Presented By: Maria Boerngen, Illinois State University

The objective of this pilot study is to assess students' perceptions of an online grain marketing simulation, and to measure gains in marketing knowledge and confidence from completing the simulation. Students enrolled in a senior/graduate-level futures and options course at Illinois State University complete a 36-day challenge in which they each manage a hypothetical 2500-acre corn and soybean operation through an entire simulated crop year from pre-plant to harvest, utilizing the online AgYield Simulator. AgYield generates reports including weather forecasts, planting progress and crop conditions, and other routine USDA bulletins, together with fluctuating crop prices and yield estimates, modeling the dynamic environment in which real farmers operate. Participants assimilate and apply this information to market their expected crop utilizing the grain marketing strategies that are the foundation of the course. Questionnaires were administered at the beginning of the project addressing students' prior experiences with class simulations, their level of comfort with online learning, and their real-world farming and grain marketing experience. The majority of participants did not grow up on a farm (78%), had no real-world grain marketing experience (78%), had completed one or two prior class simulations (89%), and were somewhat comfortable with online learning (67%). Post-project questionnaires addressed students' perception of AgYield and its impact on their grain marketing knowledge and confidence. 100% of participants enjoyed the simulation project, and 100% reported increased confidence in their ability to make marketing decisions. 100% of participants agreed or strongly agreed that they were more knowledgeable about several types of cash market contracts and hedging with futures contracts, with 90% agreeing or strongly agreeing that they gained knowledge in hedging with options. These results suggest that this hands-on application contributes to students' professional growth and mastery of course content. AgYield will be retained in the class, and data collection is ongoing.

Presented By: Jennifer Clark, University of Florida

America's farms and farmers are integral to the U.S. economy and form a primary component of agribusiness activities for the food and fiber supply chain (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2019). Understandably, farm operation decisions are complex and value exists by extending knowledge (e.g., classroom and Extension) about how resource decisions interrelated among production, financial, and marketing considerations, differ as the size of the business grows (Fielke, et.al., 2020). Resource inputs are dependent upon systems-of-systems (SoS) networks (Rose, et.al., 2021; Li, et.al., 2020) and teaching these systems as a form of risk-planning education can help students understand the challenge of complex decisions. Using small-farm operator survey data as feedback to differentiate changing resource needs as the farm grows illustrates the concept of increasing scale of operations as a learning activity.

Data from Florida's 2008 Small Farm Survey were analyzed and mapped as a SoS network model illustrating signal differences among production, financial, and marketing factors as the farm operation grows in Gross Farm Income (GFI). Results from this research project find no divergent patterns in access to production resources across farms with gross farm income ranging from $0 - $250,000+ including land, water, machinery, and fixed assets. However, difficulty in obtaining operating supplies and fuel was present as GFI increased ($10,001-$25,000) and labor shortages were persistent among larger operations. Knowing where to get useful financing information was typical for very small and small operators ($0-$25,000) while insurance and collateral for farm loans were reported as farm operations expand. Marketing factors present learning opportunities for ways to sell that can add value to the traditional and non-traditional classroom experience in agribusiness decision making including management functions in agricultural education and agricultural operations disciplines focused on careers when information about economic decisions provides value to farm operators.

Presented By: Grace Dooley, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
Co-Authors: Elle Carter, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
Sallie McHug, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
Farish Mulkey, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College

Team teaching in a preservice teacher preparation program allows for multiple viewpoints and depth of knowledge through lived instructor experiences shared with preservice teacher-learners. Team teaching has been shown to improve both learning and teaching. From the student's perspective, team teaching allows for more active learning, contributing to greater student interest and engagement (Zadra, 1998). Team teaching is an ever-present trend in K-12 education as the disparity in the student-to-teacher ratio continues to rise across all levels (Winn & Messenbeimer-Young, 1995). Higher education and teacher preparation programs often do not model team teaching, though its effectiveness is supported in the literature (Winn & Messenbeimer-Young, 1995). The population for the study was 108 individuals team-taught through interactive and participant-observer models from the fall of 2019 through the fall of 2022. A survey was developed by the course instructors and two departmental students to measure the effectiveness of team teaching in two courses (Agriculture Practicum and Early Field Experience). Three other faculty members in the Agricultural Education department established the content validity of the survey instrument. Former and current students who completed the courses received the Qualtrics survey via email. The survey included demographic questions, questions about prior experience with team teaching, and their perceptions of the effectiveness of team teaching. The survey was open for two weeks. Sixty-two respondents completed the survey, resulting in a 57% response rate. The highest reported percentages were provided with multiple viewpoints (93.55%), satisfied with my learning experience in two classes (93.55%), and highlighted that no two teachers are the same (93.54%). Overall, the respondents had positive perceptions and indicated they received more insight from multiple perspectives on the same topic, and classes were more enjoyable due to variations in teaching styles.

Presented By: Matthew Gold, University of Florida
Co-Authors: Laura Greenhaw, University of Florida

The integration of film as a pedagogical tool in classrooms has long been acknowledged for its ability to provide learners with a vicarious experience, facilitating a connection between film and real-life scenarios (Champoux, 2005; Williams & McClure, 2010). Our research explored agricultural leadership learners’ satisfaction with learning through film and their intent to model teamwork and leadership behaviors portrayed in the film, The Imitation Game. A multiple case study design explored similarities and differences between two sections of a team leadership course. One section applied an inductive approach while the other applied a deductive approach. Learner satisfaction was assessed by seven items measured on a 5-point scale (1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree). Learners’ perceptions of modeling behaviors from the film were assessed through two additional items on the 5-point scale and an open-ended question on the final exam. Learners in both sections indicated overall satisfaction with the analysis assignment. Learners reported the approach was helpful (Mdeductive = 4.86, Minductive = 4.71), enjoyable (Mdeductive = 4.58, Minductive = 4.71), and motivating (Mdeductive = 4.61, Minductive = 4.71). Interestingly, learners’ perceptions of modeling behaviors from the film, by themselves and their peers, was varied. Nearly 64% of deductive learners reported that they modeled behaviors while only 28% of inductive learners reported the same. Alternatively, 53% of deductive learners indicated their peers had modeled behaviors from the film, while roughly 43% of inductive learners indicated the same. Moreover, inductive learners tended to highlight behaviors of specific characters they would model, while deductive learners tended to identify general behaviors they would model from specific scenes in the movie. We recommend educators consider integrating visual media such as film to help learners comprehend complex topics. Research should continue to investigate whether and how vicarious learning leads to modeling of behaviors.

Presented By: Ellen Klinger, The Ohio State University

Game based learning and assessment offers opportunities for students to engage in active and authentic learning and for real world evaluation of student skills. Escape rooms are one such game-based method, where students must make informed choices using various pieces of data to reach an intended goal. Escape rooms can help meet learning objectives and goals in classroom situations and can be used as assessments, active learning or peer interactive activities. An obvious real world parallel to the format of an escape room is that of insect pest management; can a grower make choices that allow them to escape costly economic insect damage in their system within a limited timeframe? In this poster, creation of an IPM escape room assessment used in an upper-level Insect Pest Management course is dissected to show how aligning the activity with course learning objectives and how creation of a robust scenario is key to activity effectiveness. In addition, using 2 years of experience, shortcomings of the escape room model are highlighted.

Presented By: David Kopsell, Illinois State University
Co-Authors: Liangcheng Yang, Illinois State University

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is the decomposition of animal, crop, and food waste by microorganisms in sealed vessels or digesters which capture produced biogas as a renewable energy source while recycling nutrients. AD information was incorporated into lecture and laboratory components of Environmental Health Practices, Fruit & Vegetable Production, Organic Crop Production, and Renewable Energy and Agriculture courses at Illinois State University with the objective of enhancing instruction of sustainable waste and energy management. After IRB approval (IRB-2022-58) students completed a pre-learning survey prior to instruction. Students also rated their attitudes and perceptions of waste management, the environment, and climate change. After completing the pre-learning survey, students participated in AD lecture and laboratory exercises with hands-on activities. Students completed a post-learning survey measuring the same metrics. Fifty-nine students in five courses completed the surveys from Spring 2022 to Fall 2023. Student demographics were 81.4% male/16.6% female and 75% white or Caucasian/25% African American, Hispanic, or Asian. Pre-survey knowledge of bioenergy was 1.66 on a scale of 0=no knowledge to 4=excellent knowledge. Pre-survey knowledge of AD including feedstocks used, operation, applications, and products produced were all less than 0.9 on the same scale. Post-survey knowledge of bioenergy (2.67; P≤0.001), AD (2.83; P≤0.001), feedstocks (2.85; P≤0.001), operation (2.76; P≤0.001), applications (2.76; P≤0.001), and products (3.01; P≤0.001) all increased. Student concern about climate change remained unchanged from pre- to post-learning (3.27 and 3.31, respectively; P=0.453) on a scale of 0=not concerned to 4=extremely concerned. Students also identified the importance of hands-on learning both pre-learning (3.51) and post-learning (3.74) and this remained unchanged (P=0.072). Student participants increased their knowledge of AD after instruction, placing a high value on hands-on learning. Anaerobic digestion may be a valuable addition to horticulture and agriculture curricula as sustainable waste and energy management increases in importance in specialty crop production.

Presented By: Jayden Lawrence, Illinois State University
Co-Authors: Marley Knowles, Illinois State University
Drew Lugar, Illinois State University

Animal Science demographics are shifting from students that come with an abundance of experience, to students that do not have any prior animal experience. It is important to note the present student demographics, could be impacting student mental health. In a semester long Parturition Management course, students attend overnight, unsupervised shifts during the birthing process of sheep, cattle, and pigs. Throughout the course, physiological measurements via heart rate variability (HRV) and psychological stress data via Perceived Stress Surveys (PSS) were collected, along with student demographic and background data. Both units of stress data were compared back to baseline measurements taken on campus during the daytime to quantify the stress caused by the class. Heart rate variability did not differ in this study (P>0.15) in all of the demographic variables measured. The data analysis showed that students had the highest level of change in PSS (cPSS) in lamb watch, the first species of the class (P<0.01). Students that had expert level experience had the greatest cPSS among all other levels (P<0.01). They also showed that, ethnicity, academic sequence, and hometown population played a role in how high cPSS was. These findings may be due to self-reporting of their prior animal experience, which may have resulted in bias towards their true experience level. It is possible that this study needs to be completed in the introductory level course that has students’ first collegiate interaction with animals, to capture their initial college stress levels associated with animals. However, the physiological stress results showed no significant differences among the demographic categories, or the species measured. This is likely due to the timing of the course taking place overnight because it is suggested that heart rate variability measurements are most accurate when taken in the morning.

Presented By: Joey Mehlhorn, University of Tennessee Martin
Co-Authors: Brittany Cole, University of Tennessee Martin
Jason Roberts, University of Tennessee Martin

Many students struggle with academic anxiety. Previous research documents the calming influence of animals, and some universities utilize therapy dogs for student mental health care. Over six hundred business students are surveyed to quantify student perceptions of animal interactions in the classroom. Students are surveyed over eleven semesters in three different upper-level finance courses and divided into two matched samples based on academic characteristics. One group interacts with an Australian Shepherd prior to exams, and one group does not. Interactions include treat-based training, brushing, and observation based on student choice. Student perceptions of animal interaction are surveyed in the classroom pre-and-post exam and interaction. Over 75% of students find value in animal interactions. Students note value as reduced anxiety, increased confidence, reduced stress, and increased enjoyment of class material. Over 90% of students in the interaction group feel animal interaction increases exam performance and increases comfort with material. Student perception of classroom animal engagement may differ among student subgroups. When student responses are separated by GPA, 99% of students with a GPA below 3.00 feel animal interaction improves exam grade, compared to only 65% of students with a GPA of 3.00 or above. This 34-percentage point difference is significant at the 1% level. Students with a GPA below 3.00 indicate higher levels of exam stress and grade anxiety than students with a GPA of 3.00 or higher (using a self-reported scale of one to ten), highlighting that animal interaction is more beneficial to students with lower grades and higher levels of anxiety. Similar evidence is found by grade year; a larger number of sophomore and junior students (94%) find the interactions beneficial to overall performance compared to senior students (69%). Results show the importance of addressing student stress management and using creative solutions, like therapy dogs, to improve student performance.

Presented By: Misti Sharp, University of Florida
Co-Authors: Jeanette Mary Andrade, University of Florida

Background
Traditional modalities to assess a students' comprehension of complex systems may be through an oral presentation and/or a written report. To further expand students critical thinking skills, comprehension, and technological skills, other methods such as diagrams may be used in place of the traditional oral and written modalities. This presentation will review the use of diagramming in agricultural classes, different software options, benefits and trade-offs in assessing student learning.

Methods
During Fall 2023 in two undergraduate courses "Agrotourism and Food Systems” and “Introduction to Food Systems”, assignments were provided to students (n=77 and n=14, respectively), in which they had to represent their concepts of the food system, results from a food environmental scan and infographics using a diagram approach. Students were provided a small prompt for the assignments with no restrictions on the type of system to use to produce these diagrams.

Results
Students predominately chose Canva for these assignments in addition to PowerPoint and Plectica. From grading and reflection of the faculty, benefits of using a diagram approach allowed for students to visualize the complexities of the food systems and food environments, they engaged more senses, enhanced the technological and communication skills, diversified the student learner, and provided a broader diversity of perspectives. The trade-offs of using this approach were cost, limited clarity of student work if no written modality was provided/required, technical skills of students varied and may not have increased from start to end of the course, and evidence of critical thinking skills varied dependent on the assignment/prompt provided to the students.

Conclusions
A diagram approach may be beneficial in aiding students' development of technical and critical thinking skills when discussing complex information. This approach can be applied in a variety of contexts and is strengthened by considering the student learning outcomes.

Presented By: Don Mulvaney, Auburn University
Co-Authors: Terry Brandebourg, Auburn University
Robert Britton, Auburn University
Gabriella Johnson, Auburn University

Despite positive evidences, animal agricultural production (AG) is challenged by a gap of understanding between non-AG and AG-segments of society widened by messaging about negative impacts on environment, animal wellness and health perspectives of meat. While coursework and lab experience strengthen workforce ready hard-skills plus factual and applicable knowledge, many students lack skills and abilities to effectively communicate their knowledge. An ‘AgSTEM Issue Topic World Café’ was designed to proactively encourage / facilitate knowledge acquisition along with engagement experience focusing on conversations about key topics of concern within contemporary animal-agriculture. Students were sent a QR code to a Qualtrics survey to register and be anonymously surveyed on knowledge of production practices and statistics in the animal industries. The event began 45-minute training by guest speaker from the Center for Beef Advocacy at NCBA. Key points included conversation skills and tips, and agricultural advocacy principles. Students then chose one of eight tables to start the first round of discussion. Each table had an ANSC grad student or a staff member facilitating table discussion. Topics included scenarios around horse slaughter, protein alternatives, animal welfare, and human diet/health nutrition. After about 15 min., students dispersed and rotated to a different table. Upon completion of a second round of discussion, a speaker from each table shared with the entire group their topic, the conversation that could stem from the scenarios listed, and useable talking points to share insightful and evidence-based information. Testimonials of students attending the event and a post-event survey provided a Likert scale and open-ended questions to enable sharing of opinions on their experience. Ninety-four per cent of respondents stated that ‘they learned something`, ‘improved perceptions’ and that they thought ‘the ideas and topics presented were interesting and applicable’. The model will be utilized in future experiential learning programming.

Presented By: Bob Williams, Texas A&M University-Commerce

Urban Agriculture is a required, junior level course for the major in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems that was approved in 2020. The course is offered each spring semester in an online, asynchronous format. It is open to any major as an elective course. This presentation will focus on the overall enrollment trends regarding total enrollment, as well as enrollment by major for the years 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024. Data analyzed for this presentation included enrollment and student majors as reported on the detailed class roster for each year. Nominal data consist of majors represented in the course each year including Agricultural Sciences, Agribusiness, Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communication (combined), Animal and Equine Sciences (combined), Ornamental Horticulture, Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems, and majors Outside of the College of Agriculture. Enrollment by major will be presented in frequency and percentage of total enrollment by year. The frequency of Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems majors increased during 2022, remained the same in 2023, and increased slightly in 2024. The frequency of Agricultural Sciences majors declined each year. Majors (combined) outside of the College of Agriculture varied by year but represented more than 10% of the total enrollment, annually. Agribusiness majors represented 11% in the 2021 but made up 57% in 2024. Clearly, students are interested in the topic with total enrollment in the course growing annually. While required for a relatively new major, students in that major alone could not provide sufficient credit hour production to justify offering the course every year. However, the popularity of the course, as an elective is growing. This leaves us with an objective for further investigation, to determine if it is the popularity of content or course delivery format that makes it an attractive elective for non-majors.

Presented By: Brianna Wardwell, Purdue University
Co-Authors: Elizabeth Karcher, Purdue University

There is an increasing need to produce college graduates interested in agricultural sciences, yet there are minimal educational resources focused on agriculture for teachers to implement in the K-12 space. This study examines how participation in the Poultry and Animal Virus Education (PAVE) program impacted 4^th and 5^th grade students' individual interest, situational interest, and knowledge about poultry science. The PAVE program consists of five online modules that use interactive activities, notebooks, and a class activity, to explore animal health, biosecurity, immunology, vaccination protocols, and careers and opportunities in the poultry industry. Thirteen classes (nine teachers) across Indiana and Michigan participated in this study during the Spring 2023 semester with a total of 199 students enrolled in the program. The program is designed to be completed over the course of 6 days. Data was collected before the start of the program (100% response rate), after the completion of the online modules (46% response rate), and following the class project (25% response rate). Students completed surveys that measured individual and situational interest, agricultural literacy, and their content knowledge. Results indicated that students' poultry and animal health content knowledge improved after the online modules (6.59 vs. 9.13 out of 15 points; P < 0.001). Additionally, students demonstrated an increase in their agricultural literacy when comparing their scores before the program and after the online modules (10.81 vs. 12.87 out of 22 points; P < 0.05). Students reported a moderate individual interest in poultry science at the beginning and the end of the program and thought that while the activities were somewhat exciting and enjoyable, they required a lot of attention and thinking on their part. More research is needed to learn how to optimize STEM-based online agriculture educational experiences for elementary students to ensure that the activities are both interesting and impactful.

Presented By: Todd Winters, University of Tennessee Martin

Animal Genetics is historically considered one of the more difficult courses for students in the Animal, Wildlife, and Veterinary Science curricula. The mathematical and statistical concepts of genetics are key reasons for these difficulties. To help students understand the mathematical concepts of animal breeding and genetics in a more enjoyable manner, a series of five interconnected homework assignments emphasizing traits in the mythical animal, the unicorn, were developed. Concepts covered included: dominant & recessive traits, effects of outbreeding and inbreeding on gene and genotypic frequencies in a population, test-matings, using breeding value estimations, population statistical calculations and estimations, and hybrid vigor estimations. Because math is emphasized in the homework assignment, exams and quizzes emphasize non-mathematical concepts of genetics rather than mathematical ones. Three separate classes over three semesters, totaling 73 students were asked to reflect on their experience with the five homework assignments. Results were: 83% gave a positive answer (strongly agree/agree) that the homework assignments helped them understand mathematical concepts of animal breeding and genetics (ABG); 65% positively answered that the assignments made learning ABG more enjoyable; and 97% liked the fact that mathematical genetic concepts were emphasized on unicorn homework assignments rather than quizzes and exams. Only 7% of the students preferred to have more mathematical genetics problems on the quizzes and exams. In summary, a semester-long interconnected homework assignment can make Animal Genetics a more enjoyable class, while learning the important mathematical concepts of animal breeding and genetics.

Presented By: Faith Oster, The Ohio State University
Co-Authors: Kimberly Cole, The Ohio State University

Animals are often used as educational resources in post-secondary educational settings across the United States, especially in animal science curricula. Yet, little is known about the impact of student-animal interactions (SAI) on the animals used as educational resources, specifically regarding the effect on their emotional states. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the emotional states of the animals used as educational resources through measurements of behavioral responses observed during SAI. The two hypotheses tested were (1) the animals will exhibit negative emotional states when the interaction has a higher level of invasiveness and/or positive emotional states to non-invasive interactions, and (2) the animals will exhibit negative emotional states during nonfamiliar student interactions and positive emotional states during familiar student interactions. This study was conducted at The Ohio State University during Autumn semester of 2022. Animal species (n = 6) used as educational resources in animal sciences courses exhibited a higher frequency of negative emotional states the higher the level of invasiveness and positive emotional states during non-invasive interactions (p < 0.05). Moreover, animals exhibited a higher frequency of negative emotional states during nonfamiliar student interactions and invasive activities and a higher frequency of positive emotional states during familiar student interactions or less invasive activities (p < 0.05). In conclusion, animals exhibited more negative emotional states when the interaction was invasive and non-familiar students were present versus exhibiting higher levels of positive emotional states when the interaction was non-invasive and familiar students were present. Thus, indicating the welfare of the animals used during these courses could be enhanced by minimizing the number of invasive interactions, increasing the quantity of non-invasive interactions, and familiarizing the animals with the students. Overall, these findings indicate that the nature of the SAI influences an animal’s behavioral responses.

Presented By: Art Wolfskill, Sam Houston State University
Co-Authors: Chad Reynolds, Sam Houston State University
Ryan Saucier, Sam Houston State University

Industry, academia, and government recognize that there are gaps between science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education and future required workplace skills in the 21st century. These skills refer to a broad set of knowledge, skills, work habits, and character traits that are vital to the success in the future of the world such as thinking, ways of working, literacy tools for working, and living in world. Unfortunately, multiple studies have reported that the overall business sector is generally dissatisfied with the job that higher education is doing in teaching these skills to recent graduates. Educators need to focus on teaching skills students that are needed and will help sustain businesses and grow the economy. The purpose of this study was to determine agriculture students' perceptions of their employability skills before entering the agriculture industry. The study was conducted during the Spring 2023 semester in a senior level course. All students in the course (n = 26) completed a self-evaluation of their employability skills at the beginning (pre) and conclusion (post) of the course. The instructor of the course also completed an evaluation of the students at the conclusion of the course. The evaluation contained 10 categories with a ranking of 1 to 10 with an overall rank of 0 to 100. The lowest ranked categories included (pre) Knowledge of Job - 5.21, (post) Accuracy, Speed of Work, and Work Habits - 6.81, and (instructor) Attendance - 6.73. The highest ranked categories included (pre) Attendance ” 8.88, (post) Cooperation ” 9.04, and (instructor) Cooperation “ 8.12. The average overall rankings of the evaluations are as follows, pre-evaluation: 76.3, post-evaluation: 81, instructor evaluation: 74.8. Overall students perceived a slight improvement in their employability skills throughout the course.