K-12 Curriculum – Impact of Teacher Self-Efficacy on Elementary Agriculture Curriculum

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Presented by Lisa McCormick

In 2019, the Virginia Cooperative Extension conducted an assessment of the internship program to gain insight from the perspectives of participants and supervisors in order to identify ways to improve the internship program. Data was collected through a survey of interns, and focus groups with internship supervisors. The survey of interns determined why they participated in the program, needed resources , and information about internship projects. The interns generally chose internships based on proximity to home and specific subject areas. The interns expressed a need for more communication in regards to the interview process. An identified concern by the interns was the long period of time required to learn about hiring decisions. All interns reported that they planned and delivered an educational program as part of their internship experience. Program leadership was effective in supporting the internship by providing resources that helped guide the internship experience. Identified strengths of the internship program were university affiliation, the perceived value of the student experience, state funding support, and community acknowledgement. Identified weaknesses were scheduling interview times, students obtaining university credentials, and recruitment of interns. Opportunities were found such as providing overtime so students could experience time-intensive experiences such as 4-H camp, having orientation , reducing burden on localities by providing state-level travel funding, providing additional resources to support the intern and supervisor, and increasing program advertising. Program threats were found to be unsuitable applicants, lack of professionalism in interns loss of state funding support. Recommendations include having a state-wide orientation, keeping cost share funds with the addition of travel funding, creating additional intern and supervisor resources, and broadening advertising and recruitment.