Well today was the last day in class. I'm sure I'll have more stuff to write about on the blog concerning my trip but today has to be about the classroom. The sights and activities that Moscow has had to offer so far have been great, but the classroom experiences I've had have been just as valuable. I gained a perspective on international agriculture and international students/education that wouldn't have been obtained without this trip.
My teaching philosophy is quite different from the traditional teaching philosophy. I'm all about building a sense of community within the class. I believe that to feel as if you belong in the class, are free to lay yourself out on the line with regards to questioning the curriculum and self reflection is equally as important, if not more important than the curriculum itself. This class focused on gathering 15 international students from three different countries, each coming from vast backgrounds in agriculture and teaching them about teamwork and leadership within agriculture. Their backgrounds range from economics, pedagogy (education), political science, farm machinery, mechanical engineering, and electrical engineering. After I leave they will have a course on agricultural management systems and then another that's escaping me at the moment.
The fact is that there are some serious issues with agriculture on the horizon. Issues range from local to global and there is a need for leaders in the field of agriculture to rise up to the challenge. The video I'm attaching gives a brief overview of several of the issues. The main one is the need for food to supply the world's growing population. Do you realize that between now and 2050 (the next 40 years), the world needs to produce more food than it has in the past 10,000 years just to keep up with its rising population? That's within my lifetime, probably within yours and certainly within the lifetime of a close family member of yours.
It gives me some comfort to think that relationships are being established on a global level with students currently in college and that those students are aware of the issues that the world faces. Everyone has their soapbox but this is an issue that affects everyone.
The students have decided to make sure that I get all of my Moscow experiences in over this next weekend. I'm going to a market to hopefully bring back a few souvenirs and eat some local food. I'm going to a castle that Catherine the Great was building as a place she could call her own here in Moscow (she lived in St. Petersburg) but that was never finished. And I'm also going to a cemetery where many famous Russians have been laid to rest (Cosmonauts, artists, Stalin's wife, etc...).
My time here is coming to an end but there will be a lot from this trip that will weigh on my mind for a while. My goal was for the students to understand a little more about leadership and a lot more about themselves and other people. I'm pretty sure that occurred. The students got along so well and were so accommodating that we often went to eat together, continuing our discussions about leadership and the different cultural norms among our countries. One of the best comments/compliments from one of the American students today as we were leaving was "I don't think I've ever gotten to know the students in my classes as well as I have in this one." I love teaching!
My teaching philosophy is quite different from the traditional teaching philosophy. I'm all about building a sense of community within the class. I believe that to feel as if you belong in the class, are free to lay yourself out on the line with regards to questioning the curriculum and self reflection is equally as important, if not more important than the curriculum itself. This class focused on gathering 15 international students from three different countries, each coming from vast backgrounds in agriculture and teaching them about teamwork and leadership within agriculture. Their backgrounds range from economics, pedagogy (education), political science, farm machinery, mechanical engineering, and electrical engineering. After I leave they will have a course on agricultural management systems and then another that's escaping me at the moment.
The fact is that there are some serious issues with agriculture on the horizon. Issues range from local to global and there is a need for leaders in the field of agriculture to rise up to the challenge. The video I'm attaching gives a brief overview of several of the issues. The main one is the need for food to supply the world's growing population. Do you realize that between now and 2050 (the next 40 years), the world needs to produce more food than it has in the past 10,000 years just to keep up with its rising population? That's within my lifetime, probably within yours and certainly within the lifetime of a close family member of yours.
It gives me some comfort to think that relationships are being established on a global level with students currently in college and that those students are aware of the issues that the world faces. Everyone has their soapbox but this is an issue that affects everyone.
The students have decided to make sure that I get all of my Moscow experiences in over this next weekend. I'm going to a market to hopefully bring back a few souvenirs and eat some local food. I'm going to a castle that Catherine the Great was building as a place she could call her own here in Moscow (she lived in St. Petersburg) but that was never finished. And I'm also going to a cemetery where many famous Russians have been laid to rest (Cosmonauts, artists, Stalin's wife, etc...).
My time here is coming to an end but there will be a lot from this trip that will weigh on my mind for a while. My goal was for the students to understand a little more about leadership and a lot more about themselves and other people. I'm pretty sure that occurred. The students got along so well and were so accommodating that we often went to eat together, continuing our discussions about leadership and the different cultural norms among our countries. One of the best comments/compliments from one of the American students today as we were leaving was "I don't think I've ever gotten to know the students in my classes as well as I have in this one." I love teaching!
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