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The agricultural industry lacks qualified workers, suggesting students may not participate in opportunities that effectively develop their employability skills. We used a phenomenological case study approach to investigate Texas A&M University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences students' career-readiness and factors influencing career-readiness. We conducted interviews with 19 juniors and seniors. Open coding procedures revealed five emergent themes--"Career Advice-Seeking Behavior," "Employability Skills Development," "Network Establishment," "Relevant Experiences," and "Personal Growth." Findings indicate that students do not take advantage of University resources to help them with career preparation. Findings also revealed a lack of employability skills development, especially relating to students' communication and science communication skills. Students identified high-impact experiences they believed improved their employability skills. We recommend strategies for educators to improve agriculture students' career-readiness and offer research recommendations to examine career-readiness factors that may help prepare students to meet 21st century agricultural workforce demands.

The purpose of our correlational, quantitative study was to determine if time spent using digital media (i.e. text messaging and social media) influences students' media writing self-perceptions (MWSPs). We measured students' perceived writing ability using the MWSP scale and their time spent using digital media with the social networking time use scale (SONTUS). Correlations between students' MWSP scores and SONTUS scores were statistically insignificant, suggesting that time spent using digital media does not negatively influence their perceived writing abilities. However, results from further analyses indicated that as students' social media use increased, so did their ability to recognise the difference between writing for social media and writing for professional publications. We also found that the more students text the more they use social media and vice versa. We present directions for future research and practice.

Guided by the theory of planned behavior and the science communication learning goals model, we conducted a survey to identify science communication training needs of university scientists (n = 266) at a large US land-grant university. Results indicate that most respondents believed scientists and media relations offices were most responsible for communicating science to the public but only somewhat responsible for their learning of science communication or its outcomes. In addition, respondents who had higher levels of interest and enjoyment in science communication perceived their content knowledge to be higher and reflected on science communication concepts and processes better than respondents with lower levels of interest and enjoyment. We also found that scientists who participated in science communication training during the past three years enjoyed science communication more and were more likely to contribute than scientists who did not participate. Results suggest that communication training should focus on increasing scientists' positive attitudes toward public engagement and motivating scientists to feel responsible for public engagement. Trainers should encourage scientists to share their communication experiences with colleagues, expose them to science communication resources, and help them recognize their individual role in the science communication process.

This study sought to investigate how secondary agriculture teachers' characteristics influence their perceived ability to teach students decision-making skills. We used a cross-sectional survey research design and distributed the instrument to secondary agriculture teachers in the U.S. via Facebook. We received 151 usable responses and conducted a multiple regression and mediation analysis. The regression model accounted for 34.97% of the variance in teachers' perceived ability to teach decision-making skills and explained a statistically significant amount of variation in the outcome (F(16, 129) = 4.34, p < 0.001). Teaching efficacy, teaching style, decision-making beliefs, and years of service statistically and significantly influenced the outcome. In addition, 29.35% of the total effect of decision-making beliefs on perceived ability to teach decision-making is mediated through teaching efficacy. Findings can inform the development of workshops and educational resources intended to improve agriculture teachers' perceived ability to teach students decision-making skills, thereby enhancing their ability to teach students how to make decisions. Teachers' psychological and socio-demographic characteristics statistically and significantly influence their perceived ability to teach students decision-making skills. The regression model was the first of its kind to investigate the influence of teacher characteristics on this particular outcome. Therefore, results provide novel but preliminary insight into teachers' perceptions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We sought to determine the perceived importance and development of agricultural students' employability skills, and the factors and experiences that influence their development. We used a cross-sectional survey research design and conducted a census of Texas A&M University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences students by distributing a researcher-developed instrument to all students following the tailored design method. We collected 991 usable responses. Students believed communication and decision-making skills were most important, but their teamwork skills and self-management skills were most developed. Seven types of professional experiences significantly and positively influenced students' perceived development of employability skills. Students who knew the type of career they wanted to pursue believed their employability skills were statistically significantly better developed than students who did not. Agricultural educators should help students identify career interests early in their academic pursuit and encourage their participation in professional experiences to improve their perceived employability skills development. Increased frequency of participating in teamwork, leadership, project management, community engagement, cross-disciplinary, international, and internship experiences can increase agricultural students' perceived general human capital. Knowledge regarding the type of career they want to pursue can also increase perceived human capital. We identified novel characteristics of agricultural students across academic departments and at varying levels of their degree program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Well-developed communications skills are essential to a proficient agricultural workforce. Online instruction via reusable learning modules (RLMs) is one way agricultural science faculty can provide their students with expert communications skills training. Although RLMs have many benefits, their value degrades rapidly if the learner cannot access or use the technology efficiently. Therefore, online instruction must be tested to ensure usability. The purpose of our study was to assess the usability of RLMs developed to bolster the communications skills of students studying in the agricultural sciences and provide guidance for future curricula and online instruction development. We used quantitative and qualitative data sources to assess the usability of three RLMs, according to N = 21 students. The usability metrics we assessed included learnability, navigation, video function, document access and readability, quiz and assignment practicality, and task difficulty. The RLMs garnered high usability scores from participants who had positive impressions and experiences completing them. Participants demonstrated an increase in confidence to perform communications skills and an increase in knowledge about communications after completing the modules. They thought embedded videos, documents, quizzes, and assignments were helpful in learning communications concepts. Some recommended improving navigation, document readability, and assignment details. Based on our findings, we recommend RLM developers embed short videos, printable handouts, and quizzes into RLMs, and include an overview of documents' key points to guide reading. Participants' positive feedback and willingness to engage with the RLMs suggests incorporating the RLMs into agricultural science courses will help students develop into science communicators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of our research was to determine if attending a U.K. livestock show changed attendees' attitudes about agriculture and to compare those changes in attitudes to attendees of a U.S. state fair similar in size and dynamic. The sample was livestock show attendees at the Great Yorkshire Show (GYS). The mixed-method design included a then and now semantic differential scale with bipolar adjective pairs to measure attendees' attitudes about agriculture before and after the experience and qualitative interviews with photo elicitation to learn about how attendees developed attitudes about agriculture. Participants had positive attitudes about agriculture before they attended the Show and had more positive attitudes after attending. Participants had more positive attitudes before and after attending the Show than did California State Fair attendees. In addition, participants lacked prior experiences with agriculture, but attending the GYS provided them the opportunity to develop positive attitudes through cognitive, behavioral, and environmental factors. Fair attendance should be promoted because they provide unique opportunities for experiential learning and U.S. fairs should adopt experiential tactics used at the GYS. Further research is needed to better understand how GYS attendees developed positive attitudes about agriculture prior to attending the Show and what elements of the GYS experience were most influential to attendees' attitude development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Animal scientists face an increasing need to communicate with the lay public because of the public's interest in the origin and production of animal-sourced foods. Consumers' increased interest infers a critical need for effective communication skills among animal science graduates. Effective communication skills are mandatory if students are to explain scientific information and mitigate misinformation about livestock production. The purpose of our study was to investigate the communication styles and communication effectiveness of upper-level animal science students enrolled in a beef cattle production and management course at Texas A&M University across five semesters ( N =  241; spring 2018  =  61, summer 2018  =  15, Fall 2018  =  54, spring 2019  =  55, and fall 2019 = 56). Male animal science students ( n  = 25; 32.9%) preferred assertive and direct communication (a driver communication style) and female students ( n  = 32; 19.4%) preferred collaborative and accommodating communication (an amiable communication style). Students were moderately experienced with beef cattle production ( M  = 3.09, SD  = 1.07) before enrolling in the course; however, former beef cattle experiences did not influence their preferred communication style [ F (10, 230) = 0.36, P  = 0.96]. Researchers also observed students' communication skills during an end-of-semester beef cattle production and management project presentation and identified strengths and weaknesses. Students demonstrated strong, in-depth animal industry knowledge, an ability to connect beef production techniques to management success, and critical thinking skills when answering questions. Oral communication skills warranting improvement included integrating visual aids and/or visual slides to support findings, using improved stage presence and confidence, and sharing responsibilities when presenting as a team. Finally, completion of a supplemental communication training module, intended to develop oral communication skills, significantly improved [ F (1, 55) = 4.16, P  = 0.046] students' beef cattle production and management project presentation scores. As students become aware of their communication preferences and tendencies, they become equipped to adjust their communication practices and techniques when needed. Through this study, we gained insight into students' communication tendencies and skills, which can be used to provide curricular recommendations and enhance students' workforce readiness., Competing Interests: This project was supported by Higher Education Challenge Grant no. 2017-70003-2686 from the United States Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Subsets of this data were presented at the annual American Society of Animal Science (ASAS) conference in Austin, TX, in July 2019 and at the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA) conference held virtually in June 2020., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Society of Animal Science.)