establish uniform goals for schools (Sandholtz, Ogawa, & Scribner, 2004). As tools of reform, standards set higher expectations for students’ academic performance. The desired result is the improvement of the quality of education for all students and greater equality in students’ academic achievements. New legislation is constantly enacted requiring school districts to “educate a growingly diverse new generation of students unlike any that has ever entered the classrooms in the past” (Simplicio, 2004, p. 1), affecting not only the traditional student, but the historically underserved students as well (Sleeter, 2003). The premise behind the standards movement is that all children are capable of achieving at high levels if the bar is raised (Koski & Weis, 2004). As a result, many states have raised the stakes by holding their schools and students accountable for a measured performance. Achieving new content and performance standards requires building professional capacity. Teachers need deep understanding of the subject matter, student learning approaches, and diverse teaching strategies to aid their students in reaching these new standards (Darling-Hammond, 2004). Districts must pay attention to the ways in which they recruit, hire, and support new teachers as well as veteran teachers (Darling-Hammond). Teacher candidates are now expected to meet high standards and demonstrate they can link classroom theory the with practice (Quatroche, Watkins, Bolinger, Duarte, & Wepner, 2004). Closing the gap that exists between implementation of the standards and assessment of results will aid in decreasing teacher frustration and attrition (Hargrove, Walker, Huber, Corrigan, & Moore, 2004). Standards-based reform strategy encompasses three primary elements: (1) the state sets minimum “content standards” that describe knowledge, skills, and abilities for Journal of Agricultural Education Volume 49, Number 1, pp. 17 27 DOI: 10.5032/jae.2008.01017 Balschweid & Huerta Teaching Advanced Life... Journal of Agricultural Education 18 Volume 49, Number 1, 2008 core academic areas; (2) the state sets “performance standards,” which define what students must know in order to demonstrate mastery of the content standards; and (3) the state assesses if students have attained those standards (Koski & Weis, 2004). This research provides evidence where state level action has culminated in the integration of academics and career and technical education resulting in an approach to offering students what they need the most—rigorous and engaging subject matter. Teaching advanced life science within the context of animal agriculture can enhance students’ immediate marketability in the work place and provide students a launching pad for post-secondary educational pursuits. One study reveals that students participating in an agriscience course achieved significantly higher scores on the science portion of their state’s standardized test of high school graduates than did nonagriscience students (Chiasson & Burnett, 2001). Additionally, it has been demonstrated that teaching biology using animal agriculture as the context was effective for helping students appreciate and understand science better than traditional methods of teaching biology (Balschweid, 2002). Jelinek (1997) concluded that closing the gap between school science instruction and real-life scientific activity, such as that conducted in a life sciences context, and presenting science in a relevant form, helped eliminate obstacles that minimize student attitudes and interest towards the study of science. Balschweid (2003) concluded that subject matter taught in the context of animal agriculture, from a teacher experienced in modern animal agricultural practices, had a positive effect upon student attitudes towards agriculture and those who work in the agriculture industry, even when taught in a larger metropolitan city. The creation of a new curriculum grounded in college preparatory science principles creates a unique opportunity to determine teacher comfort with advanced science principles and reveal teachers’ perceptions of the impact of such a course upon students. How well prepared are agricultural science teachers to teach rigorous science principles? Do they believe that teaching college bound students, standards-based advanced scientific principles in the context of agriculture will result in positive attitudes towards science from those same students? In 2004-05, Indiana adopted three new courses in advanced science that were embedded within the context of life science, specifically animals, plants and soil, and foods. These courses underwent a rigorous writing and review process from professors in biology and chemistry programs from statewide institutions of higher education, science teachers, secondary agricultural science teachers, and representatives from business and industry (Balschweid, 2004). To date, limited evidence is available documenting teacher confidence and comfort with teaching the first of the courses, Advanced Life Science: Animal, and no evidence exists supporting teacher perceptions of the benefits of this course for enrolled students. Purpose/Research Questions The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of the Advanced Life Science: Animals course upon teachers adopting this course and their students. With this purpose in mind, the following guiding research questions were used to obtain data: 1. What is the comfort level of agricultural science teachers adopting an advanced life science course based upon state science standards and taught within an animal context? 2. What are teacher perceived benefits to students enrolled in a course specializing in advanced life science concepts taught within an animal context?