6 minute read
Canadian vision
James Madge farming operation was typical – high output equipment with plenty of technology. John Deere workshop
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Peter Reed, Apprenticeship Assessor and Programme Manager, L4 Agricultural Business Management Apprenticeship (ABM) programme Bicton and Duchy (Stoke Climsland) campuses (part of Cornwall College Group)
www.cornwall.ac.uk peter.reed@bicton.ac.uk
Work-based learning techniques in Canada make more use of flip-learning before group work and link it to final results, FCCT bursary beneficiary
Back to college IN CANADA
Peter Reed found
Peter Reed used a Farmers Club Charitable Trust Agricultural Educator Award to investigate agricultural business management training in Canada
I WANTED to see how Canada delivers and assesses agricultural management courses via work-based learning, so was pleased to visit colleges in Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan last summer courtesy of an FCCT Educator Award.
By attending lessons and observing apprentice assessments I was able to understand how we could enhance our Agricultural Business Management programme. My study highlighted the importance of employer engagement and the value of students doing home-learning to prepare for teaching sessions.
Global farming is entering a huge period of change, making it an exciting time for new entrants, and apprenticeship programmes are changing too, from frameworks to standards.
The L4 standard has not yet been written and I am involved in ensuring what is delivered will train and equip the next generation of farm managers/ leaders and enhance their global market awareness, whilst meeting employer and market requirements, and providing a great learning experience.
Apprenticeship students
At Duchy and Bicton ABM apprenticeship students attend one day a week, from September to March, for two years. These mainly group
discussions are delivered by industry experts, making it current and relevant. Work is set after each session to relate teachings to the workplace, with subsequent reporting back to the group. This all links to the criteria within the City & Guilds Apprenticeship.
Fleming College in Ontario (www. flemingcollege.ca) faces similar issues to us around low numbers entering the industry, and relies on foreign students, mainly from India, to ensure programmes run. Teaching is two days a week, by college staff only, with no industry leader input. Although lessons comprise on-farm scenarios, they are not linked back to the place of work.
Flip learning
Online learning featured in most, if not all, programmes. This was mainly ‘flip-learning’, where students do online work before the week’s lessons, to get the basic facts/terminology in place. Online tests on Moodle (education portal) confirm understanding, with marks linked to final grading as pass, merit or distinction.
Olds College in Alberta (www.oldscollege.ca) has a growing apprenticeship programme, and again has Moodle embedded within the teaching, with flip learning marks affecting final grades.
At Parkland College in Saskatchewan (www. parklandcollege.sk.ca) the programme runs as a one week block per half term, as students may need to travel three hours to attend. Moodle tasks counted for up to 15% of final marks.
Encouraging findings
It was refreshing to learn the depth of delivery of our ABM programme was on par with Canada, with similar qualification criteria. But there was less focus on the relevance of the teaching to today’s agricultural world. I saw and heard a few examples of relating college lessons to their place of work, but it was not part of their criteria and required minimal evidence.
On-line flipped learning involved students reading statements, watching videos and answering questions, ready for stretching and challenge when attending college. Not doing flip learning before lessons could mean a programme fail.
Assessment on farm was minimal, mainly due to remoteness. I feel we can link our programme to the student’s place of work in more depth, which I feel gives more value.
There was a strong focus on local markets and buying local, and the importance of marketing, with global market pricing and trends included, plus the impact of global warming and carbon footprint.
Technology key
Technology was important. Olds College was working with industry to trial its AgSmartolds.ca system, which uses sensors to detect livestock feed and water intake, soil moisture, pH and nutrients, so students can incorporate data into precision farming. Parkland College was using GPS driverless tractors. Such aspects could be incorporated into our programme.
Employers are not a huge part of the course the past four decades, FCCT Ambassador
design. All three colleges were interested to hear how we involve industry. I believe you need to adapt the teaching to meet the needs of employers, not the other way around. This met some resistance from one college.
Onsite assessors used iPad with video and professional discussions as evidence, very similar to our practises. Employers complete feedback reports monthly, commenting on behaviours, skills and areas of improvement. But I would say we assess a student’s understanding of how learning links to their place of work in more depth, actually putting into practice what they have learnt.
Flip challenge
The distance learning aspect could easily be put into our programme. But I feel our students are different. Education in Canada embeds flip learning and completing online tests prior to attending lessons as the norm. Here it is not, which could make it challenging to embed at a later stage of the learning journey.
As our programme is currently credited as pass or fail in the framework, the challenge arises of how we ensure students complete tests prior to college lessons. With new standards coming, with pass, merit and distinction, this may be rectified, making it easier to add pressure to complete such tests/tasks prior to
FARM VISITS
I visited a number of farms and John Deere dealerships to appreciate the technology used and what is required in the workplace. In Saskatchewan James Madge, near Hanna, farms 12,000 acres of arable and 18,000 acres of grassland, with a 1300 suckler herd and finishing 4000 Angus beef cattle in winter. My students will benefit directly as James kindly agreed to a video link to our class so students can see and ask direct questions about his great business model. For more details about the FCCT Educator Awards, which have funded over £670,000 of study tours over see: www.tfcct.co.uk Closing date for 2021 awards early Feb 2021. The FCCT, whilst strongly linked to the Farmers Club, is a stand-alone charity, founded in 1981 by Club members Trevor Muddiman, Sir David Naish, Sir John Eastwood and Robin LeighPemberton. It relies upon the generous support of Club members and the wider industry. Find out more at: www. tfcct.co.uk and Twitter: @TheFCCT and from
lessons if we can link marks to their end results. Lisa Turner e-mail:
ambassador@tfcct. co.uk
NEW FCCT TRUSTEE
Newly appointed FCCT Trustee James Squier is a consultant surveyor with Bidwells, Cambridge. He gained a degree in Agriculture at Wye and subsequently took on the tenancy of a dairy farm in Essex before changing career to become a chartered surveyor. He has acted for a wide range of clients dealing with large infrastructure and development related schemes, throughout the UK.
