Teaching Philosophy

Dana L. Dale
Agriculture Education

Learning to do doing to learn earning to live living to serve.

These sixteen words guide FFA members, students of agriculture, and

agriculture educators. The three-part model of agriculture education brings
together classroom instruction, FFA, and SAE (Supervised Agriculture Experience).
Because of the influence this short motto exerts on those who choose to live by it,
it only makes sense that this motto, too, guides my part in the inspiring task of
teaching. Learning should not be confined to the walls of the classroom. Students
should be provided the opportunity to accumulate the necessary information,
practice the skills to further their understanding, and then incorporate those skills
outside of the classroom. Then and only then can we truly say our instruction has
been meaningful. I hope to foster a love of learning and develop the natural
curiosity present in all learners through my teaching and my interactions with
students, be they in one of my classes or not.
My philosophy of teaching comes primarily from my own educational
experiences. Throughout my schooling, I have been exposed to classroom
instruction that was typically followed by guided practice, lab exercises, and
projects. As I plan my lessons, this same progression of instruction is evident. I rely
heavily on initial instruction before moving into activities and then returning to the
lecture material for a brief review as closure. Understanding that some lessons
may be better suited to activity that accompanies instruction or even precedes
instruction has allowed me to vary the instructional routine of the classroom
without sacrificing the benefit of guided practice, lab exercises, and projects. While
current pedagogy of agriculture education is well established, as seen in the three-
part model of agriculture education, I will strive to never stop learning and
experimenting with new methods of presenting information so that I may continue
to develop as an educator that dutifully serves each and every student in my
classroom.
Effective teaching comes from an understanding of not only methodology but
students themselves. Agriculture education lends itself to being taught in a very
hands-on manner but does not readily present ample opportunity for reflection. I
believe this lack of reflection does students a terrible disservice. During my
instruction, I hope to provide engaging ways to ask students to reflect on their
understanding of the learning and their development as life-long learners through
my classes. By creating an environment of respect and rapport, planning
meaningful instruction, effectively differentiating for students who differ in
readiness, interest, and learning styles, while also providing assessment that
determines student understanding of the material, students will be able to learn,
live, and serve beyond the confines of my classroom.
Evaluating student learning is, arguably, the most important part in the
process of education. If students are not able to retain the information that was
presented and apply the information accordingly, that information is of no service
to them and we have wasted their time, doing them a complete disservice. In order
to effectively evaluate student learning, a variety of assessment techniques must
be utilized. Students should have a plethora of opportunities to demonstrate
understanding. Lessons and units will begin with a pre-assessment to determine
current understanding. Formative assessment will be relied upon heavily
throughout the progression of the lesson to guide and inform teaching. Lastly
summative assessment will be incorporated to assure that students, in fact,
learned the material presented. Variety in instructional methods and activities,
as well as assessment techniques, will provide the invaluable opportunity for
students to take responsibility for their own learning while being guided through
the overwhelming process; a life skill that will continue to serve them beyond their
time in my classroom.