Course Description
Introduction to Animal Agriculture (ANSC 10200), is a 3-credit required course for students majoring in Animal Sciences. The overall purpose of this course is to introduce students to the science and industry management of companion, exotic, food, and laboratory animals. In addition to Animal Science majors, the course also serves as university core Science, Technology, and Society selective. In Fall 2017, 73.9% of the class consisted of Animal Science or Pre-Veterinary Medicine majors and 26.1% non-majors.
Each week, students meet for two 50-minute lectures and one 2-hour laboratory period. In 2017, I taught the course in two sections. Section one had 192 students enrolled and these students were equally divided across 4 laboratory sections. Section two was comprised of 46 students that were a part of the Animalia Learning Community. They had their own lab sessions each week. Students in section one and two had separate lectures each week.
Introduction to Animal Agriculture (ANSC 10200), is a 3-credit required course for students majoring in Animal Sciences. The overall purpose of this course is to introduce students to the science and industry management of companion, exotic, food, and laboratory animals. In addition to Animal Science majors, the course also serves as university core Science, Technology, and Society selective. In Fall 2017, 73.9% of the class consisted of Animal Science or Pre-Veterinary Medicine majors and 26.1% non-majors.
Each week, students meet for two 50-minute lectures and one 2-hour laboratory period. In 2017, I taught the course in two sections. Section one had 192 students enrolled and these students were equally divided across 4 laboratory sections. Section two was comprised of 46 students that were a part of the Animalia Learning Community. They had their own lab sessions each week. Students in section one and two had separate lectures each week.
Learning Outcomes
Specific learning outcomes for the course included:
Specific learning outcomes for the course included:
- Appropriately utilize terms and breed names commonly used in animal agriculture
- Identify and define terms for each animal industry
- Identify the main breeds for each species
- Understand the history and global impact of animal industries
- Describe trends in animal agriculture
- Explain the interactions between humans, animals, and the environment
- Demonstrate knowledge of animal biology
- Identify different parts of the digestive and reproductive systems
- Contrast the differences between species
- Explain genetic and behavior concepts
- Understand management practices as influenced by animal, producer, and consumer needs
- Describe the life cycles of different animal species
- Compare and contrast management practices between species
- Understand critical issues facing the animal industries
- Develop critical thinking skills
- Differentiate between supplemental information and information pertinent to a question
- Analyze case studies and develop a response to solve the case study issue
Course Demographics
ANSC 10200 is an introductory course to the Animal Sciences major and this is reflected in the course demographics (75.7% freshman, 22.1% sophomores, and 2.2% juniors/seniors). The majority of students (86.9%) were enrolled in the College of Agriculture and identified as majoring in Animal Sciences/Pre-Veterinary Medicine (73.4%). The gender ratio of the course was consistent with the demographics of the Animal Sciences major, with 79.3% of students identifying as female and 20.7 as male.
ANSC 10200 is an introductory course to the Animal Sciences major and this is reflected in the course demographics (75.7% freshman, 22.1% sophomores, and 2.2% juniors/seniors). The majority of students (86.9%) were enrolled in the College of Agriculture and identified as majoring in Animal Sciences/Pre-Veterinary Medicine (73.4%). The gender ratio of the course was consistent with the demographics of the Animal Sciences major, with 79.3% of students identifying as female and 20.7 as male.
Course Challenges
I taught this course for the first time in Fall 2017. My teaching philosophy is very much focused on the idea of creating a learner-centered mode of instruction and providing students with an authentic learning experience. I strive for a learning environment that encourages interaction between me and my students and builds on this relationship. These are the initial challenges related to teaching this course that I observed based on my interest in creating an active learning, problem-based learning experience in my courses. Classroom Constraints Section one, with 192 students, was taught in a large lecture hall. The aisles were narrow and the room was just adequate to hold my students. There was one large aisle up the center of the auditorium style room. A microphone was needed for me to be heard. There was little flexibility in the classroom’s infrastructure. The classroom felt like it went against all of the ideals I placed on creating an active learning environment and encouraging meaningful student interactions might be difficult. Large Number of Students in Laboratory Sections Each Friday, all students participated in a 2-hour laboratory session. These sessions ranged from on-campus dissections to farm visits. A major challenge I initially faced was teaching 238 students across 5 lab sections each week. Each lab averaged 50 students. In previous years, students were provided with basic tours when visiting the farms. This large number of students and limited resources, made it difficult to truly engage students during the sessions. I identified engaging students in a hands-on lab session as a major challenge for me to address during the semester. Encouraging Student Curiosity and Motivation in a Course with Large Enrollment The majority of students who enroll in ANSC 10200 are first-semester freshman students. They are excited to start the journey that will help define their future careers. However, my initial concern is that students may feel isolated and anonymous in the large classroom. How would I prepare an active learning environment that would engage all the students in my class? I was not as concerned about my Learning Community section because they met in a smaller group and semester activities included social events and outreach projects outside of normal classroom hours. |
Course Goals
At the start of the semester, I identified three main goals for the course with the overall intent to increase student interest in Animal Science by increasing curiosity and intrinsic motivation.
At the start of the semester, I identified three main goals for the course with the overall intent to increase student interest in Animal Science by increasing curiosity and intrinsic motivation.
- Encourage collaborative group learning within the lecture sessions through deliberate assignments
- Create stations within the laboratory sessions to engage students in hands-on learning
- Create an assessment plan to make evidence-based decisions on my activities for the next time I teach the course in Fall 2018