|
4-H is a global network of youth organizations whose mission is "engaging youth to reach their fullest potential while advancing the field of youth development".〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=The California 4-H Youth Development Program - Directions for the Decade Ahead )〕 In the United States, the organization is administered by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). 4-H Canada is an independent non-profit organization overseeing the operation of branches throughout Canada.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=4-H Structure )〕 Throughout the world, 4-H organizations exist in over 50 countries;〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=4-H Around the World )〕 the organization and administration varies from country to country. Each of these programs operates independently, but cooperatively through international exchanges, global education programs, and communications. The 4-H name represents four personal development areas of focus for the organization: head, heart, hands, and health. The organization has over 6.5 million members in the United States, from ages 5 to 21, in approximately 90,000 clubs.〔(National 4-H Council ), (National 4-H Headquarters ), and e-mail dated December 3, 2007 from Suzanne Le Menestrel, National Program Leader, Youth Development Research, National 4-H Headquarters〕 The goal of 4-H is to develop citizenship, leadership, responsibility and life skills of youth through experiential learning programs and a positive youth development approach. Though typically thought of as an agriculturally focused organization as a result of its history, 4-H today focuses on citizenship, healthy living, science, engineering, and technology programs. The 4-H motto is "To make the best better", while its slogan is "Learn by doing" (sometimes written as "Learn to do by doing"). ==History== The foundations of 4-H began in 1902 with the work of several people in different parts of the United States. The focal point of 4-H has been the idea of practical and hands-on learning, which came from the desire to make public school education more connected to rural life. Early programs tied both public and private resources together to benefit rural youth. During this time researchers at experiment stations of the land-grant universities and USDA saw that adults in the farming community did not readily accept new agricultural discoveries, but educators found that youth would experiment with these new ideas and then share their experiences and successes with the adults. So rural youth programs became a way to introduce new agriculture technology to the adults. Club work began wherever a public-spirited person did something to give rural children respect for themselves and their ways of life and it is very difficult to credit one sole individual.〔The Father of Wisconsin 4-H. The Ransom Asa Moore Story, Author: Gleason, Marjorie and William, Publication: 1989 Accurate Publishing & Printing Inc., pg. 9〕 Instances of work with rural boys and girls can be found all throughout the 19th century. In the spring of 1882, Delaware College announced a statewide corn contest for boys, in which each boy was to plant a quarter of an acre, according to instructions sent out from the college, and cash prizes, certificates, and subscriptions to the ''American Agriculturalist'' were rewarded.〔The Father of Wisconsin 4-H. The Ransom Asa Moore Story, Author: Gleason, Marjorie and William, Publication: 1989 Accurate Publishing & Printing Inc., pg. 10〕 In 1892, in an effort to improve the Kewaunee County Fair, Ransom Asa Moore, President of the Kewaunee Fair, the Agricultural Society, and Superintendent of the Kewaunee County Schools in Wisconsin, organized a “youth movement”, which he called “Young People’s Contest Clubs”, in which he solicited the support of 6,000 young farm folks to produce and exhibit fruits, vegetables, and livestock.〔Kewaunee Enterprise, February 26, 1941, “Death Takes Prof. Moore”〕 The fairs were very successful.〔The Father of Wisconsin 4-H. The Ransom Asa Moore Story, Author: Gleason, Marjorie and William, Publication: 1989 Accurate Publishing & Printing Inc.〕 In 1904, while working for the University of Wisconsin-Madison and trying to repeat what he had successfully accomplished in Kewaunee County over a decade before but with different intentions, "Daddy" R.A. Moore convinced R.H. Burns, then Superintendent of Schools of Richland County, Wisconsin, to have the Richland County Boys and Girls organize and assist in a corn-project activity to help market and distribute improved seeds to the farmers in the state of Wisconsin (and beyond).〔 A. B. Graham started one of the youth programs in Clark County, Ohio, in 1902, which is also considered one of the births of the 4-H program in the United States. The first club was called "The Tomato Club" or the "Corn Growing Club". T.A. "Dad" Erickson of Douglas County, Minnesota, started local agricultural after-school clubs and fairs also in 1902. Jessie Field Shambaugh developed the clover pin with an H on each leaf in 1910, and, by 1912, they were called 4-H clubs.〔Longden, Tom. (Famous Iowans: Jessie Field Shambaugh. ) ''Des Moines Register''〕 Early 4-H programs in Colorado began with youth instruction offered by college agricultural agents as early as 1910, as part of the outreach mission of the Colorado land grant institutions.〔http://lib.colostate.edu/archives/findingaids/agriculture/acfh.html〕 The national 4-H organization was formed in 1914, when the United States Congress created the Cooperative Extension Service of the USDA by passage of the Smith-Lever Act of 1914, it included within the CES charter the work of various boys' and girls' clubs involved with agriculture, home economics and related subjects. The Smith-Lever Act formalized the 4-H programs and clubs that began in the midwestern region of the United States. Although different activities were emphasized for boys and girls, 4-H was one of the first youth organizations to give equal attention to both genders (cf., erstwhile Boys Clubs of America). By 1924, these clubs became organized as 4-H clubs, and the clover emblem was adopted. The first 4-H camp was held in Randolph County, West Virginia. Originally, these camps were for what was referred to as "Corn Clubs". Campers slept in corn fields, in tents, only to wake up and work almost the entirety of each day. Superintendent of schools G. C. Adams began a boys' corn club in Newton County, Georgia, in 1904. 4-H membership hit an all-time high in 1974 as a result of its popular educational program about nutrition, ''Mulligan Stew'', shown in schools and on television across the country. Today, 4-H clubs and activities are no longer focused primarily on agricultural activities, instead emphasizing personal growth and preparation for lifelong learning. Participation is greatest during the elementary school years, with enrollment in programs and activities peaking in the 4th grade. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「4-H」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|