Extension

Creating Concept Maps

Concept maps are one way to make content easier for learners to process and understand. These instructional tools are a great way to simplify information by allowing learners to visualize complex processes, and they also engage learners’ creativity and higher order thinking skills.

Concept maps simplify complex information by showing relationships using lines and boxes. Regardless of the type of information being presented, all concept maps have a central idea. Depending on the relationship type, a concept map can illustrate a sequence of events, a cycle or steps in a process. They are visually appealing and convey information quickly.

Using Groups and Teams Effectively

Utilizing groups and teams in educational programming capitalizes on synergy, the effect of working together to achieve something that could not have been achieved through the efforts of individuals (Rees, 2001). Today’s complex problems and issues require a variety of thoughts, ideas and experiences to develop the solutions and creative approaches necessary to solve problems and work within these issues for local communities, farmer associations and others.

Objectives

• Address the fundamentals of working in groups and teams
• Examine challenges of working with groups and teams
• Describe various types of group and team learning

Writing Instructional Objectives

A behavioral objective, also called a performance, instructional or learner objective, is “an intent communicated by a statement describing a proposed change in a learner – a statement of what the learner is to be like when he/she has successfully completed a learning experience” (Mager, 1984). Or, an objective is a statement of an observable behavior that the learner is to exhibit at the close of a program, course or learning session. Stated in another way, a behavioral objective is a description of a proposed behavioral change that the teacher wants to bring about in a learner — change in either the cognitive, psychomotor or affective domain of learning.

A performance objective is a three-part statement of what, in measurable terms, the learner must do to master a behavior (performance). A true performance objective has three identifiable parts: (1) a description of the behavior (performance), (2) the conditions under which the behavior (performance) will be measured and (3) the criterion that states how well the behavior must be performed to be considered mastered.

Applying Gender-Responsive Value-Chain Analysis in Extension and Advisory Services

The most recent shifts in agricultural extension and advisory services (EAS) parallel the growing complexity of the global food system. A diversity of actors, from smallholder farmers to multinational food corporations, each with different needs, objectives, strengths and weaknesses now operate in the sector. Not only do they each have their own concerns, they may work in different ways with different partners, increasing the challenges of coordinating the different elements of domestic and internationally-oriented agricultural value chains. Women, who are estimated to comprise about 43% of the agricultural labor force in developing country agriculture (FAO 2011: 5), are among this group of new and newly recognized actors in these networks. Managing the global food system must contend with demands for efficiency and sustainability while at the same time encouraging greater equity in access and participation.

The value chain construct has emerged as a popular approach because it provides an analytical tool to address these challenges and to shape implementation of agricultural programming. Value chain analysis is used to clarify market relationships, coordinate the delivery of inputs, improve information flows, and monitor the quantity and quality of products.

Presenting Workshops to Adults

Workshops are a popular method for disseminating new information and teaching new skills to adults. Knowles (1980) coined the term andragogy to describe the art and science of helping adults learn. Teaching adults in a workshop setting requires educators to implement the principles of andragogy as they would in other educational settings, yet workshops also have some unique characteristics. Adults attend workshops for a variety of reasons. Some may be forced to be there by supervisors while others may just be looking for social interaction with other adults. Still others may have a specific problem they want solved or they may just be driven by the desire to learn more about your topic. Any workshop session will most likely contain individuals with all of these needs. It is the workshop designer and presenter’s challenge to identify these needs and find the best way to address them.

Objectives

• List the six keys to teaching adults.
• Identify the four keys characteristics of a workshop.
• Define the three types of workshop interaction.
• Apply experiential leaning theory in a workshop setting.

Developing and  Using Case Studies

The case method has been widely used in business and law courses for many years and is now being used in several disciplines. Generally, case method discussions produce good learner involvement. Case methods, like other problem-based methods, are intended to develop the learners’ ability to solve problems using knowledge, concepts, and skills relevant to an issue. Cases provide contextualized learning, as contrasted with learning disassociated from meaningful contexts. Cases are typically descriptions of problem situations in the field in which the case is being used. Sometimes they are summaries constructed to represent a particular principle or type of problem. For example, in medicine a case may describe a patient and the patient’s symptoms; in psychology the case might describe a group facing a decision; in biology the case might describe an environmental problem. Whatever the case, it typically involves the possibility of several alternative approaches or actions and some evaluation of values and costs that require the learner not only to apply content but also to consult other resources.

Objectives

After reading this technical paper, one should be able to:

• Define what the case study method is
• Identify attributes of a good case study
• Write a case study for use in extension
• Use a case study to enhance problem solving skills and encourage participant discussion

Principles of Teaching and Learning

How we teach, regardless of the audience or the subject matter, must be based in the science of how people learn. Research has identified a series of principles of teaching and learning that help guide field agents and others in how they plan for and conduct educational programs. Further, research has shown clear linkages between what teachers do (their behavior) and how well the learners or clients learn. In this paper we will discuss various principles and teacher behaviors and propose how field agents and other instructional staff can build upon them to be more effective teachers and knowledge brokers.

An extensive listing of teaching and learning principles has been identified in the work of Crunkilton and Krebs as well as Newcomb et.al. The attached document is a condensed version of those principles, with topics to consider in preparing and conducting educational programs for local farmers and others. The principles are presented in five major categories: Organization and Structure of Subject Matter, Motivation, Reward and Reinforcement, Techniques of Instruction, and Transfer of Learning.