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AAQEP Accreditation 2022

Standard 3 Aspect A

Preparation programs ensure that candidates, upon completion, are ready to engage in professional practice, to adapt to a variety of professional settings, and to grow throughout their careers. Effective program practices include: consistent offering of coherent curricula; high-quality quality, diverse clinical experiences; dynamic, mutually beneficial partnerships with stakeholders; and comprehensive and transparent quality assurance processes informed by trustworthy evidence. Each aspect of the program is appropriate to its context and to the credential or degree sought.

Curricular Alignment with State Standards
The Agriculture Specialist Program is aligned with the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CCTC) standards. Our undergraduate subject matter program is approved along with our Agriculture Specialist Credential Program. The Agriculture Specialist Program alignment is shown in the table following the description of our program found by clicking on the link. There are no national standards for the Agriculture Specialist Program.

Dr. Rosco Vaughn coordinates the Agricultural Education Degree Program and the Agriculture Specialist Credential Program. He is a faculty member of the Animal Sciences and Agricultural Education Department, located within the Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (JCAST). Dean Dennis Nef is the chief administrative officer of JCAST and department heads and individual program coordinators, including the Agriculture Specialist Credential Program Coordinator, are appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the Dean.

Dr. Vaughn works closely with the KSOEHD credential coordinators and administrators in coordinating the Agriculture Specialist Credential program with the KSOEHD. He meets with the Single Subject Coordinator of KSOEHD on a frequent basis. Coordination of the Agriculture Specialist Program is enhanced by the university policy of concentrating all credential admissions and processing functions in one office located in the KSOEHD.

The program coordinator advises undergraduate and graduate Agricultural Education majors, teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in Agricultural Education, places and supervises student teachers, serves as liaison with the California Department of Education Agricultural Education Unit, and is responsible for all phases of the Agricultural Education curriculum and program.

The coordinator also meets with the Agricultural Education Advisory Committee on matters related to the credential program. This committee establishes the vision for the program and provides an assessment function. The advisory committee consists of high school and community college teachers of agriculture and representatives from agribusiness and farming. The committee provides one of many kinds of contacts between the program and the community served by the program.

The program coordinator meets regularly with other universities offering Single Subject – Agriculture Specialist Credentials. Representatives of these universities and the California Agricultural Education State Staff meet about four times each year to discuss and coordinate statewide issues and activities. The program coordinator attends these meetings. Other Agricultural Education faculty members have committee responsibilities and attend all or part of these meetings. This collaboration results in coordinated statewide programs for agriculture student teachers, cooperating teachers, and new professionals.

Due to increasing enrollment in the program, four part-time faculty have been employed to teach courses and to supervise student teachers. One faculty member retired and is now working part- time supervising initial student teachers and teaching the seminar for initial student teachers. A new tenure track faculty member was also added in August of 2019. The FAST program was recently updated and university coaches are being recalibrated for scoring the assessments.

Course of Study (Curriculum and Field Experience):

The Agriculture Specialist Credential Program at Fresno State is a five-year program. Students must first obtain the Bachelor of Science Degree with a major in Agricultural Education. To complete the degree, students must complete 39 semester units of agriculture core subject matter. In addition, they must also complete a specialization area comprised of 15 semester units from one of the following areas: Agricultural Business, Mechanized Agriculture, Animal Sciences or Plant Science

The requirements for obtaining the undergraduate degree are listed on the Agricultural Education Bachelor’s Degree Advising Sheet.

Subject matter competence and knowledge are documented through completion of the undergraduate preparation program and verification of 3,000 clock hours of occupational experience. Candidates complete a form, (T-14), listing their education and leadership records along with their occupational experience. They also complete a personal interview with a member of the California Department of Education Agricultural Education Staff and provide this individual with a copy of their completed form. The form and interview must be completed prior to enrolling in the final field experience course.

Students desiring to enter the Agriculture Specialist Credential Program, with a degree in an agricultural major other than Agricultural Education, are usually lacking some of the courses required in the credential program. These students have two options to meet the requirements. They may choose to complete the required courses, or they may choose to take the California Subject Examination for Teachers (CSET). A passing score on the Agriculture CSET will satisfy the subject matter course requirements. Undergraduate students from other majors are advised to complete a major in Agricultural Education. Concurrent with establishment of subject matter competency, these students are also advised to enroll in AGED 050, Orientation to Agricultural Education.

Undergraduate students complete an early field experience course (AGED 050) and 12 additional semester units of Agricultural Education course work to provide them with a professional education knowledge base for teaching agricultural education. The sequence of agricultural education courses is:

  • AG ED 050 Orientation to Agricultural Education 3 units
  • AG ED 135 Introduction to Agricultural Education 3 units
  • AG ED 150 Resources, Materials & Equipment 3 units
  • AG ED 187 Organization, Administration & Supervision 3 units
  • AG ED 189 Education in Agricultural Mechanics 3 units

Total Units -15

After exhibiting subject matter competence, candidates are eligible for admission to the Single Subject in Agriculture and the Agriculture Specialist Credential Programs. To teach high school agricultural education in California, candidates must obtain both credentials.

The post-baccalaureate (fifth-year) program for Agricultural Education Teacher Preparation is structured so candidates, with a combination of undergraduate and graduate professional education course work, will concurrently fulfill the requirements for the Single Subject, Agriculture and Agriculture Specialist Credentials by taking a sequence of 39 semester units of post-baccalaureate courses.

At the post-baccalaureate level, candidates are enrolled in foundations, content instruction, psychology, English learners, and methods and materials courses. In addition, candidates are enrolled in a field experience course (EHD 155A) during the first semester of their post- baccalaureate program. Second semester candidates are enrolled in an additional field experience course (EHD 155B) and spend one high school semester student teaching at an approved site.

During this semester candidates are also enrolled in two graduate courses that require them to research and/or apply specific knowledge and skills to problems and issues arising during their final field experience. The sequence of post-baccalaureate courses is:

Course and Units:

  • CI 151 Social Foundations of Education (3 units)
  • CI 152 Educational Psychology (3 units)
  • CI 161 Methods & Materials in Agricultural Education (3 units)
  • LEE 156 Content Area Literacy & Communications in Secondary Classrooms (3 units)
  • LEE 157 Teaching English Learners in Secondary Classrooms (3 units)
  • EHD 154A Initial Student Teaching Seminar (1 unit)
  • EHD 155A Initial Student Teaching (4 units)
  • SPED 158 Differentiated Instruction in Inclusive Secondary Settings (3 units)
  • AGRI 280 Seminar in Agricultural Education (3 units)
  • AGRI 281 Problems in Agricultural Education (3 units)
  • EHD 155B Final, Full-time Student Teaching (10 units)

Total Units - 39

The teaching methods course (CI 161) is taught by an agricultural education faculty member and is part of both the single subject and agriculture specialist credential programs. The same is true of the field experience classes and the AGRI 280 Seminar in Agricultural Education. AGRI 281 Problems in Agricultural Education is part of the agriculture specialist credential program.

Candidates complete three field placements, the first is the Ag Ed 50 placement for undergraduate students to observe for a minimum of 45 hours and complete assignments to orient them to the teaching profession. After entering the credential program students are placed at an initial student teaching site for half a day and enrolled in a one-unit seminar that meets one day a week. Candidates during their final semester are placed at a different school site for full- time student teaching. Agriculture Specialist candidates are also enrolled in a three-unit seminar during this semester to share successes and problems and to develop strategies to improve their teaching. Cooperating master teachers complete three agriculture specialist evaluation forms and two single subject evaluation forms during this semester. They also verify the competencies that candidates meet during initial and final student teaching.

Aspect B →