CHAPTER XIII

HOW TO CONDUCT HOME PROJECTS

A home project should include each of the following: (1) There must be a plan of work covering a season or other extended period of time; (2) it must be a part of the instruction in agriculture of the school; (3) there must be a problem more or less new to the pupil; (4) the parents and pupil should agree with the teacher upon the plan; (5) some competent person must supervise the home work; (6) detailed records of time, method, cost, and income must be correctly kept on suitable forms; (7) a written report based on the record must be submitted to the teacher.

If a project is participated in by several students as a class or part of a class, it would be considered a group project. If the essential parts of the project are the work of one pupil, it would be called an individual project. According to the chief aim, projects may be classified as (a) productive projects in which the chief aim is to produce any agricultural product at a profit; (b) trial projects in which the chief aim is to test materials and methods in agricultural practice new to the student; (c) improvement projects in which the chief aim is to make improvement with hope of little immediate return; and (d) management projects in which the chief aim is to apply efficiently the general principles of farin management.-Condensed from Report on Agriculture of the N. E. A. Commission on Reorganization of Secondary Education.

SO MUCH has been said in recent years regarding the value of teaching agriculture by home project methods that little need be said here regarding that phase of the subject. It was in the field of agriculture that the home project method of instruction was first successfully demonstrated. Agricultural projects have so frequently formed the basis for school-room instruction that few teachers will fail to realize the value of this plan of carrying on the school work.

The term project as here used involves the time element. An exercise performed in one laboratory period should not be considered a project. A number of exercises are sometimes combined and called a project, if they are closely connected with each other and lead to the same general end or aim.

In the broad sense, a project is a far-reaching aim. It is usually not made up of a series of similar exercises, but includes all studies, exercises, practices, operations-alike and unlike-which lead to a definite aim in the mind of the person doing these things.

Agricultural projects, particularly home projects, pursued by students who are studying agriculture should have the profit factor in them; as growing a crop of wheat for profit, raising a litter of pigs for profit, fattening a bunch of steers for profit, renovating an apple orchard for profit.

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Improvement projects which do not always include the profit element are sometimes pursued by students. Sometimes mechanical projects are really, in the end, improvement projects or have maintenance features in place of the profit features.

Major and Minor Projects.-When students are performing long-time projects in any field of agriculture, these projects are often coëxtensive with the study of the particular subject in which that project falls, as laid down in the curriculum of the school. If a high school student, for example, is pursuing the subject of field crops for one year in his school course, he may raise an annual crop as his project-corn, wheat, potatoes, cotton. Such projects may be designated as major projects. These may or may not continue longer than the time devoted to the particular branch in the course. When horticulture is taught for half a year in the school the student may pursue a project in orcharding which will continue for one or more years.

The term minor project is used in two senses: (1) It is some operation or part of a major project, as spraying an orchard or marketing the crop; (2) it is a short-time project which is complete in itself, as buying a bunch of pigs and feeding them one month and selling them again.

Scope of Projects.—Whenever a student undertakes a project in agriculture he should formulate definitely the scope of the project, the limit of time—when it is to begin and when it is to end; the factors, elements, animals, or plants which are to be concerned in it.

The statement of the scope should be such that it will be consistent with the seasons, with the probable development of the crop, and of the animals being grown. It should be such that the probabilities of profit are favorable.

Who Agrees to the Project and Its Scope?-When students are living at home and studying agriculture in a school they may readily conduct home projects which are pursued all or part of the time during school months. They can pursue such projects more intensively during vacation months. The projects in such cases should be planned in coöperation with the parents and the agricultural instructor. All three should agree to the main features to be included in the project and the scope which the project is to cover. The father agrees to supply operating capital and the place for the working out of the project. The income derived from the project is to be used first to pay all costs of the project and

second, to pay the student for his labor, and third, to pay profits for good management.

The student and father both agree to follow the instructions of the teacher and to perform the operations in the project according to the best methods laid down in the references given by the teacher of agriculture.

Writing the Plans of the Project. Not only the scope of the time and field to be covered by the project, but also the plans or steps to be followed in pursuing the work should be written at the beginning or very soon afterwards. It is not necessary that the steps be inflexible. Indeed, they should be quite flexible and subject to new conditions that arise from time to time in the progress of the work. It is safe to say that no "cut and dried" plan can be followed absolutely.

The value of having a plan made in advance helps both the student and the instructor to know about what is to be the progress of the work. The parent also will know better what is expected of the student. In one sense, it fixes the scope of the work better in the mind of the student and his father.

Project Operations. After the scope of the project has been determined, the student, with the aid of the instructor, should first write out the steps in the project from beginning to end. These steps are really the project operations taken in order from beginning to end. They must have seasonal sequence, particularly if they are crop projects. The steps can be foreseen, to a great extent, when the project is planned. Of course, minor steps may be added later. When examined as a whole, some changes may be suggested and perhaps new or different steps may be planned for part of the work. The student may have omitted some important elements, as spraying, the use of fertilizers, the growing of a cover crop, or other step necessary for the success of the project. After the steps are revised and ready to be copied again, they should be written in the student's permanent project book.

Topics for Study Involved in Each Operation. The instructor should show the student how to choose topics for study under each step of the project work. A rather complete list of these topics should be written in a notebook for each of the project operations. After the student has been shown how to begin his choice of topics he may be allowed to choose topics for the remaining steps in his project.

The student and instructor working together should review carefully all of the lists of topics and revise them. These should then be

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Ve Up Brefully in such form as to leave room for ditations, or FRÍÐ ENGEL, 10 books and bulletins where the topics are well discussed.

Making Citations to Project Topics-First, the instructor may suggest if the swadem & number of books and bulletins wüd de cuss the general subject of the whole project. For example, E te projem consiste in growing a Seid of potatoes for profit, the 11826 may give the student a list of references where potato COWING IS WEL considered a few farmers bulletins, certain books GEWOGEC TO poates, as Gifford and Grah, and Frazier. For the jerilimang of potatoes one or two ambors on fertilizers might be ched. Some books on general Said crops might be aded în the list giver to the student. After resecting this 1st from the instructor, the swadem should take each of the topies, fnd where They are discussed in severs of these baletins and books and wine. il & SunLine plate, after the topies the subor sad page. Without stopping to study these, he may go on through the entire list of Topliss and we our the nations in deftine form for future strady.

Project Book Forms-Various project books are pubished or forms suggested by state supervisors, by teacher training depanment in coleges, and by the Federal Board for Vocational ĐãoCETINIA The outlines suggested by the plans pubished in this chapher are not imended to be folowed by students in their seminal pursuit of pržen work. They are merely suggestive and shoud be revised and wine in the student's notebook, or project book. Published Outlines of Projects-Severi suate boards for VOCEMTIEİ BİRCation have pubished outlines for project stacies. MIRE TO YOU Sue supervisor for such as are available. The punished ounties should not be considered as stable to all sitools nor to all farms where such projects we passed. They should be revised to me special woodmOCK. Even the scope of the online may not be the same as will be desired by the smudezi. pe and instructor The purpose of published onlines is to suggest to students topies for projiems, steps the operation, Toņus vide may or may not be insided, and perhaps them the soudem roughly in the details of making einations.

After the student and instrator revise one of these published outines to suit the partianlar farm where the project is to be parB. I i I subject to fumber revision as the projem progresses.

Keeping Notes of Topics Studied-state forms are published for keeping notes on the sopirs studied, they should be used by Sue Lathrop ML and Notebook on Field Corps.”

students in schools. If no such forms are published, the instructor should designate what type of notebook will be best for the purpose and topics to be outlined. Topics studied should be outlined in a notebook. Perhaps the notes that differ from each citation for that topic may be kept distinct, but not necessarily so. These notes should be used by students in reporting their topics to the class. Some state forms require that the notes on citations from different places be kept distinct. When this plan is followed, the number of the bulletin and the pages read should be given for each outline or title studied. If the references are to books, papers, and magazines, the citations in each case should be written with the notes taken by the student in studying that topic.

Record of Performance of Project Operations. Students should be taught to keep notes under such a head as this, in their notebooks or in special state forms. If the project be with crops, the kind of notes taken will be very different from those taken with animal projects. In the latter type of projects the notes will relate more to daily operations, changes in operations, variations in plans, and reasons for them.

Observations on the Project. One section of the student's notebook should be devoted to observations on the project and may be headed in this way if desired. Many observations may be made which will be of value to the student making them. Students should be encouraged to become observant and should be taught to write the notes on their observations intelligently and in good form for use in reporting to the class, or to the instructor from time to time.

Summary of a Project in Crop Production.-The student should keep notes for filling an outline in his notebook which would include a number of points such as the following:

Summary of a Livestock Project. Keep notes for filling a report or summary of a livestock project, including such points as the following: