More and more young women in the Scottish Borders are signing up for agriculture courses. Stephanie Crozier, a 16-year-old who grew up on a farm, is one of 12 girls studying the National Certificate (NC) Agriculture course at Borders College. This is happening in other courses across Scotland too. In fact, 46% of students on agriculture courses run by Scotland's Rural College (SRUC) are now women, which is up from 42% last year. Stephanie loves agriculture and hopes to have a future in the industry.

Borders College used to struggle to get enough students for its rural skills program. Last year, only 10 students enrolled in the NC Agriculture course. But now, they have their highest ever numbers, with nearly half of the students being teenage girls. Andrew Johnson, the head of rural skills, said that they have always had girls applying, but this is the first time they've had so many. In addition to the 25 students studying NC Agriculture, there are 18 more doing the National 5 Modern Agriculture course, and 12 apprentices in agriculture and mixed farming.

Mr. Johnson thinks it's really important to attract young people to the agriculture industry. There are job opportunities available, and the industry needs new talent to keep growing. The UK government's Environment, Food and Rural Affairs committee has warned before that there might not be enough workers for farming, which could cause permanent damage. The Scottish government has also started a Women in Agriculture taskforce to help more women make a difference in the sector.

Not all of the girls on the Borders College course have farming backgrounds. For example, Bethany Scott had no experience with agriculture before starting an animal care course. But she was interested in the practical side of the agriculture course and likes how busy and exciting farming can be. The managers at Borders College are confident that more and more students will sign up for agriculture courses in the future. They already have 18 school pupils taking part in their agriculture pathway program.

Many students have shared their positive experiences and dreams of having a farming career. Emily Mulligan, who has a part-time job at a local auction mart, recommends farming to other students who aren't sure what to do. Jessica Damerell, who grew up working on a sheep farm, loves being outside and wants to be a farmer. The National Farmers' Union Scotland (NFU Scotland) is happy about the increase in interest in the industry. They think it's great that young people are passionate about agriculture and want to learn more.

Original news source: Record number of girls on Borders College farming course (BBC)

– News Summary
Instructions: In pairs, students will read the article and write a summary of the main points. They should focus on the increase in young women enrolling in agriculture courses in the Scottish Borders and the importance of attracting new talent to the industry. After writing their summaries, students will share with the class and compare their answers.
– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups and give each group a set of discussion questions related to the article. The questions should focus on students' opinions about young women studying agriculture and the future of the industry. Each group will discuss the questions and then present their opinions to the rest of the class.
– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Write key vocabulary words from the article on separate slips of paper and place them in a bag. Each student will take turns drawing a slip of paper and silently drawing the word on the board. The rest of the class will try to guess the word. After each round, the student who drew the word will explain its meaning and use it in a sentence.
– Think-Pair-Share
Instructions: In pairs, students will think about the benefits and challenges of pursuing a career in agriculture. They will then share their thoughts with their partner and come up with a list of advantages and disadvantages. Afterward, pairs will join another pair and share their lists with the new group, discussing any similarities or differences.
– Future Predictions
Instructions: In small groups, students will discuss and make predictions about the future of the agriculture industry. They should consider factors such as new technologies, climate change, and the changing needs of society. Each group will present their predictions to the class, explaining their reasoning behind each one.

More and more young women in the Scottish Borders are ? up for agriculture courses. Stephanie Crozier, a 16-year-old who grew up on a farm, is one of 12 girls studying the National Certificate (NC) Agriculture course at Borders College. This is ? in other courses across Scotland too. In fact, 46% of students on agriculture courses run by Scotland's ? College (SRUC) are now women, which is up from 42% last year. Stephanie loves agriculture and hopes to have a future in the industry. Borders College used to struggle to get enough students for its rural ? program. Last year, only 10 students enrolled in the NC Agriculture course. But now, they have their highest ever numbers, with nearly half of the ? being teenage girls. Andrew ?, the head of rural skills, said that they have always had girls applying, but this is the first time they've had so many. In addition to the 25 students studying NC Agriculture, there are 18 more doing the National 5 Modern Agriculture course, and 12 apprentices in ? and mixed farming. Mr. Johnson thinks it's really important to attract young people to the agriculture industry. There are job ? available, and the industry needs new talent to keep growing. The UK government's Environment, Food and Rural Affairs committee has warned before that there might not be enough workers for farming, which could cause permanent damage. The Scottish government has also ? a Women in ? taskforce to help more women make a difference in the sector. Not all of the girls on the Borders College ? have farming backgrounds. For example, Bethany Scott had no experience with agriculture before starting an animal care course. But she was interested in the practical side of the agriculture course and likes how busy and exciting farming can be. The ? at Borders College are confident that more and more students will sign up for agriculture courses in the ?. They already have 18 school pupils ? part in their agriculture pathway program. Many students have shared their positive experiences and dreams of having a farming career. Emily Mulligan, who has a part-time job at a local auction mart, recommends farming to other students who aren't sure what to do. Jessica Damerell, who grew up working on a ? farm, loves being outside and wants to be a farmer. The ? Farmers' Union Scotland (NFU Scotland) is happy about the increase in interest in the industry. They think it's great that young people are passionate about agriculture and want to learn more.

1. What is agriculture and why is it important?
2. How would you feel if you had the opportunity to study agriculture?
3. Do you think it's important for more women to get involved in the agriculture industry? Why or why not?
4. What do you think are some of the job opportunities in the agriculture industry?
5. How would you feel if there weren't enough workers for farming and it caused permanent damage?
6. Do you think it's a good idea for the Scottish government to have a Women in Agriculture taskforce? Why or why not?
7. What is the agriculture pathway program and why is it important?
8. How would you feel if you had a part-time job at a local auction mart like Emily Mulligan?
9. Do you like being outside? Why or why not?
10. How would you feel if you had the opportunity to work on a sheep farm like Jessica Damerell?
11. What do you think the National Farmers' Union Scotland thinks about the increase in interest in the agriculture industry?
12. How would you feel if you had the chance to learn more about agriculture and become a farmer?
13. Do you think it's important for young people to be passionate about agriculture? Why or why not?
14. What are some of the positive experiences that students have had studying agriculture?
15. How would you feel if you were able to make a difference in the agriculture industry?

Click a dot next to a word, then click the dot next to its meaning to draw a line connecting them.

Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.
Check your writing now with the best free AI for English writing!