University Extension Commons^™

Perceptions Of Professionals, Faculty, And Students Regarding The Implementation Of An Agricultural Communications Degree Program In The United Kingdom, Jefferson D. Miller, Abby Davis, Kobina D. Fanyinkah, Alex Mcleod, Casandra Cox, K. Jill Rucker

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of professionals, faculty, and students regarding the implementation of an agricultural communications degree program in the United Kingdom (U.K). It aimed to gather detailed opinions to aid in the planning of future agricultural communications curricula in the U.K., where no formal academic programs in this discipline exist in higher education. This study used a qualitative approach in the form of interviews to gain in-depth opinions on four different research objectives. Participants were pooled from three different demographic groups in the U.K: industry professionals, faculty, and students. These stakeholder expressed that …

Drivers Of Farmers’ Adoption Of Hermetic Storage Bags In Ghana, Namah Taku-Forchu, Misty D. Lambert, Michael S. Retallick, Jonathan D. Ulmer, George P. Opit

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

Post-harvest loss is a global challenge due to its serious threat to food security. Hermetic storage bags offer one way to combat the loss of food after harvest. The rate at which farmers adopt hermetic bags largely depends upon their access to information and training about the technology. The adoption of hermetic storage bags in Dormaa, Ghana, was the focus of this quantitative cross-sectional research study. This study sought to describe maize farmers’ perceptions of the hermetic storage bags in Dormaa, Ghana, based on the perceived innovation attributes and to ascertain farmers’ stages of adoption of the hermetic storage bags …

The Intersection Of Gender, Media, And Policy: A Qualitative Analysis On Thai Newspaper Coverage Of Women In Agriculture, Morgan A. Richardson Gilley, Richie Roberts, J. Joey Blackburn, Kristin Stair

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

Women empowerment and gender equality have been found to be statistically significant and positive predictors of global agricultural development. Therefore, reducing gender disparities can encourage economic progress and growth in developing nations. As such, determining effective ways to stimulate social progress and women’s empowerment has emerged as a critical need. One strategy used to raise the public’s consciousness about gendered issues in Thailand has been through mass media. In response, this study aimed to (1) determine to what extent Thailand’s newspaper coverage focused on topics related to women and the agricultural industry; and (2) describe how women in agriculture …

Determinants Of Performance In Smallholder Farmer Groups In Uganda, David Agole, Connie D. Baggett, John C. Ewing, Edgar P. Yoder, Margaret N. Mangheni

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

The performance of farmer groups is critical for the success of the farmer-led Agricultural Extension approach currently used in Uganda. This study examines factors affecting performance of farmer groups accessing agricultural extension and advisory services from the National Agricultural Advisory Services in Eastern Uganda. The study collected data 200 members of 19 farmer groups in Eastern Uganda. Performance of farmer groups was the dependent variable, which was perceived to be influenced by individual members’ objectives, participation culture, power distance, structure of task, perceived equity, reward allocation and participation in group activities. Farmer group performance had a statistically significant positive relationship …

Exploring The Impacts Of Lead Farmer Selection On Community Social Learning: The Case Of Farmer-To-Farmer Model: A Review Of Literature, Willis Ochieng, Colby J. Silvert, John Diaz

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

Agricultural extension has shifted towards community-centric, farmer-centered, and participatory approaches that enhance rural change through a social learning lens, resulting in the emergence of the farmer-to-farmer extension model. The purpose of the study was to understand lead farmer selection criteria within the farmer-to-farmer model and their impacts on community social learning. We applied Torraco’s (2005) integrative literature review method to guide our discussion around lead farmer selection processes, types of lead farmers selected and their impacts on social learning. The study indicated farmer-to-farmer extension model has the potential of re-invigorating the provision of agriculture extension services owing to its low …

The Exploration Of Undergraduate Attitudes And Knowledge About International Agricultural Issues And Us Agricultural Policy, Caitlin Bletscher, Megan Gould, Shuyang Qu

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

In today’s globalized world, educators and employers generally agree on the necessity for undergraduate agricultural [ag] students to develop a sound understanding of global ag issues and policy. Because of this, many U.S. universities have promoted internationalizing curriculum and increased international study abroad experiences. However, few studies have examined the impact of international experiences on students’ knowledge and attitudes about international ag issues and policies. This study bridges this gap by identifying the relationship between student knowledge and attitude toward international ag issues and U.S. ag policy, and how international experience and demographic variables play a role in that relationship. …

Building Global Leaders Through Field Research And Extension Experiences In Belize, Tom Gill, Adam S. Willcox

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

One of the most complex agricultural and natural resources challenges of our time is reconciling sustainable global food security and biodiversity conservation. Providing undergraduate students effective, learning experiences to develop technical and cultural competency prepares them to address this challenge and become global leaders in their disciplines. A three-year experiential research and extension project brought together 14 students and 10 faculty mentors to investigate smallholder farmers practicing conservation-compatible adjacent to the Vaca Forest Reserve in Belize. We used an agroecological approach to foster systems-level thinking and develop transdisciplinary skills of undergraduate students. Students completed applied individual research projects that explored …

It’S Who We Are: New Approaches, Supported By Evidence, Jack Elliot, Jessica R. Spence, Ignacie Tumushime, Meikah Dado, Ana Casas, Olawunmi Ilesanmi, Megan Gould, Mathilde Le Bon

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

This issue poses the question, “Where do we go from here?” Agricultural and extension educators are well equipped to grow, reimagine, and improve our work. First, we go to our foundational training and educational background and apply those key principles in a new contextual setting.

1) Although we never left the country, we built a virtual study abroad using Kolb’s model (1984) of experiential learning to incorporate all four phases into our VHIE teaching and learning process. 2) Creating the SPS Policy Framework for Africa introduced our team to the Continental SPS Committee, which provided credibility to conduct two virtual …

Three Mini-Ethnographic Case Studies On Covid: Impacts On Greek Agricultural Sectors, Kim E. Dooley, Evangelos Vergos, Kyriaki Zinoviadou, Konstantinos Rotsios

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

COVID was politically polarizing, had global and public health impacts, and created havoc in supply chains. Social dilemmas caused by the pandemic were difficult, but also created opportunities to be resilient and innovative in agricultural extension education. This mini-ethnographic case study examined three Greek agricultural sectors from the perspectives of experts in extension and higher education. Data included semi-structured interviews, review of technical reports, and photographs in developing each case study. From the cross-case analysis, there were four emerging themes: environmental, economic, and social impacts and the innovative solutions used to address these concerns. What we have learned, and where …

Higher Education Leadership Development During The Covid-19 Pandemic: An Exploration Of Online Learner Readiness, Kevan W. Lamm, Alyssa Powell, L. Rochelle Sapp, Alexa Lamm

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

The COVID-19 pandemic precipitated profound disruptions across the higher education sector as institutions were forced to restructure entire systems and operate with significantly reduced resources. Most notably, many institutions were forced to transition to fully virtual instruction. The present study examined adult leadership development program participants’ perceptions of online learning readiness during the transition to a fully virtual training environment precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. A census of the 2020 LEAD21 class was taken, and perceptions of online learning readiness were collected via a retrospective pre- and post-test. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used. Respondents had the highest levels of …

Training, Trust, And Technology: A Mixed-Methods Study Of Latin American Extension Workers’ Experiences During Covid-19, Pablo Lamiño Jaramillo, Amy Boren-Alpizar, Sarahi Morales Vanegas, Carla Millares-Forno

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically affected people's lives around the world, including agricultural extension workers. To date, few studies have been conducted to understand the adaptation of extension services in Latin American countries during the pandemic. This mixed-methods study explored Latin-American extension professionals’ preparation to implement knowledge-sharing activities and sought to understand extension professionals' responsiveness to COVID-19. The results revealed significant differences in extension responsiveness, between field extension workers and in-office extension workers. Delving into this difference revealed that field extension professionals perceived lower responsiveness because they were not able to continue their pre-pandemic, face-to-face activities in the field with …

Whose Journey To Self-Reliance? Participation In The Journey To Self-Reliance And The Land-Grant Imaginary, Lia R. Kelinsky-Jones, Kim L. Niewolny

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

Land-grant university and civil society development actors have long partnered with local and global communities to eliminate food insecurity. Despite the common aim of addressing food insecurity as a wicked problem, their approaches and designs differ in scope and scale. Similarly, levels of local stakeholder participation in agricultural development historically vary reflecting the complexity in relinquishing hierarchal decision-making power. In this pilot study, we investigated how participation is framed within the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) policy, “The Journey to Self-Reliance”. Subsequently, we sought to understand the implications of this framing on land-grant universities’ agricultural development aims in …