When every seventh grade student walks into their agriculture exploratory at Benton Community, they are asked to draw a picture of what agriculture means to them. 95% of the students draw pictures of farming, which is your typical barn, field, animals and a tractor. The fact is that less than 2% of agriculture jobs are directly in production agriculture or “farming”. The other areas include marketing, transportation, research, sales and service and processing. In agriculture classes, students learn a broad range of knowledge in the agriculture industry and not how to become a farmer, which is a huge stereotype of agriculture education.
Through students’ involvement in the 7-12 Benton Community Agriculture Program, which includes FFA, students not only learn about and advocate for the agricultural industry but the program prepares students by helping them develop leadership and life skills that will shape their decision-making and values for the rest of their lives no matter what profession they end up in. Last month, the Intro to Agriculture students took part in the Hills Bank Jacket Program. These students completed a mock interview with Hills Bank representatives and in turn earned their FFA Jacket. Through the interviews these students gained invaluable communication skills, helped reduce their stress and anxiety about the interview process and boosted their self-confidence.
The Agricultural Education Program at Benton is more than just teaching about farming. Our program strives to make our students appreciate the entire agriculture industry while molding them into better leaders and preparing them to be contributing citizens to our society.