Journal of Agriculture Education (JAE)
Vol. 57 No. 2, 2016
Research topic: the Benefits of FFA Membership as Part of Agricultural Education
The purpose of the study is to evaluate the benefits of FFA membership and whether FFA fulfills the basic human needs (Chelsea et al, 2016). FFA is an organization and it was established to engage young people in different agriculture activities and to promote their development. FFA organization play a great role in the life of youths as it provides them with opportunities for development. Young people are prepared in their career and they are provided with valuable resources which helps them in integrating in global agriculture.FFA members get agriculture education either in classrooms, through leadership education or experiential learning. The education helps them to achieve their goals through interaction in various activities. In this research topic, the main objective is to find out whether FFA members develop love, self-esteem and self-actualization (Chelsea et al, 2016).
Method used
The method used to conduct the research is quantitative and the people involved in the research are FFA members. 394 Students (both male and female) attended Tennessee camp in six weeks where they learned agriculture education (Chelsea et al, 2016). The participation in agriculture classes was optional and they were informed that survey was to be done. All students were graduates from different high schools. They all came from different races and ethnicities and they had different length of membership. Survey questions were set based on work interaction, recognition, leadership among others. Since all students were members of FFA, the objectives of the survey questions were to evaluate whither students developed the three basic needs (Chelsea et al, 2016).
Findings, conclusion and recommendation
The results from the survey showed that 80% students had the feeling of love and it was concluded that they developed their career as well as leadership roles as a result of being FFA members and participating in different activities (Chelsea et al, 2016). In addition, it was confirmed that 96% students enjoyed life in high school and they interacted with students and made friendship and they all had a sense of belonging. Many students gained self-confidence and communication skills as a result of public speaking. The skills helped them to gain both leadership skills and career development. Due to integration in different activities, students gained self-esteem and they also learned new things. Finally, most students valued the importance of college education and the value of technical training (Chelsea et al, 2016).
Generally, FFA helps members to develop self-esteem by providing them with sense of belonging. In career development, students get opportunity to interact with others thereby developing their leadership skills and the involvement helps them to achieve their goals. The finding have concluded that students feel at home while in FFA group and they establish their presence, the feel sense of belonging (Chelsea et al, 2016). In addition, the various opportunities help them to gain new knowledge and new friends through interaction. Thus, FFA play role in students’ life and it helps to achieve their goals by gaining the basic needs.
To ensure that FFA members achieve the three basic needs, advisors should allow the students to attend events in national level. This will help to analyze whether students can achieve their needs in both local and national levels. In addition, it is important for advisors to provide students with awards and scholarships and ensure that they have long term self-esteem (Chelsea et al, 2016). This will strengthen them and also it is the best way to allow more students to become FFA members.
Reference
Chelsea, R., Carrie, S. E., Stripling, C., Cross, T., Sanok, D. E., & Brawner, S. (2016). The Benefits of
FFA membership as part of agricultural education. Journal of Agricultural Education, 57(2), 33-
- doi: 10.5032/jae.2016.02033
