Problem Solving Weekly Writing

One of my favorite things to do in agriculture class is problem solving. Its as close as it comes to real life experience. As a result, students feel as if they are doing something productive and something that has meaning. In other words, there is a felt need to know. Furthermore, it allows students to use their background and past knowledge to make a decision on a situation.

My favorite example is when a teacher provides little background information at first on the problem. Something like a picture with some role play to go with it. For example, the teacher would have a picture of some corn that is heavy infected with gray leaf spot. Starting class out, the teacher could pull a phone out and role model the conversation between a farmer and an agronomist. The students would be able to see the problem and hear a description about the problem as their background information. As the students progress through the problem they will be given more information about the problem to help lead them to an answer.

I am excited to use this tool in my lab and also this spring when I student teach. It will be a really fun piece to use and see how my students take advantage of it.