Can i do Ag. Science without owning a farm?

sw33t_r3v3ng3

I want to do Ag. Science for L.C but i don't own a farm. I would however be able to get access to a farm. Would this do or would i have to own a farm for the project in it ?

Thanks

DK man

U don't need a farm or access to a farm

Ag science students go on a farm vist to one of the ag colleges

Looks like a very interesting subject - if u r interested in farming! Part of course has a lot of biology but there's another section which has a lot of farm related material

wexie

A friend of mine did an ag science degree and lived in a 3 bed semi d in Dundrum, you'll be grand.

sw33t_r3v3ng3

I just thought that you needed to do a project that you had to monitor a crop or livestock for a few months ?

wexie

sw33t_r3v3ng3 wrote: »

I just thought that you needed to do a project that you had to monitor a crop or livestock for a few months ?

I'm not sure but I'm pretty sure my friend didn't have access to a farm either. Not sure if she took it in the LC though, I'm seeing her tomorrow and will try to remember to ask.

(she's now a (ag)science teacher in school so should know)

The_Pretender

Most people in my Ag class didn't have access to a farm, even less actually lived on one.

wexie

sw33t_r3v3ng3 wrote: »

I want to do Ag. Science for L.C but i don't own a farm. I would however be able to get access to a farm. Would this do or would i have to own a farm for the project in it ?

Thanks

Chatting to my teacher friend today (who used to teach ag science) and told me you do indeed need access to a farm ideally. However most students don't have this, to get around this they'd just organise regular trips to the farm during the year.

Hope this helps.

rainbowtrout

sw33t_r3v3ng3 wrote: »

I want to do Ag. Science for L.C but i don't own a farm. I would however be able to get access to a farm. Would this do or would i have to own a farm for the project in it ?

Thanks

having access to a farm is fine.


Read this thread. It's all about Ag Science

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=58687286

Mr Pseudonym

sw33t_r3v3ng3 wrote: »

I want to do Ag. Science for L.C but i don't own a farm. I would however be able to get access to a farm. Would this do or would i have to own a farm for the project in it ?

Thanks

Dude, this is literally the funniest thing I've read all week!! :DD

Dropping No Eaves

I don't know what everyone's talking about. Realistically you need at least 80 acres if you are aiming for anything above a C.

sw33t_r3v3ng3

wexie wrote: »

Chatting to my teacher friend today (who used to teach ag science) and told me you do indeed need access to a farm ideally. However most students don't have this, to get around this they'd just organise regular trips to the farm during the year.

Hope this helps.

Thanks a million for asking her, Il have a chat with another teacher and see what the story is!

Carefulnow11

I am doing ag science in 6th year at the moment and i dont own a farm. All you need is access to a farm once a month or so to keep a record of what's going on. It happens to be one of my best subjects and i plan on doing an ag science course next year so you dont really have to be from a farming background to do well in this subject. In other words, you will be grand ! Good luck

Mr Pseudonym

I'm slightly concerned by some of the responses: about 7000 students sit Ag Science every year; do you really think all of them have regular access to a farm? It's possible that, like with Geography, there is some sort of "field trip". But, it would be insanely discriminatory if regular farm access were a requirement. Btw, for a niche subject, Ag Science has a worryingly low A-rate - about 10-12%.

rainbowtrout

Mr Pseudonym wrote: »

I'm slightly concerned by some of the responses: about 7000 students sit Ag Science every year; do you really think all of them have regular access to a farm? It's possible that, like with Geography, there is some sort of "field trip". But, it would be insanely discriminatory if regular farm access were a requirement. Btw, for a niche subject, Ag Science has a worryingly low A-rate - about 10-12%.

To be fair, yours was the first non serious response. Kinda your fault really. Also lots of teachers tell their students to use their home farm or adopt a farm for their practical project and not all teachers do a farm trip. Hence the original question.

Also lots of students who do ag science in my experience are in there because it's perceived as an easy honour. Not an easy A, but a C or D is achieveable where in another subject (e.g. biology) they would be doing ordinary level. In many schools (my experience anecdotally) many students who end up in ag science are weak academically, end up there because no one else wants them in their classes and many have done ordinary level junior science. All of these factors lead to a lower level of A grades.

Unlike say physics, chemistry and applied maths which attract students that tend to be doing higher level maths or have an apititude for that kind of thing. They are perceived as difficult subjects, so are self selecting, students pick them because they are good at them. Students who found them difficult at JC level avoid them like the plague at LC level, but often end up in ag science despite not having any great love for or interest in the subject.

Mr Pseudonym

rainbowtrout wrote: »

To be fair, yours was the first non serious response. Kinda your fault really. Also lots of teachers tell their students to use their home farm or adopt a farm for their practical project and not all teachers do a farm trip. Hence the original question.

Also lots of students who do ag science in my experience are in there because it's perceived as an easy honour. Not an easy A, but a C or D is achieveable where in another subject (e.g. biology) they would be doing ordinary level. In many schools (my experience anecdotally) many students who end up in ag science are weak academically, end up there because no one else wants them in their classes and many have done ordinary level junior science. All of these factors lead to a lower level of A grades.

Unlike say physics, chemistry and applied maths which attract students that tend to be doing higher level maths or have an apititude for that kind of thing. They are perceived as difficult subjects, so are self selecting, students pick them because they are good at them. Students who found them difficult at JC level avoid them like the plague at LC level, but often end up in ag science despite not having any great love for or interest in the subject.

Mine was the first and penultimate: I take no blame for the bad advice given.

I'm aware of many of the factors that cause a subject to have a low A-rate. However, as the below table shows, despite having a cohort a quarter of the size of Geog's (another subject favoured by low-performing students), it performs increasingly badly in comparison as one moves down the grades: one can only conclude that Ag Science is a more difficult subject in which to achieve an honours.

Subject Cohort A % A-B % A-C %
Geo 20,400 8.8 38 71.1
Bus 11,800 10.7 40.6 75.3
Ag Sci 5,600 11.1 36.9 67.0


All figures three-year mean average ('11-'13)

Edit: table refers to Higher-level cohorts