Science_Of_Agriculture.Org – Online Teaching Tools for Undergrads.

In an effort to help fill the gap in student understanding of key concepts in agriculture classrooms, we have been designing original teaching materials such as animations, videos and interactive tools. These resources are aimed at undergraduate students, but are also appropriate for consumers, extension agents, high school, and other students, and are freely available online at ScienceOfAgriculture.org.  Funded by multiple sources (USDA Hispanic Serving Institution program 2014-38422-22089, 2010-38422-21211), Western SARE, and university-based funding, the team identified knowledge gaps to develop media to assist faculty in building students’ content knowledge. Focus group interviews with general education faculty, agricultural sciences faculty, and employers of our graduates were conducted to identify content that students struggle to understand, processes that demand excessive lecture time to convey, and areas in which graduates are underprepared for the workforce. Through a variety of digital modules, the website presents agricultural and environmental science content in fresh, contextually relevant ways, allowing learners to apply their own knowledge to specific problems. Multimodal learning tools allow students and teachers to actively engage in inquiry and discovery - both foundational elements in science. As part of its design process, the team tested productivity during developmental meetings. We evaluated prototypes in soil and plant science classrooms using pre- and post-testing as well as small group discussions among students. Student input was also used to refine animation characters, add features and adjust the level of material covered. The modules feature examples specific to agricultural sciences, and address math and data concepts (unit conversions, logarithms, interpreting graph data), soil processes (sorption and cation exchange), and chemistry concepts (valence, bonding, elements and ions). Videos on the website help students develop strategies for success as an undergrad in the soil, environmental and agricultural sciences.