Pre-Service Teachers Self-Perceived Training Needs Associated with Program Design and Management and Leadership and SAE Development

Abstract

Teacher educators face the perpetual challenge of providing pre-service teachers with the most pertinent pedagogical and content-related knowledge and skills to ensure their success in the field of education. Using a modified version of a Borich needs assessment instrument, we assessed the agricultural education training needs of agricultural education pre-service teachers (n = 69) at Iowa State University related to program design and management and leadership and Supervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE) development. The General Program Standards for Agricultural Education, developed by the Iowa Council on Agricultural Education, served as a guide for assessing the areas of pre service teachers’ training needs. Mean weighted discrepancy scores\ (MWDS) were calculated for needs assessment items which served as a means to rank the areas of needs expressed by the Iowa State University agricultural education pre-service teachers. The areas of training needs were assessed as a whole and by grade classification. Overall, all 25 items included in the instrument were indicated as an area of need and the calculated MWDS ranged from 2.29 – 9.05, and variance of training needs was discovered between pre-service teachers of various grade classifications. Implications for agricultural education teacher educators and recommendations were discussed.