05. Conference Proceedings & Working Papers

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Browsing 05. Conference Proceedings & Working Papers by Subject "Agricultural Extension"

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    Open Access
    Alternative Learning Platforms for Agri-Students through e-Mediation: An initiative of agMOOCs
    (2019-09) Jirli, Basavaprabhu; Sarma, Birinchi Kumar; Singh, Abhishek
    Agricultural education in India is offered through a network of 75 State Agricultural Universities, f ive Deemed Universities , four Central Universities with faculty of Agriculture, three Central Agricultural Universities and few privately owned colleges of agriculture affiliated to traditional sta te universities. Each Agricultural University has a number of constituent colleges. However, p aucity of quality faculty has remained an emerging issue. S pecialization of the faculty also matter s while imparting education. Providing q uality inputs to the learners spread over large geographical area demands e - Mediation. One such platform was created by Commonwealth of Learning (COL) and Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur entitled “agMOOCs” in 2015 .The courses offered through the platform h a ve attracted participa nts from eve ry state of India and seven countries. The paper is a partial analysis of the efforts of agMOOC s in penetrating agricultural education system as an alternative platform for students of agriculture and allied sciences . More than tw o lakh learners have accessed courses so far . The feedback of learners is highly encouraging. So far the author s ha ve offered t hree courses in agMOOC s platform during 2017 and 2018 . The highest number of learners registered in a course was 48 84 . There is an increasing trend in number of registrations on the platform, which shows effectiveness of the course s and penetration among agricultural fraternity. Age of majority registered learners was up to 24 years (76 per cent). More than 65 per cent offered courses to enhance their knowledge. Home was the most preferred place of access (65 per cent). About 60 percent learners preferred the agMOOCs app to access course contents. Gender and preference of app are not independent of each other, Gender and age of participants are not independent, there was no association between range of learners and relevancy of quiz. There exists association between range of learners and pace of content delivery. //Paper ID 40
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    Open Access
    Assisting Severely Disadvantaged Agricultural Areas in Pakistan: The Potential for Improving the Interaction and Effectiveness of Development Partners Research, Extension and Village Religious Leaders
    (2010-11) Khan, Nowshad
    At present, in the NWFP of Pakistan, village religious leaders play no formal role in agricultural development. Yet, historically they have had functional involvement in other development sectors such as education through the mosque schools programme (Government of Pakistan, 1985). Hidayat Ullah (1986) recommended that programmes need to be developed for the possible involvement of religious leaders in agricultural development. Yet since then, little direct action to bring this about has been forthcoming which is particularly unfortunate given the continuing difficulties with information transmission of complex agricultural issues being experienced by disadvantaged farming communities in the NWFP highlighted by Nowshad Khan, 1999. // Moreover, available literature on research in Pakistan into the potential involvement of religious leaders in agricultural development is largely lacking. Yet, this kind of study has been occasionally conducted in other Islamic countries. Fernandez (1989) reported that the mosque, as a local and indigenous institution in the Malay community (Malaysia), can be utilized as an effective channel to reach the majority of village farmers. He noted that the content of the Friday address at the mosque was not necessarily on religious matters per se but could also relate to community, national and developmental issues like agriculture, health, nutrition and the need to participate in development projects. As religious leaders have been used as a successful motivational force for change in other Islamic and non-Islamic countries, the hypothesis, that they could contribute a role in an improved model of agricultural information transfer in disadvantaged agricultural communities in the NWFP, is not unreasonable (Alebikiya et al. 1993; Morner and Hansen, 1991; Webb, 1990).
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    Blended Learning using agMOOCs as a Tool for Professional Development: A Case of Students of Agriculture in India
    (2022-09) Jirli, Basavaprabhu; Maji, Saikat
    PCF10 Sub-theme: Inspiring Innovations // According to University Grants Commission (a body of Government of India) Blended learning is an instructional methodology, a teaching and learning approach that combines face-to-face classroom methods with computer mediated activities to deliver instruction. agMOOCs a learning platform for students of agriculture and allied sciences has developed 22 MOOCs so far on agriculture and allied sciences since 2015. The platform was developed by Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (India) in collaboration with Commonwealth of Learning, Vancouver. Of which the author has offered three courses on agricultural extension. More than two million students have accessed the courses on agMOOCs platform and benefitted in their learning activities. In the last couple of years during the global pandemic period the educational activities were also facing difficulties. An effort was made to adopt the blended learning methodology for masters’ students of agriculture at Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi. The method of participant observation and discussion with learners were used to collect the data. Whole enumeration was the sample size. The data was analysed using descriptive qualitative methods by adopting steps viz., i. quick data, ii. Coding data, iii. Qualitative analysis and Quantitative analysis iv. Interpretation of results. Students were asked to go through the videos, PPTs and transcripts available on the platform before coming to the class. The classes were organised in hybrid mode (online as well as offline). The respective topics scheduled for the day were discussed in the class instead of explaining the contents as in case of regular classes. The results of the study reveal that 1. Enhancement in the grasping ability of students 2. Improvement in analysing the concepts and contents of the course 3. Enhanced interaction with course instructor 4. Surge in academic discussion abilities of learners 5. Augmentation in framing questions to be asked in the classroom. The challenges while using the methodology include maintaining learners interest over a period of time, preparation of contents for circulation before to be brief enough and providing exhaustive resources for the learners. // Paper ID 4289
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    Open Access
    Capacity building of agriculture extension officers and farmers in ICT skills to minimize the digital divide and construct a sustainable social learning capital capable of using ICT for knowledge acquisition and sharing
    (2013-11) Senadheera, Prasad; Kulasekara, Geetha U; Watthewidanage, Jayantha; Perera, Pradeepa; Senevirathne, M A P K; Prabash, Dineth; Coomaraswamy, Uma
    Traditionally majority of the rural farming community in Sri Lanka rely on agriculture extension officers for advice, guidance and training opportunities on crop cultivation, particularly due to government assistance schemes in agriculture. Ongoing COL-L3F project implemented by the Open University of Sri Lanka (OUSL) recognized that it was an essential pre-requisite to develop ICT skills in the officers involved with agri-extension services to establish a sustainable ICT based knowledge acquisition system in farming community. Preliminary survey revealed that 37 % of 175 officers who underwent training had prior exposure to ICT, whereas only 22% of them used it in extension services. Although 26% had an exposure to the internet, less than 10% used it for knowledge acquisition. Farming community had no prior knowledge in ICT. A programme was developed by OUSL to train 175 officers involved in agri-extension service in the Department of Export Agriculture along with some farmers from the farming community. The programme consists of a ‘bridge course’ in ICT, custom made modules on application of ICT in agriculture, knowledge acquisition through ODL and use of OER was offered by OUSL. Results of the summative assessments, quantitative and qualitative studies conducted by means of a questionnaire and interviews revealed that 80% of officers (140 ) have successfully completed the examinations and qualified for OUSL certificate on computer literacy. Sixty-six percent of them have planned ICT based activities for extension service. Sixty percent claimed that their ICT literacy level increased at least to ‘average level’ from ‘unfamiliar’ or ‘new comer’ status. Eighteen percent stated that they are at the level of ‘adaptation’ or ‘creative application’ on applying ICT in agriculture. Many have acquired skills in ODL and use of OER for knowledge acquisition. Motivated by the programme, farmers are in the process of building an IT resource center in the village. // Paper ID: 427
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    The Role of Distance Education and E- learning in Agricultural Extension Services
    (2013-11) Mundi, Nda E; Tenebe, Vincent A
    Education has very significance and strategic role in all aspects of the development of any nation. Distance education and e-learning role in agriculture extension services is a viable mechanism for the upliftment of the standard of education and in the dissemination of advanced and adequate teaching. Distance education has become a popular method of instruction, especially for those with demanding full-time jobs or who find it difficult to invest time and expense in travel. The increasing improved connectivity to the internet and rapid development in mobile access in Africa accelerates the promotion of e-learning to provide quality higher education on the continent. To this end, this paper examines the role of distance education and e-learning in agricultural extension services. It discusses the concepts of distance education and e-learning, Agricultural Extension as a concept, functions of Agricultural Extension Agents (AEAs). Finally, it highlights the current trends in the training of AEAs through ODL and e-learning to fill in their deficiency gap. // Paper ID: 484