Creating Diverse Learning Opportunities for High School Agriculture Education Students through Distance Education Programs

Abstract

The purpose of the creative component is to establish a recurring distance learning program which focuses on providing diverse collaborative agricultural education opportunities for high school students. This will involve approximately four to six students from the schools of Gilbert High School in Gilbert, IA and four to six students from Gifft Hill School on the island of St. John, U.S.V.I. The program will initially be made available to students in the 11th and 12th grade and will have a primary focus of interaction between students in the subjects of agricultural production, soil science, conservation of natural resources, and community engagement/leadership. The focus example of this creative component is specific to students at Gilbert High School and Gifft Hill School through a program which I have titled “GHS Global Agriculture”. However, it is my desire to create a framework for distance education programs which can be used for other schools and future opportunities as well.