J. Anim. Sci. 2002. 80:2764-2769
© 2002 American Society of Animal Science
Oregon State University’s Steer-a-Year program: Integrating classroom learning and hands-on experience
C. J. Ackerman1,
D. W. Weber and
R. L. Dickson
Department of Animal Sciences, Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station, Oregon State University, Corvallis 97331
1 Correspondence:
phone: (541) 737-1897; fax: (405) 737-4174; E-mail:
c.ackerman{at}orst.edu.
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Abstract
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The Steer-a-Year course is designed to provide classroom and hands-on experience, industry-student interaction, and student group problem-solving opportunities. It is a cooperative agreement between the Department of Animal Sciences and the Oregon Cattlemen’s and Cattlewomen’s Associations. Steers are donated to the program by beef producers, fed a high concentrate ration to a target BW and condition, and marketed as either carcass or retail beef. After feed and management expenses are deducted, the Department of Animal Sciences retains one-half of the profit to be used for beef facilities improvements, and the other half is distributed to the donor’s choice of either the Oregon Cattlemen’s or Cattlewomen’s Association. Approximately 30 steers have been donated to the program annually each of the past eight years. The donor receives updates regarding steer performance during the feeding period and carcass data following harvest of the animal. Students and instructors feed and manage the steers. The instructor uses classroom time to provide information to enable students to make informed management decisions. Officers are elected from within the class each term. Student officers are responsible for ensuring that cattle are managed and fed appropriately, and they lead the class in writing and sending producer updates. An evolving facet of the program is processing and marketing. Steers are sold locally through the Clark Meat Science Center. Students are encouraged to participate in a separate course in which they process the steers into retail product. In this manner, students can be involved in procurement, management, processing, and marketing. The course is challenging for the instructor since it requires management of lecture material, cattle health and feeding, producer and employee rapport, and student participation to ensure annual success of the program in terms of student learning and public relations. The course is very well received by students, most of whom have labeled it as a great learning experience.
Key Words: Leadership • Students
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Introduction
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Animal science students today come from a diverse base of experience and interest levels regarding practical animal husbandry or hands-on experience. Many animal science programs are challenged with making more hands-on experience available for students. In the Department of Animal Sciences at Oregon State University, one of the courses that meets this challenge is the Steer-a-Year program. This is both a class and a student project, thus, the terms "course" and "program" are most descriptive and are used interchangeably throughout this manuscript. The program is an integration of classroom lecture, practical experience, and industry relationships.
The program is also designed to further instruction and experience in written and verbal communication skills. As stated by Orr (1996), depending solely on the English department to impart the communication skills necessary to succeed in today’s work environments may leave our students lacking in those areas. The objectives of the Steer-a-Year program are to provide students hands-on experience in managing and finishing beef steers for market. Additionally, the course educates students in the areas of animal nutrition, health, general management, and marketing principles and is designed to further develop written and oral communication skills.
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Structure and Function of the Program
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History
The Steer-a-Year (SAY) program was initiated in 1993 by Kelvin Koong, Dale Weber, and Bill Zollinger. A contract between the Department of Animal Sciences, the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association (OCA), and the Oregon Cattlemen’s Heritage Foundation (CHF) was formed. The contract was written with the primary purposes of 1) providing students in the Department of Animal Sciences at Oregon State University hands-on experiences in beef production and 2) raising funds for OCA, CHF, and the Department of Animal Sciences to promote educational opportunities for the benefit of Oregon’s beef industry.
The contract states that the Department of Animal Sciences will solicit donations of steers from producers. The steers are donated to the Oregon State University Foundation. The Department of Animal Sciences is responsible for care, feeding, finishing, and marketing the steers from that point forward. Institutional Animal Care and Use Proposals are submitted annually to the Universities Animal Care and Use Committee and are updated each term.
Steer Procurement
The instructor and students are responsible for soliciting donations of steers from producers in the state of Oregon each year. Letters inviting producers to donate are sent out in September. Steers that are donated are spring-born and fall-weaned and usually start arriving in October. Approximately 25% of the steers are delivered to campus by the donor, while the remainder of the steers are transported by university personnel from designated pick-up points. An average of 30 to 35 steers have been donated each year.
After feeding and yardage expenses are deducted, the profits from the program are split between the Department of Animal Sciences and the donor’s choice of OCA, the Oregon Cattlewomen’s Association (the Oregon Cattlewomen’s Association was added as a partner in 1999: OCW), or the CHF. The monies retained by the department are earmarked for beef educational facilities improvements. The SAY feeding facilities have been improved and modernized utilizing these funds.
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Course Structure and Organization
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The SAY course is listed as 400/500, designating it as a senior-graduate level course. Students enroll for three credits in the fall, two in the winter, and two in the spring term. Grading follows the standard 100 to 90% = A, 89 to 80 = B, 79 to 70 = C, 69 to 60 = D, and 59 or lower = F. Students are graded for their participation in the course, which constitutes approximately 50% of the total points possible each term. They are subjectively evaluated for participation by the instructor and their peers. The instructor’s evaluation is more heavily weighted than the peer evaluation (75% instructor: 25% peer evaluation). The balance of the points for the course are earned through written projects and a series of quizzes given each term. There are no exams given; however, a mandatory final discussion period is held in lieu of a final exam. During this period, the students and instructor discuss the positive and negative aspects of the course for that term from each student’s perspective. This discussion period has been very valuable in allowing the instructor to evaluate the students’ perceptions of all aspects of the program. Many of the organizational and structural aspects of the course have stemmed from these discussions.
The majority of the students taking the course are juniors and seniors with a small percentage of graduate students (Figure 1
). Additionally, approximately 34% of the students enrolled in past terms have been female and 66% male (Figure 2). An average of 18 to 19 students have enrolled in the program each term. This course seems to consistently attract this number of students during fall, winter, and spring terms. Students are not required to take the course three consecutive terms, so a minimum enrollment of approximately 12 students can be maintained. If students were required to enroll in the course for three consecutive terms, often only six to eight students would be able to take the course for the entire school year because of conflicts with other curriculum. If only six to eight students were enrolled, feeding and other activities would be much more labor intensive and could possibly detract from the overall objectives of the program.
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Figure 1. Percentage of graduate and undergraduate students enrolled in the Steer-a-Year course (1993–2001).
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Initially, the program was included in one of the senior-level beef production courses that all beef production majors were required to enroll in. Thus, there were approximately 40 to 50 students, which was too many to allow the course to function as it was designed. It seems that 20 students is a per term maximum (D. W. Weber, personal communication). Working with 40 to 50 students in organizing feeding and group discussions detracts from the dynamics of smaller groups and the quality of the educational experiences that the program is designed to impart.
Student Officers and Committees.
Students officers are elected by their peers each term. Officers are responsible for accomplishing tasks assigned them by the instructor. The number of officers and positions held is flexible and varies from term to term depending on what activities are being conducted each term. For example, during the fall term, the positions are manager, foreman, procurement, and recording officers. The manager is responsible for overseeing most activities and conducting student meetings. He or she will also help the instructor procure vaccines, develop health plans, feeding plans, and so on. The foreman is responsible for barn management, making sure the animals are healthy, fed on time, and that the barn is clean and maintained. The procurement officer is responsible for helping with steer donation efforts, such as letter writing, phone calls, organizing pick-ups, and so on. The recording officer takes minutes during formal class meetings and helps the instructor keep track of all decisions, who volunteered for what activity, and what responsibilities have been assigned. All of these duties are overseen by the instructor.
It is important to emphasize that the offices and the duties assigned are dynamic and may vary from term to term dependant on the instructor’s assessment of the officers’ abilities and interests. The primary purpose of the officer position is to assign formal responsibility to students. This serves several purposes, one of which is decreasing the workload for the instructor in reducing the need for constant supervision. The officers will take charge of many organizational aspects as mentioned previously, also decreasing the workload of the instructor. However, daily supervision of the animals and activities of students by the instructor is required to ensure smooth operation and animal health. An additional benefit of the officer positions is to give students the opportunity to gain some leadership experience. As mentioned previously, elections are held each term, and often different people hold each post each term. Therefore, virtually everyone in the class, who has a desire and(or) willingness to serve as an officer, has the opportunity to do so.
The remainder of the students in the program are organized into committees each term. Again, the types of committees are flexible and vary from term to term depending on what activities are being conducted. For example, during the fall term, the committees are procurement, health, and nutrition. Usually, one of the student officers is selected as the chair of the committee. The procurement committee will perform the duties associated with the procurement officer. The nutrition committee will develop the ration, put it out to bid, and order it. The health committee develops plans for health management of the calves as they come into the SAY facilities. It is important to emphasize that all students take part in many of these activities, but some have direct responsibility.
Class Meetings and Lectures.
The class meets a minimum of twice weekly. During the first two weeks of each term, the program meetings are primarily lecture and organizational. Thereafter, one meeting each week is a formal lecture period, and the other meeting is reserved for class meetings, discussion, and class projects. Class meetings are primarily conducted by the student officers and are organizational in nature. The lectures are designed to coincide with whatever activities are going on at that time. For example, during the fall term, lectures are given regarding receiving cattle nutrition and management, vaccination and health, and treatment of animals for morbidity. During the winter term, lectures are commonly given regarding implants, antibiotics, and bunk management. During the spring term, lectures are oriented toward the finished product, such as determining when animals are ready for harvest, quality and yield, and grading, and marketing.
Class Discussions.
Class discussions are organized and mediated by the instructor. In many cases, these discussions may be something as simple as selecting what diets to feed and how to formulate them. Most of the students should have been exposed to this type of information at some point in their educational career, and they are asked to apply their knowledge. However, they still have the "safety net" of the instructor’s oversight in the event that they make a mistake. In most cases, these types of mistakes are pointed out to the students prior to the mistake being made. For example, if a mistake is made in ration formulation, it is corrected prior to purchasing the ration in order to minimize economic loss and possible physical risk to the animals. Although it might be more favorable to allow the students to "learn from their mistakes", in dealing with animals that have been donated by producers, we have to be careful not to allow mistakes that would cause producers to become disenchanted with the program. One of the primary objectives in this process goes along with the concept of experiential learning or learning by doing. We are attempting to facilitate the creation of a learning environment in which students are required to question, synthesize, and discuss problems and apply their knowledge as suggested by Schillo (1997).
Written and Oral Communication.
Both written and oral communication exercises are conducted each term. The students are required to develop assignments within the committees, and then make a formal oral presentation of the assignment/project to the class. Additionally, students in the fall term travel to the annual meeting of the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association and make a presentation regarding the class. During this presentation, students discuss steer performance and present awards for the steer with the highest ADG and the highest value carcass from the previous year. These exercises, in combination with the discussion periods, in which all students are expected to participate, are designed to enhance oral communication skills.
In agreement with Haug (1996), the faculty in the Department of Animal Sciences at Oregon State University feel that written communication skills must be reinforced within the discipline rather than depending solely on the English department to ensure proficiency in writing among the students. Furthermore, it is felt that students need to learn and have experience writing in their discipline as discussed by Haug (1996) and Aaron (1996). Therefore, a "writing across the curriculum" policy is in place within the department. In support of this policy, the instructor of the SAY course usually requires a minimum of two written assignments each term. These assignments often require the students to summarize a group project and(or) class lectures. Students are also required to develop and disseminate regular producer communications. A SAY newsletter is sent out a minimum of five times each year. Students update the donors regarding the performance of their steer and current class activities. These assignments are designed to enhance written communication skills.
Marketing
Finished steers from the program are marketed and sold locally in the spring and early summer. Customers have the opportunity to purchase a processed and packaged quarter, half, or whole beef. Students develop and implement a marketing program each year. This activity gives the students experience in the areas of marketing and niche marketing in which they are marketing a branded product, Steer-a-Year Beef. Much of the beef is sold to repeat customers; however, new customers are attracted each year by the students’ efforts. The number of animals sold in this manner has increased each year; and in 2000–01, 22 carcasses were retailed. The remainder of the steers are sold to a local processor.
This marketing experience offers an excellent opportunity to instruct the students in the areas of grid marketing, niche marketing, price discovery, grading, and processing. Other areas such as quality assurance, customer satisfaction, and food safety are also covered. Through this segment of the program, students have the opportunity to not only feed and finish the animals, but also to decide when animals are ready to harvest and then see the end result of their efforts and decision making.
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Benefits of the Program
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The SAY program has many benefits, for students, faculty, partners (OCA, OCW, and CHF), and the department.
Students
Students enrolled in the program over the past 8 yr have responded very positively. The numerical course evaluations for the last six terms (1999–2001) are reported in Figure 3. There appears to be a trend for higher evaluations in the fall and spring terms in comparison to the winter term, with the spring term being the highest. The same instructor teaches the course all three terms each year; thus, changes in instructor could not be the causative factor. Our only explanation for these differences would deal with class dynamics. The fall and spring terms regularly have the most activity, with cattle procurement in the fall and harvest and beef sales in the spring. These hands-on activities are very popular among students, thus, possibly leading to the higher evaluation scores. A few of the comments drawn from course evaluations are:
- A very good hands-on course.
- Great class, teaches responsibility and knowledge about the cattle business.
- All ANS students should take this class.
- Lots of useful info and experience.
- It would be nice to see other classes like this in the college.
- Allowed students time to develop relationships and learn to work together.
Students in the program have the rare opportunity to learn fundamentals regarding animal husbandry in the classroom setting and then apply that knowledge to a group of steers. An additional and very important benefit is that the students will interact with individuals in the beef industry. They are exposed to producers, and(or) other individuals involved in OCA, OCW, and the Oregon Beef Council. These contacts help enhance education regarding how the beef industry functions. Furthermore, these contacts can and have resulted in a source of employment opportunities for students involved in the program.
We feel that one of the most interesting aspects of this course is student motivation. Students are often motivated by a desire to succeed. They wish to see "their" group of steers, for which they are responsible for that year, be healthy, perform well in the feeding phase, and produce high-quality beef. It is apparent in the attitude of most students that if the instructor allows them ownership and latitude in responsibility for care of the steers, they will strive to succeed. However, the instructor has to be aware of the balance between being too controlling or not having enough control of the program. As suggested by McKeachie (1986) many students will resent the instructor if their activities are under too tight control and yet may also find themselves very anxious if given a lot of leeway in making decisions.
Faculty
The faculty who have been involved in the program have expressed that this method of teaching has been a very rewarding experience. It is beneficial to instruct the students for a full academic year, and the ability to lecture and apply topics while a group of cattle is being fed and finished greatly enhances the ability to effectively educate. This program takes visual aids to the fullest extent possible. Having prolonged exposure to students in the program also enables the instructor to evaluate individual abilities and pinpoint skills, much more so than in a term-long, lecture-oriented course. This exposure helps the instructor in counseling the student towards identifying future career directions and opportunities.
The Department
The Department of Animal Sciences benefits from the program in several ways. The most obvious benefit is in producing well-educated, satisfied students. Other benefits include development of departmental-industry ties and an additional source of income. Many producers have exposure to the department, its students, and programs that they would not otherwise have. This could obviously be either a positive or a negative experience, depending on the management of the program. It is the instructor’s responsibility to make every effort to ensure that the producers have a positive experience as a result of their involvement with the program.
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Challenges Associated with the Program
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One of the largest challenges in the success of the SAY program is the time commitment required of the instructor. The amount of effort that goes into organizing a program encompassing regular classroom lectures, student advisement, day-to-day management, and relations with producers, beef customers, and the beef cattle associations is substantial. The vast majority of this responsibility falls on the instructor. One of the largest and most sensitive components of this is producer relations. A high level of diligence is required by the instructor to ensure that producers are satisfied with the information they receive regarding the growth of their steer and carcass data. Furthermore, the instructor has to deal with producers who may not be satisfied with the performance of their donated steer, timeliness of initial steer pick-up, and data presentation methods, just to name a few of the complaints that are regularly handled by the instructor. This obviously can take an immense amount of time and effort to ensure that the SAY program does not have a negative effect on perception of the program and the department among producers.
Other challenges that stem from the course are organizational. Keeping the course running smoothly under student management without taking too much control is difficult. As mentioned previously, the student managers usually change each term, and some new students are gained and others lost. Thus, continuity of management falls on the instructor. Holidays, such as the Christmas break, often present challenges; many times the instructor bears the responsibility for feeding and maintaining animal health during those time periods. Furthermore, completing tasks in a timely and efficient manner while having group discussions is often nearly impossible. For example, deciding whether or not to implant steers with an endogenous hormone implant and what type of implant to use would seem simple, but when discussion is encouraged, this decision may take multiple class meetings before the decision is made. We have accepted this challenge as an unavoidable consequence of group dynamics and completing tasks, while maintaining an educational atmosphere.
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Implications
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Students enrolling in animal science programs throughout the United States come from a diverse background. Therefore, the need for courses, which emphasize animal husbandry, has increased. The Steer-a-Year course offers the opportunity for students to gain experience in animal husbandry, while expanding their knowledge about fundamental aspects of animal feeding and the beef industry. Additionally, the course emphasizes further development of written and oral communication skills. The opportunity to gain leadership experience and group discussion skills in the Steer-a-Year program is a very rewarding experience for most students. Students gain exposure to individuals directly involved in beef cattle production. Overall, the course has been successful in many ways, and most importantly, in student satisfaction and educational experience.
Received for publication December 13, 2001.
Accepted for publication June 5, 2002.
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Literature Cited
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Aaron, D. K. 1996. Writing across the curriculum: Putting theory into practice in animal science courses. J. Anim. Sci. 74:2810–2827.[Abstract]
Haug, W. 1996. How to incorporate and evaluate writing skills in animal science and dairy science courses. J. Anim. Sci. 74:2835–2842.[Abstract]
McKeachie, W. J. 1986. Teaching tips: A guidebook for the beginning college teacher. 8th ed. D. C. Heath and Co. Lexington, MA.
Orr, C. L. 1996. Communication across the curriculum in animal science. J. Anim. Sci. 74:2828–2834.[Abstract]
Schillo, K. K. 1997. Teaching animal science: Education or indoctrination? J. Anim. Sci. 75:950–953.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
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Abstract
Introduction
