SPRINGFIELD – Students in the Basic Agriscience and Forestry classes at Effingham County High School celebrated National Teach Ag Day on March 24 by watching a video on why various agriculture teachers entered the field, discussing qualities held by agriculture teachers and playing “Think Like Your Ag Teacher” with Ms. CJ Satterfield.

“Celebrating Teach Ag Day is important to me because it gives me a chance to give the students an inside look at what all is involved in my career and the dedication that all ag teachers put into their programs,” said Satterfield.

The number one quality that the students named about the ag teachers from the video and from their experiences with the ECHS agriculture teachers was passion. Other qualities listed by students included leadership, patience, dedication, outgoing and energetic.

During “Think Like Your Ag Teacher”, students had to try to answer questions such as: What is my favorite Career Development Event? How many hours a week do I work on average? and What is my favorite thing about being a teacher? as closely to Ms. Satterfield’s answers as possible.

“I really enjoyed learning more about the agriculture education area. I didn’t realize how much more time ag teachers spend at school and with their students than academic teachers do. This is definitely an area I would enjoy going in to,” Andrea Freeman said.

Agriculture teachers prepare students for high-demand careers in cutting edge industries like biotechnology, renewable energies, engineering, food production and more. They also teach students how to be leaders and prepare them to take on the challenges of the next generation.

National Teach Ag Day is a day set aside to celebrate agricultural education, and for teachers to share with their students the possibilities of a career in the profession. There is a national shortage of agricultural educators in the United States, and National Teach Ag Day is part of a campaign to raise awareness of the career.

National Teach Ag Day is a part of the National Teach Ag Campaign, an initiative of the National Council for Agricultural Education, led by the National Association of Agricultural Educators.  For more information about teaching agriculture, visit www.naae.org/teachag. The National Teach Ag Campaign is sponsored by Landmark Nurseries as a special project of the National FFA Foundation and by Delmar Cengage Learning.