| dc.description.abstract | School-based agricultural education (SBAE) teachers experience heavy workloads (Torres et al., 2008) and challenges (Boone & Boone, 2009) related to teaching SBAE. As such, SBAE teachers experience continual needs (Traini et al., 2021) and expectations that are ever changing (Eck et al., 2019). Such expectations can cause strain on teachers (Traini et al., 2021) and lead to high levels of stress and burnout (Croom, 2003). Although the tasks of teaching SBAE can be inferred from the above-mentioned needs, challenges, and characteristics, limited literature exists detailing the specific tasks SBAE teachers are expected to perform. Therefore, we sought to identify the specific tasks expected of SBAE teachers within the program (i.e., classroom and laboratory, FFA, and SAE), as well as the other professional responsibilities associated with teaching. Human Capital theory was used to frame the study, specifically task-specific human capital which asserts that “. . . some of the human capital an individual acquires on the job is specific to the tasks being performed . . .” (Gibbons & Waldman, 2004, p. 203). A modified, three-round Delphi method was used to meet the objectives of the study. The panelists consisted of doctoral students in agricultural education with at least three years of SBAE teaching experience. The expert panel consisted of 23 individuals meeting these criteria. The final list of tasks associated with teaching SBAE included 238 items achieving consensus in 47 themes across the four question areas (216 tasks reached the consensus of agreement threshold in Round 2, and an additional 22 tasks achieved consensus of agreement in Round 3). In total, 74 tasks populated classroom and laboratory instruction, 80 tasks populated FFA, 45 tasks populated SAE, and 39 tasks populated other professional responsibilities. In all, 110 tasks and six themes failed to reach consensus of agreement and were eliminated from the study. The beliefs the panel of experts hold regarding the tasks of SBAE teachers point to a single, overarching conclusion: there are too many expectations placed on SBAE teachers. | |
