ERIC Number: EJ1427310
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024
Pages: 17
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1042-0541
EISSN: EISSN-2162-5212
The Emotional Duties of an Agricultural Educator: Evaluating the Confidence Levels of Agricultural Educators to Support Students with Adverse Childhood Experiences
Journal of Agricultural Education, v65 n1 p193-209 2024
Agricultural educators can have a profound impact on student's lives and are often aware of their students' life experiences outside of the classroom. Students often treat their agricultural educator as a mentor, which increases their likeliness of confiding in them when facing hardships, such as Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). An ACE is defined as a traumatic experience or set of experiences that occur during childhood (ages 0-17). This study aimed to evaluate agricultural educators' personal experiences with ACEs and gauge their confidence levels when emotionally supporting students struggling with ACEs. Using a descriptive, correlational research design, we surveyed 1,075 agricultural educators in four states--Tennessee, Utah, North Dakota, and Illinois--and achieved an 11.91% response rate. The first research objective suggested that agricultural educators had the most experience with physical abuse (Question #1) and parental mental illness (Question #9). Furthermore, nearly half (50.2%) of respondents had at least one ACE, and 10.2% had at least four. The second research objective found that agricultural educators were the least confident in emotionally supporting students with issues related to physical or sexual abuse. In addition, they reported the most confidence in supporting students struggling with mental health or parental divorce. This study reinforces the drastic need for agricultural education to increase programmatic development to support students facing emotional trauma and ACEs. Based on the findings of this study, we recommend investigating the benefits of career and technical education, both academically and emotionally, for students with high ACE scores.
Descriptors: Agriculture Teachers, College Students, Student Experience, Trauma, Early Experience, Teacher Student Relationship, Social Support Groups, Self Esteem, Experience, Teaching Experience, Student Needs, Psychological Needs
American Association for Agricultural Education. P.O. Box 7607, Department of Agricultural and Extension Education, Raleigh, NC 27695. Web site: https://jae-online.org/index.php/jae/index
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Tennessee; Utah; North Dakota; Illinois
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A