FFA Chapter Research Articles

What norms do team-based leadership development event teams use to create a culture of success?

The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify norms and culture of teams who qualified for competition in team-based Leadership Development Events (LDEs) at the 2020 [State] State Virtual LDEs. We extrapolated differences in team norms and culture from the Agricultural Issues Forum, Parliamentary Procedure, and Conduct of Chapter Meetings (CCM) from interviews with the advisors of the teams. We conducted interviews via phone, voice recorded, and transcribed them for analysis. We open coded interviews in a meaning making process. From the interview data, we determined teams whose norms were student driven, Agricultural Issues Forum teams, had more of a team development experience, had more buy-in and experienced more elements of cooperation. Teams with advisor-driven norms, Parliamentary Procedure and CCM teams, were more focused on the competition and winning; in addition, individual accountability was a common theme. Accountability, cooperation, dedication, focus, and resilience emerged as themes in team culture. This information can be used to assist FFA chapter advisors in preparing their students and structuring team development plans to assist students in developing team-related employability skills.

A Critical Pedagogy of Agriculture

Socio-cultural issues within our agrifood system such as social inequality, personal and community health, and the environment have been the subject of interdisciplinary inquiry and curriculum from inside and outside of education, but exploration of these topics from within Agriculture Education is lacking. The importance of these issues, as well as the responsibility that agriculture educators have to fostering agency and consciousness in the next generation of agriculturalists, requires that School Based Agriculture Education formulate a pedagogical framework to address them. This paper introduces a new pedagogical approach to be applied across SBAE programs- a critical pedagogy of agriculture. In order to accomplish this, (a) the need for a critical pedagogy of agriculture is discussed, (b) the history of critical theory and critical pedagogy is explained as well as other critical pedagogies that have emerged to address similar and overlapping issues with agriculture, and (c) suggestions for how to reimagine an entire SBAE program, including the FFA Chapter and Supervised Agricultural Experiences, through a critical lens are offered. Through a critical pedagogy of agriculture, the transformative potential of SBAE programs to empower students and address related social justice issues can be realized.

The Relationship of Prior FFA Membership on Perceived Ability to Manage an FFA Chapter

In order to fill the need in the agriscience teacher shortage, preservice agriscience teacher education needs to seek preservice teachers who may not have had a traditional school-based agriculture background. The influx of new teachers without a school-based agricultural education background brings both opportunities and challenges. Gaps in needs between those teachers who had and those teachers who did not have school-based agricultural education and FFA membership have different teacher professional development needs. This study investigated the professional development need areas based on a needs assessment that investigated knowledge, relevance, and mean weighted discrepancy scores of agriscience teachers who were or were not FFA members. Participants across both groups indicated professional development needs for FFA chapter management. Teachers who were not previously FFA members identified stronger needs across 11 of 13 items. There was a significant difference found between the two groups for four of the 13 chapter management items. Recommendations for future research and programmatic development consisted of the consideration of specific sessions of a basic FFA knowledge with a second session that focuses on technical skill attainment.

Are Agriculture Students More Career Ready? A Comparative Analysis of Illinois Juniors

In a state facing broad budget shortfalls, agricultural education programs have to show their value in relation to other key subject areas, such as math and reading. The best agricultural education programs follow a three-component model of instruction, including classroom experience, leadership development through FFA involvement, and an experience-based activity through a Supervised Agricultural Experience program (SAE). Each year state FFA associations recognize top chapters with gold or silver emblem designations. In this quantitative study, we compare eleventh grade Illinois agriculture students from Gold and Silver Emblem FFA chapters to all other Illinois eleventh-grade students on ACT WorkKeys assessments designed to measure levels of career readiness. In addition, we also provide a comparison of Illinois agriculture students from Gold and Silver Emblem FFA chapters to all juniors tested from the same schools. The assessment results indicated that the selected group of agriculture students are more career ready than their peers, particularly in the area of math.

Trends and Impact of FFA Affiliation on National FFA Organization Student Membership: A Secondary Analysis of Existing Data

FFA, School-Based Agricultural Education’s student leadership organization, has experienced significant membership growth in recent years. From 1990-2010, FFA membership increased 31%, yet has experienced a similar increase (28%) in just the last eight years, the same time affiliation became a membership option. The purpose of this study was to examine recent FFA membership trends based on current membership options: optional dues-based membership and mandatory affiliation membership. A secondary analysis of FFA chapter membership roster records and annual state reports during the previous four complete academic years beginning in 2013-2014, was completed following the steps of Knowledge Discovery in Databases (KDD). As of 2017, over two-thirds (70.57%) of chapters are still dues-paying chapters. However, when analyzing membership type by FFA members, over half (51.54%) of all FFA members are members through affiliation. When looking at members within each region, the majority of members from the Central, Eastern, and Southern region are dues paying members while the majority of members in the Western region are affiliated members. Additionally, a stronger relationship may exist between national recognition and FFA affiliated chapters than for FFA dues; there may be a relative advantage in national award programs for affiliated chapters.

The Effect Teacher Led Reflection Plays on Students' Civic Responsibility Perceptions Following FFA Civic Engagement Activities

Civic engagement activities are utilized to enhance youth’s citizenship skills and content knowledge, and to strengthen the community’s status. Post-activity reflections can be utilized to strengthen the benefits of civic engagement activities but are often underutilized. This quasi-experimental study sought to determine the influence of guided reflection following FFA civic engagement activities on students’ self-perceived civic responsibility. Through the use of a nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design, four schools and students who participated in FFA civic engagement activities (n = 138) were randomly assigned to either a group discussion after reflection or a no-reflection group. It was found that throughout all time periods, students felt slightly connected to their community, community needs awareness, and civic efficacy. It was also found that the reflection treatment group exhibited statistically significantly higher community needs awareness and civic efficacy construct mean scores than the no-reflection group. It is recommended for FFA chapters to provide a wide variety of short-term civic engagement activities with reflection components.

Facebook and a Farm Crisis: FFA and Online Agricultural Advocacy

Following the March 2017 wildfire devastation in Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas, local chapters of the National FFA Organization actively engaged on social media to advocate for public response to the crisis. Twenty-three public Facebook posts from FFA chapters and affiliates demonstrate members’ engagement with agricultural issues in the United States, disrupting the generalization that young adults are disconnected from civic affairs. However, while Facebook served as an important platform for members’ ag-vocacy in the wake of the crisis, FFA chapter posts contain embedded traditional rural literacies, which are reflected in members’ collective identification with existing supporters of agricultural communities. While FFA chapters had the potential to advocate to a broad readership, the posts reveal the chapters’ way of reading the crisis and writing a response to it with an insular narrative. As a result, Facebook posts that target only limited audiences and/or appeal to readers with exclusionary collective identification result in the failure of entities, such as local FFA chapters, to capitalize on Facebook’s full potential as an advocacy tool to inform and engage large public audiences.

A Comparative Analysis of College Readiness Assessment Results of Illinois High School Agriculture Students

Agricultural education is defined by a best practice three-component model of instruction that includes a classroom experience, leadership development and FFA involvement, and an experiencebased activity through a Supervised Agricultural Experience program (SAE). Based on program of activities award criteria, each year state FFA associations recognize top chapters with gold or silver emblem designations. This quantitative study provides a comparison of eleventh grade Illinois agriculture students from Gold and Silver Emblem FFA chapters to all Illinois eleventhgrade students on college assessments. In addition, it provides a comparison of Illinois agriculture students from Gold and Silver Emblem FFA chapters to all juniors tested from the same schools. Student identification numbers were securely collected from agriculture instructors and principals at qualifying schools and data were compiled by the office of the state board of education. The assessment results were analyzed and compared to determine if there were statistically significant differences that emerged between selected agriculture students and their peers using the ACT assessment designed to measure college readiness. Results indicated that the selected group of agriculture students are as college ready as their peers. Further analysis indicated that female agriculture students perform at a higher level than their peers on college readiness assessments.

Utilizing Secondary Agricultural Education Programs to Deliver Evidence-Based Grain Safety Training for Young and Beginning Workers

ABSTRACTPurdue University’s Agricultural Safety and Health Program (PUASHP) has collaborated with secondary agricultural education programs, including FFA Chapters, for over 70 years to deliver and promote agricultural safety and health programming. With support from a U.S. Department of Labor Susan Harwood Program grant, PUASHP utilized a Developing a Curriculum (DACUM) process to develop, implement, and evaluate an evidence-based curriculum for use with young and beginning workers, ages 16–20, exposed to hazards associated with grain storage and handling. The primary audience was students enrolled in secondary agricultural education programs. A review of the literature identified a gap in educational resources that specifically addresses this target population. The curriculum developed was based on fatality and injury incident data mined from Purdue’s Agricultural Confined Space Incident Database and input from a panel of experts. The process identified 27 learning outcomes and finalized a pool of test questions, supported by empirical evidence and confirmed by a panel of experts. An alignment process was then completed with the current national standards for secondary agricultural education programs. Seventy-two youth, ages 16–20, enrolled in secondary-school agricultural education programs, and a smaller group of post-secondary students under the age of 21 interested in working in the grain industry pilot tested the curriculum. Based on student and instructor feedback, the curriculum was refined and submitted to OSHA for approval as part of OSHA’s online training resources. The curriculum was delivered to 3,665 students, ages 16–20. A total of 346 pre- and post-tests were analyzed, and the results used to confirm content validity and assess knowledge gain. Findings led to additional modifications to curriculum content, affirmed knowledge gain, and confirmed appropriateness for use with secondary agricultural education programs. The curriculum has been promoted nationally and made available for free download from www.agconfinedspaces.org. Findings further confirmed the value of delivering safety programming through established programs such as secondary agricultural education programs and FFA Chapters serving youth.

Advising an Urban FFA Chapter: A Narrative of Two Urban FFA Advisors

Advising an urban FFA chapter can be a challenge for urban agriculture teachers. The contextual differences between the rural-oriented FFA and urban FFA members can make bridging the gap difficult. This narrative study sought to explore how the urban context shapes the work of an FFA chapter from the perspectives of two FFA advisors at the same school. Both advisors had the same viewpoint about what experiences their FFA members should have, which included competitions and events beyond the local chapter level. Yet, they struggled to meet this goal. Their FFA members who attended the National FFA Convention discussed the need to feed local, food insecure people as an opportunity for their FFA chapter. This revelation did not make the advisors feel more confident; rather, they were still frustrated that their members could not find success beyond the chapter level in FFA activities such as career development events (CDEs) and supervised agricultural experience programs (SAEs). This meant that the definition of success for the FFA Chapter fell to the FFA advisors and not their members. Implications from this research include the role of advisors’ past experiences in shaping how they conceptualize their FFA chapter activities and success.

Eamining Year-long Leadership Gains in FFA Members by Prior FFA Involvement, Class Year, and Gender

Students (N = 160) in three diverse FFA chapters were surveyed in early fall, midwinter, and late spring in regard to their leadership skills, confidence in leading, and motivation to engage in leadership-oriented behaviors. The results indicated small-to-moderate gains in transformational leadership skill and a marginally significant small-to-moderate decrease in “social-normative” motivation to lead, i.e., motivation based on a feeling of responsibility towards one’s organization. Further analysis revealed that students exhibit a moderate decrease in non-calculative motivation to lead in the spring semester. Female students made significant gains in transformational leadership skill and marginally significant gains in their leadership self-efficacy and transactional leadership skill as well as showed a decrease in their social normative motivation to lead. No changes emerged in the male students. Analysis by class year showed that juniors in high school made larger gains in overall capacity than in other class years, especially in their confidence in leading their peers. Prior FFA involvement did not emerge as a significant predictor of leadership development. These results imply the need for focused training of FFA advisors in regard to the leadership growth of students and, potentially, in the administration of opportunities for leadership.

Student Self-Perceptions of Leadership in Two Missouri FFA Chapters: A Collective Case Study

The focus of this study is the self-perceptions of leadership engagement of FFA members in two FFA chapters in Missouri. This multiple case study used documentation of student self- perceptions, researcher observations, and focus groups. The two cases included 24 high school students comprised of FFA officers and members, who provided their perspectives on leadership. Six major themes emerged from the data analysis: (a) personal abilities and motivation as influencing student leaders; (b) barriers to leadership as perceived by officers and members; (c) support from others as influencing student leadership; (d) officers’ perceiving that members are apathetic; (e) leadership as enhancing personal and professional development; and (f) perceived gender differences in leadership style. It is recommended that FFA advisors discuss diverse leadership styles and motivational factors with students. In turn, leading to the potential development of leadership skills and awareness by all students in a FFA chapter. The content of leadership education for adolescents also may need broadening to emphasize content beyond study of traits. Recommendations for student success include additional research into best practices of leadership development of all students and the ability to assist students in addressing identified barriers.

Multicultural Competence: A Case Study of Teachers and their Student Perceptions

The purpose of this study is to describe the level of multicultural competence among secondary agriculture teachers in schools with a minimum of 30% ethnic minority student enrollment. Using the Multicultural Skills Awareness and Skill Survey – Teacher Form, teachers assessed their multicultural competence as did their students assess the teacher’s multicultural competence. For comparison purposes, teachers were grouped by the ethnic diversity of their FFA chapter membership: diverse and non-diverse FFA membership. From the findings, teachers within a diverse FFA membership had a higher multicultural competence level (by the teacher and the students) then did teachers within a non-diverse FFA membership. When combining both teacher groups together, the results suggest that students perceive their teachers to be more multicultural competent then the teachers perceive themselves. The results and recommendations are provided as to the development of teachers that are multicultural competent.

Influence of FFA Activities on Critical Thinking Skills in Texas Three-Star FFA Chapters

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship of FFA activities on critical thinking skills of Texas FFA members in three-star FFA chapters. This descriptive study was conducted in eight purposively selected three-star FFA chapters throughout Texas. Three-star chapters are those chapters who have emerged as outstanding programs within the state based on the National FFA Chapter Awards Program guidelines. Seniors within each chapter were selected to complete a demographic survey and the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal® (WGCTA) instrument (Watson & Glaser, 2008a). The mean score for all FFA members who completed the survey was 39.85, which is considerably lower than the WGCTA norm group at 48.5 (Watson & Glaser, 2008b). With a mean score of 39.85, the FFA members who completed the WGCTA scored between the 20th and 25th percentile of high school students in the 12th grade (Watson & Glaser, 2008b). FFA members performed best on the Evaluation of Arguments subtest with a mean of 9.02 and scored lowest on the Inference subtest with a mean of 5.35. The only FFA activity that was an indicator of FFA members’ critical thinking ability was the State Leadership Development (LDE) contest. Gender was an indicator of FFA members’ critical thinking ability.

Urban FFA Members’ Sense of the Organizational Culture of the FFA

Organizational culture shapes how members of a group act. The culture has the power to exclude potential new members who do not fit into the culture of the organization. Research on urban school-based agriculture programs has indicated that urban agriculture students face barriers to their participation in the National FFA Organization (FFA). Experiences of urban FFA members at a National FFA Convention can provide researchers with an understanding of how urban agriculture students view the FFA organization. The purpose of the case study was to explore how urban FFA members experienced the FFA organizational culture while attending the 2012 National FFA Convention. We followed one urban FFA chapter during the 2012 National FFA Convention and conducted interviews before, during, and after the convention. We also conducted focus group interviews and made observations. Belmont FFA members did not generally perceive their experiences at the convention as a barrier to their involvement in FFA and were generally positive toward the FFA artifacts, beliefs, and values they identified at the convention. However, these findings need to be understood in the context of the members who attended the convention as their motivation to participate in FFA may have positively influenced their views.

Agrarianism: An Ideology of the National FFA Organization

The traditions of the National FFA Organization (FFA) are grounded in agrarianism. This ideology focuses on the ability of farming and nature to develop citizens and integrity within people. Agrarianism has been an important thread of American rhetoric since the founding of country. The ideology has morphed over the last two centuries as the country developed from a nation of farmers to an industrial world power. The agrarian ideology that resonated in rural America during the formation of the FFA was southern agrarianism. Southern agrarian ideology argued for self-reliance and adherence to past traditions. These concepts appear in the FFA traditions of the creed, opening ceremony, motto, and awards. The historical growth and success of the FFA within rural communities demonstrates the ability of the southern agrarian ideology to connect with contemporary rural values. However, the southern agrarian ideology may not connect with the culture of diverse, urban, or suburban students. Advisers of diverse, urban, or suburban FFA chapters may need to reconceptualize the FFA traditions to accommodate their students.

Perceptions of Florida Secondary School Principals toward Agricultural Education

In American public schools, the bulk of financial decisions have been left up to local boards of education, local school superintendents, and individual school principals. Traditionally, principals have been considered the utmost leader in their schools. Agricultural education has been linked to student achievement in a variety of ways. The National Council for Agricultural Education’s Strategic Plan for Agricultural Education included a “call to increase the number of quality agricultural education programs” around the nation. Currently, there are no data on how Florida decision makers perceive agricultural education programs and how their perceptions align with the values of principals. Additionally, the relative lack of growth in FFA Chapters around the country and in Florida is concerning. The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of secondary agricultural education programs held by Florida secondary school principals. The results of this study found that Florida secondary school principals have positive perceptions of agricultural education programs. Additionally, the presence of a local secondary agricultural education program influences the perceptions of Florida secondary school principals. Demographics had many influences on the perceptions of Florida secondary school principals. A key finding was the influence of student achievement on funding decisions of principals.

Youth Leadership Development Through School-Based Civic Engagement Activities: A Case Study

Leadership development through a civic engagement activity in a local FFA chapter is explored. Through a case study design, researchers illuminate a project that encouraged youth leadership development through the creation and execution of a civic engagement project in their own local community. Holistically, FFA members viewed the project as a resounding success. Leadership development was experienced at many levels - individual, chapter, and community. FFA members felt particularly engaged when seen as partners with the community. This was accomplished through developing networks and participating in the planning, decision making, and execution of the project. The primary barrier cited was a lack of engagement from all chapter members. Implications include the important role civic engagement plays in youth leadership development, employing civic engagement projects to assist in developing higher level leadership skills, and the need for further research partnerships between career and technical student organizational members and local community citizens.

Youth Leadership Development: A National Analysis of FFA Member Role and Activity Context

A purpose of youth organizations is to develop leadership skills among members through organizational structure and organization sponsored activities. But do they develop those skills? This national, multi-stage study examined the role of youth and the context of their activities in developing leadership in rural FFA chapters. FFA members had a higher level of agreement with statements indicating that activities focused on self-development and the lowest agreement with statements focused on the community. FFA members indicated that in their interactions with adults they were most likely to be treated as partners. It follows that in the role-context matrix, the strongest agreement with statements regarding their interaction with adults and the dimension of leadership development was in developing self in a partnership role with adults. Youth leadership activities should help youth gain skills that help them understand self, interact with others, function effectively in groups, and provide leadership within the community.

LEADERSHIP BEHAVIORS EXHIBITED BY FFA CHAPTER PRESIDENTS

This study identified leadership behaviors exhibited by FFA chapter presidents. It also examined the relationship between the chapter presidents' perception of their leadership behavior with the behaviors observed by their chapter officer team. The study included all chapter officer teams from the 2001-2002 school year in the Northeast Agricultural Education District of Oklahoma. These programs were notified of the study and were invited to have their officer teams participate while at the State FFA Convention. A quantitative descriptive design was employed to describe and compare the 35 chapter presidents and 136 other officers. Each completed a questionnaire to measure leadership behaviors exhibited by the chapter president. Findings indicated that chapter presidents and other officers believed that the behaviors of Enabling Others to Act, Modeling the Way, and Encouraging the Heart were the most often exhibited by the chapter president. The chapter presidents, however, held inflated self-perceptions of their leadership behavior when compared to their officers’ observations. This was consistent among all 30 statements within the five leadership practices.