Disciplinary Expert Tour- Mathematics (STEM)

On Wednesday, June 23rd, 2021 I was able to observe and shadow crop specialist Joseph Janssen (who is also my husband). He graduated from U of I with a bachelors in crop science and now runs the Evergreen FS (Farm Services) plant out of Long Point, IL.

I learned quiet a bit about the intricacies of my husband's job that I was previously unaware of. When I asked him what technology he used most in his current positon and if he felt prepared to use it prior to being expected to on the job, he stated, "I wish I had been more familiar with cloud sharing applications and how to use them". He said more specifically that he heavily relies on Microsoft Excel. And that it has been a game changer for how certain aspects of the job are done.

In order to calculate the amount of particular fertilizers needed to be spread on a certain field he can input an algorithm into Microsoft Excel and then all of the corresponding values are automatically generated. He can do the same for calculating costs per acre after inputing the rates for each chemical that is being used. He said that setting up the spreadsheets was initially quite cumbersome, it took him almost a whole day for one of the more intricate ones, however that now that they are completed they save him a lot of time and help him be more efficient and accurate with his planning.

While he was explaining all of this to me, it reminded me of something that was discussed in the chapter that I read preparing for this assignment. They discussed the curricular "war" between educators that believe students must be taught to memorize certain basic math skills versus those who feel the focus should be on deeper conceptual mathematical knowledge and insights. Prior to this assignment, I tended to lean a little more towards the need to still memorize basic math facts. However, in talking with my husband, I realized that it was more import that he understood HOW to come up with the algorithm needed, not that he actually needed to compute it himself. He COULD compute each value, but why would that be necessary if there was a program that could do the grunt work for him. However, he did need to have a deeper understanding of all of the numbers in order to be able to properly manipulate them to find the values he was looking for.

Solinftec (left)

Traditional

ticket (right)

Next, he showed me some new software called Solinftec that his company just started using. He explained that when he logged into the system it would show him all of the machines (sprayers) in the company. He could see which ones were sitting and which ones were logged on. Then he could schedule a sprayer for a job. In the past, an operator would have a stack of tickets that they would take with them in the sprayer that told them which fields they would be working on that day. While they still use the tickets currently as they are transitioning, the goal is that eventually all of the scheduling and recording will take place digitally. The operators will take an ipad with them in the sprayers and their jobs will be mapped out for them based on the locations of the fields.

After explaining to me how the jobs were scheduled, he took me inside one of the sprayers so that I could see how the operators actually operated the machines. First, the machines are all guided by satellite GPS. But this doesn't mean that the tractors can simply drive themselves; there still needs to be an operator present to turn the machine at the end of each row and to be there in case of any issues that may arise. However, having the GPS does make the application much more precise. The tractors are also equipped with "row sense" where the camera at the bottom of the sprayer will "look" for rows to guide it. The tanks on the sprayers use sonar senors to determine how much liquid is in the tank. And the monitor in the sprayer will show you parts of the field that have already been covered. The sprayers are even capable of detecting weeds and spraying them individually as they go!

Finally, I was able to walk through and investigate the chem shed. It was quite impressive and a little overwhelming. When I walked in they were filling up a "mini bulk" that was being delivered to another plant. These chemicals would then be put into a sprayer before heading to a field. The mini bulk was sitting on a large scale. The rate and desired weight was entered into the "Re-Pack System" and then the chemicals began filling it up. They automatically shut off when the desired weight was reached. Curt, the man in charge of the chem shed, informed me that not all plants have systems like this.

There were 15 large vats in the chem shed all filled with different chemicals. Semi trucks came in and out of the chem shed to drop off and pick up loads of chemicals. Despite being busy, everything was very organized and clean. Everything seemed to run smooth and efficiently like the gears of a clock.

TEACHING IMPLICATIONS:

To address my husband's first concern, I do believe educators are heavily integrating cloud sharing applications into their instruction. I know personally I have used more Google programs (Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Slides) rather than Microsoft, but many of them are similar. I think that him and I are just old enough that when we were in school many of these programs were newer and had not yet been integrated into instruction. Therefore, we were introduced to them on the job instead of in school.

However, after my tour with him, I do not think merely introducing students to these tools is not enough. They need to be comfortable and confident in manipulating the values to create their desired spreadsheets. As educators it is crucial that we demand higher order thinking skills from our students and provide them with the support they need in order to achieve them.

In thinking about the new software, Solinftec, that was just introduced at my husband's company, I feel that some of the employee's distaste for the new program may be that it is not really providing them with any new benefits. When asking whether or not the employees liked the new software, many of them said no. However, in probing deeper, it seemed like that might be because as of how it was mainly being used at the substitution level (on the SAMR model). The technology did not allow them to do anything the traditional method did not. They accomplished the same goals, but one did it digitally.

I believe that in order for the software to be more successful (and better liked) it would need to provide employees with features unavailable or not possible with traditional methods. Also, when I asked if the employees received training on how to use the new program, they said they were given less than five minutes of an explanation. We would never expect a student to have mastered a new program with that amount of preparation, and adults need more than that as well.

Finally, while I was in the chem shed I started thinking about how often teachers sometimes shy away from lab experiments becuase they are "messy" or "dangerous". But we are not really doing our students any favors if we do not prepare them for and teach them how to navigate those situations. The chem shed where I was at was a potentially very dangerous environment, yet the employees ran everything so smoothly. However, that comes with training and practice. So, it solidified to me in my mind just how necessary it is to still tackle those "messy" and "dangerous" classroom activities.

How these technologies mediate what people could "do, mean, relate, think, and be":

Doing- Through the technology my husband uses at work they are able to service more customers and cover more acres.

Meaning- By using the spreadsheets and algorithms my husband is able to more accurately show and explain prices and rates to his customers.

Relation- In using the new Solinftec software on the ipads, my husband and his employees and communicate with eachother and the people at the home office about what fields are getting done and what the conditions are like.

Thinking- Because a lot of the technology used does a fair amount of the calculations for them, my husband and his employees can focus on other aspects of the work such as figuring out what algorithm needs to be entered or focusing on the rate of chemicals being used/dispersed.

Being- It is important when you are in certain environments to be alert and ready in order to avoid potentially dangerous situations. Much of the technology used at Evergreen FS helps alleviate some of the mental workload so that the employees can focus on attending to that.