#AgEd2Malaysia is a partnership between Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (@UTMeduc), Penn State University (@TeachAgPSU; @GlobalTeachAg) and Hawkeye Community College(@GALC_Hawkeye), and is funded by a U.S. Department of Education Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad grant. The purpose of this course is to develop and prepare globally minded agricultural education teachers by providing the opportunity for a short-term study experience within the context of agricultural education and university agricultural teacher preparation programs.
The Global Teach Ag Consortium desires to expand the global experience offerings for current and pre-service agricultural educators to continue the momentum of the desire to globalize secondary agricultural education, and because of the growing demand for such experiences.
The country of Malaysia has been selected for initial activities because it is among the rare countries in the world that teaches agricultural education in at the secondary school level and also prepares and certifies those teachers in secondary agricultural education programs at the university level. There is a strong desire from Global Teach Ag Consortium partners to bring together agriscience educators from Malaysia and the United States in order to experience working together and in the process learning about each other’s culture and agriculture. In the future, Malaysian agriscience educators and pre-service educators will conduct a similar exchange to the United States.
The objectives of #AgEd2Malaysia are to:
- Increase the global competence of pre-service and current agricultural educators;
- Focus on the intersection of culture and the agriculture systems in Malaysia and
- Promote the integration of international studies in the secondary classroom.
#AgEd2Malaysia participants will participate in a pre-departure course in Spring 2018, travel to Malaysia for one month, and then participate in several follow-up activities. Please see the “Join Us” page for more information about program activities and application information.
Project Faculty
Dr. Nur Husna Abd Wahid (@nba107nur) is a senior lecturer in the Department of Technical and Engineering Education Universiti Teknologi Malaysia where she has been a faculty member since 2006. Dr. Nur Husna completed her Ph.D. at Pennsylvania State University and her masters and undergraduate studies at Universiti Putra Malaysia. Her research interests are in the area of agricultural education, technical and vocational and training, teacher preparation, and global teacher competencies. Her research explores how diversity in ethnicity, culture, language, and socioeconomic class impact teaching preparedness in technical and vocational education. Dr. Nur Husna’s global learning experience includes her involvement as the Global Teach Ag Initiative Visiting Scholar (2013-2016) at Pennsylvania State University. Dr. Nur Husna is also a member of the internationalization committee at UTM which organizes and supports international research collaboration and the international teacher exchange program.
Mr. Brad Kinsinger (@BradKinsinger) has coordinated the Global Agriculture Learning Center at Hawkeye Community College for the last four years. He has also served as an agriculture business instructor at Hawkeye for six years. Mr. Kinsinger is highly motivated participant in international relations, traveling abroad with students, educators and farmers, as well as hosting international visitors during agriculture tours and organizing study abroad courses. In the last five years, Mr. Kinsinger has been recognized for his work with honors including Hawkeye Community College President’s Award: Ambassador of the Year in 2015, Ideas Unlimited Award for Iowa Association of Agricultural Educators in 2013 and 2014, and Outstanding Post-Secondary Program for State of Iowa in 2013. He is currently working towards a Master of Science in International Agriculture with Oklahoma State University and earned a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Education from Iowa State University and an Associate of Applied Science in Agricultural Business from Kirkwood Community College.
Dr. Daniel D. Foster (@FosterDanielD) is Associate Professor of Agricultural Education at Pennsylvania State University. He teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in agricultural and extension education (teacher education) and provides leadership to the teacher certification program as the student teacher coordinator. His research efforts focus on educational processes at the secondary and postsecondary level in agricultural education, including developing global competence in agricultural teacher candidates. He was a co-leader of the Fulbright-Hays Group Project Abroad to the Republic of Korea. He brings not only agricultural education knowledge and awareness of the field to the team, but also a deep commitment to creating awareness and interest in global citizenship among students, teachers, and communities.
Dr. Melanie Miller Foster (@GlobalMelanie) is a rural sociologist who has worked in agriculture, education, and rural development for the past ten years. Currently, Dr. Miller Foster serves as Assistant Professor of International Agriculture in the College of Agricultural Sciences at Pennsylvania State University. She designs and teaches undergraduate embedded courses with global travel components, with a focus on global competence and global communications. She has developed and delivered study abroad orientation classes for multiple programs in the College of Agricultural Sciences, as well as organized travel logistics, addressed safety concerns when they arose, and assisted students as a problem-solver, both before and during the travel component of study abroad classes. She also has escorted overseas tours including a Fulbright-Hays Group Project Abroad to the Republic of Korea.