AET & the Nebraska SAE Record Book

It’s all about… planning, management, measurement and student success.

True learning occurs in more places than just the classroom.  When students apply knowledge by their own choosing in their lives (oftentimes away from school), they transfer their learning into experience which oftentimes leads to a successful career.  A student’s Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) is a formal way to gain that experience under the supervision of their agricultural teacher.

Student SAEs may consist of internship/placement opportunities, entrepreneurial/ownership ventures, personal research/agriscience projects, student-led service-learning, a student-led school-based enterprise, or be of an exploratory nature.  Students document their projects through an electronic portfolio known as an SAE Record Book.  In this, they track their personal goals, skills attained, and financial records for their business and personal lives.  Instruction within the classroom and at visitations from the teacher enable students to make wise decisions for themselves year-round and into their future careers and lives.

 

The Nebraska Agricultural Educators Association membership voted to adopt the Agricultural Experience Tracker (AET) as the official

record-keeping system for Nebraska Agricultural Education programs.  The FFA Board of Directors also adopted a policy AET record books must be utilized for state-level FFA applications (Nebraska FFA Degree and Proficiency Awards).  Schools are responsible for maintaining their own subscriptions to this curriculum service.  Click below to access AET!

AET Student Login  AET Teacher Login

SAE for All

In 2015 the Council approved a document that would set forth philosophies and guiding principles intended to address student barriers and provide a path to 100% SAE engagement in the modern classroom. The following are some highlights of the work that was adopted:

  • There should be an expansive set of SAE types for students to choose from such as:
    • Foundational SAE
      • Career exploration & planning
      • Personal financial planning and management
      • Workplace Safety
      • Employability skills for college and career readiness
      • Agricultural Literacy
    • Immersion SAE
      • Entrepreneurship/Ownership
      • Placement/Internships
      • Research (Experimental, Analytical, Invention)
      • School Business Enterprises
      • Service Learning

To assist instructors with implementation of SAE for ALL the Council undertook development of multiple resources for use in the classroom.  A student and teacher guide to SAE for ALL along with individual learning guides associated with each component of the program are available at The Council website.  In addition to PDF files of these resources the Council has also provided an online platform for delivery of the same content to students.

Additional Resources from Nebraska:
Nebraska Foundation SAE Presentation from 2019 Fall Workshops
Foundational SAE Portfolio created by Brandon Jacobitz
Foundational SAE Video created by Brandon Jacobitz
Foundational SAE Example created by Kurt VanDeWalle

Updated February 1, 2023 9:57pm