PERSPECTIVES OF SUCCESSFUL AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY TEACHERS ON THEIR PREPARATION TO TEACH AGRICULTURAL MECHANICS

Mechanization is integral to American agricultural industry. Like the industry, technical knowledge and processes continue to evolve to better fit emerging physical conditions and economic circumstances. Instructional strategies have integrated project methods, problem-solving, and applications of mathematics and technical science as core elements of the secondary school curriculum. However, exigencies have led to dramatic reductions of course offerings by universities that are publicly responsible for the education and professional development of teachers. This dilemma gave rise to the need to examine the perspectives of successful agricultural science and technology (AST) teachers and the education and experiences that are associated with their teaching success. Qualitative research methods were selected to investigate factors that enabled successful AST teachers to be more successful than were their peers. What factors motivate teachers to excel and what decision-rules influence how curriculum is selected, organized and delivered? Finally, this study focused on the recommendations of expert teachers regarding curricular improvements needed to prepare future teachers for this technical subject matter