eChapters

Extension teaching methods: Methods by using them new information can

pass freely between the extension worker and rural communities. Extension

education is mainly concerned with the dissemination of useful and practical

information relating to rural life and helping the rural people in the practical

application of such knowledge to rural situations. Extension teaching methods

can be classified on the basis of:

Some Definition

Farmer’s call: Call made by a farmer or homemaker at the working place of

the extension agent for getting information.

Adoptive/minikit trial: It is a method of determining the suitability of a new

practice in farmer’s situation.

Farm clinic: It is a facility developed for diagnosis and treatment of farm

problems and provides specialist advice to individual farmers.

Field day/ Farmer’s day: Methods of motivating the people to adopt a new

practice by showing what has actually been achieved by applying the practice

under field condition.

Communication word comes from Latin ‘Communis’ - Common

Communication: The communication is the process of human interaction in

which one person communicates a message/idea to another person.

Diffusion: It is the process by which an innovation/new idea/new technique

spreads.

According to Rogers (1983) ‘Communication is the process by which the

message is transmitted from the source to the receiver’.

Function of communication

1. Informative

2. Instructive/Command

3. Influence/Persuasive

4. Integrative

Communicator: Person who starts the process of communication OR he is the

sender of message

Message: It is the information the communicator wishes his audience to

receive, understand and act upon

Encoding: It is a process of interpreting the message

Decoding: It is a process of receiving the message

Research: The word research is composed of two words “Re” and “Search”.

“Re” - ‘Again or over again or a new’.

“Search” - ‘To examine closely and carefully’ or ‘to test and try’.

Research is a careful, systematic, patient study and investigation in some field

of knowledge undertaken to establish principles / policies.

Science: It is a systematized knowledge derived through observation,

experimentation or any other systematic method or procedure in order to

determine the nature of phenomenon or process being studied or the causes

behind specific events.

Research Methodology: The study of conducting research is research

methodology.

Pure/Basic/Fundamental Research: Gathering, knowledge is termed as

‘pure’ or ‘basic’ research. Just to gather knowledge in order to formulate or

generalize theories or policies. Pure research involves developing and testing

theories and hypotheses that are intellectually challenging to the researcher but

may or may not have practical application at the present time or in the future.

Father of sociology: Auguste Comte

The term sociology was coined by Auguste Comte (1789-1875).

Sociology word comes from two roots i.e. Latin word ‘socius’ meaning companion Greek word ‘logos’ meaning speech or reasoning.

Sociology: Sociology is the scientific study of human social behavior and its origins, development, organizations, and institutions. It is a social science that uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social actions, social structure and functions.

Rural sociology: The study of social life of peoples lives in rural areas.

Social organization: The study of the various institutions, social groups, social stratification, social mobility, bureaucracy, ethnic groups and relations, and other similar subjects such as education, politics, religion, economy etc.

Social psychology: The study of human nature as an outcome of group life, social attitudes, collective behavior, and personality formation.

Social change: Alteration in the structure and function of society. It may be structural, functional and cultural changes and it deals with the study of such current problems in society such as juvenile delinquency, criminality, drug addiction, family conflicts, divorce, population problems etc.

The Constitution of India related to women

Guarantees to all Indian women equality: Article 14

No discrimination by the State: Article 15(1)

Equality of opportunity: Article 16

Equal pay for equal work: Article 39(d)

Securing just and humane conditions of work and for maternity relief: Article 42

The All India Women’s Education Conference was held in Pune in 1927

The National Policy For the Empowerment of Women came was passed in 2001

In 2010 March 9, Rajya Sabha passed the Women’s Reservation Bill requiring that 33% of seats in India’s Parliament and state legislative bodies be reserved for women.

Women perform 2/3 of the world’s work

Women earn 1/10 of the world’s income

Women comprise 2/3 of the world’s illiterate

Women own less than 1/100 of the world’s property

Father of Extension: James Stuart •

Word Extension: Derived from Latin roots “ex” - Out “tensio” - Stretching

Extension term originated in England as University Extension in 1866.

The term Extension Education first used in 1873 by Cambridge University.

Philosophy of Extension (Kelsey and Hearne, 1967): How to think.

Binet test: Intelligence test (IQ)

Function of Extension: Change in Attitude, Skill and Knowledge of an individuals.

Extension Education Process: Extension education is a participative and continuous process

Learning Situation: It is a condition or environment in which all the elements necessary for promoting learning are present.

Elements of effective learning situations in Extension are:

 

Introduction

Focus of extension agencies on production technologies yielded very good results andhence India become self reliant on food production. Significantly,the extension systemhadplayedits role untiringlyintransfer ofproductiontechnologies from lab to land, besides the agricultural scientists, farmers and marketing network. But the farmers at individual level are not realizing remunerative prices for their produce. Add to this, the Indian farmers have to face challenges of global force that are affecting or are likely to affect Indian agriculture. This assumes greater significance in the light of the new international trading regime under WTA and the export opportunities being opened up. 

Adoption

Adoption is a decision to make full use of an innovation as the best course of action available.

Steps in adoption process

Ryan and Gross (1943) were probably the first to recognize that the adoption of a new idea consisted of stages. They distinguished between awareness of hybrid seed cron conviction of its usefulness, trial acceptance and complete adoption of the innovation.

Adoption is essentially a decision making process. According to Johnson and Haver (1955), decision making involves the following steps.

Diffusion

Diffusion is the process by which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among the members of a social system (Rogers & Shoemaker, 1971).

Innovation

Innovation is an idea, practice or object that is perceived as new by an individual or otherunit of adoption.

Adoption

Adoption is a decision to make full use of an innovation as the best course of action available.

Agricultural Journalism

Journalism refers to the production and distribution of reports on recent events. The word journalism applies to the occupation, using methods of gathering information andutilizing literary techniques. Various forms ofjournalistic mediums include: print, television, radio, Internet and in the past: newsreels. The activity or profession of writing for newspapers, magazines, ornews websites or preparing news to be broadcast. The difference between Farm journalism and general journalism.

Models Definitions

In social science research a model is a tentative description of what a social process, say the communication process or a system might be like. It is atool of explanation and analyses, very often in a diagrammatic form, to show how the various elements of a situation being studied relate to each other.

What is a Model?

Origin

The term communication stems from the Latin word “Communis” meaning “common”. This implies that when we communicate, we are trying to establish ‘commonality’ with someone through a message. Communication, then, is a conscious attempt to establish ce, it is a process of getting a source and a receiver tuned together for a particular message or a series of message.

Definitions of communication

1. Farm Publication

Is a class of publications prepared by the extension agency in printed form, containing information relating to the improvement of farm and home. Farm publications are of various types such as leaflet, folder, bulletin, newsletter, journal and magazine. Farm publications may be used singly or in combination with other extension methods.

Objectives

1. To reach a large number of people quickly and simultaneously at a low cost.
2. To provide accurate, motivating, credible and distortion free information.

1. Result demonstration

It is a method of motivating the people for adoption of a new practice by showing its distinctly superior result. The demonstrations are conducted in the farm or home of selected individuals and are utilized to educate and motivate groups of people in their neighborhood. This is a very effective method for the transfer of technology in a community.

Objectives

1. To show the advantages and applicability of a newly recommended practice in farmer’s own situation.

Extension Teaching

• Extension teaching defined as a sequence of progressive steps, undertaken to create situations that are conducive to effective learning.
• According to Leagans (1961) extension methods are the devices used to create situation in which communication can takeplace between the instructor and learner.
• The purpose of using an extension teaching method is to create opportunities to establish rapport over a subject matter between the communicator and learners.

Training Need Assessment

Training Need Assessment (TNA) is the method of determining if a training need exists and, if it does, what training is required to fill the gap. TNA seeks to identify accurately the levels of the present situation in the target surveys, interview, observation, secondary data and workshop.

An assessment process that serves as a diagnostic tool for determining what training needs to take place. 

Training

Training represents activities that teach employees how to better perform their jobs. Training is a powerful tool in the hands of development professional to catalyze human resources. Training is a process of acquiring specific skills to perform ajob better.

Training as the act of increasing the skills of an employee for doing a particular job

Training always aim at lasting improvement on the job. It is primarily organized not for learning more but to behave differently in own endeavors

Introduction

PTD refers to the creative process of joint experimentation and research by farmers and development agents (such as extension workers) in discovering ways of improving farmers’ livelihoods. Experimentation and innovation are natural and necessary to farmers. Before formal research and extension services existed, farmers’ own experimentation allowed adaptation to new situations, to survive and to improve their livelihoods, where conditions were favorable.This is still the case today, even where farmers have access to external support. Many development projects and extension agencies are appreciating farmers’ informal experimentation as a springboard for developing locally appropriate technologies.

History of Expert System

Expert systems were introduced by researchers in the Stanford Heuristic Programming Project, including the “father of expert systems” Edward Feigenbaum, with the Dendral and Mycin systems. Principal contributors to the technology were Bruce Buchanan, Edward Shortliffe, Randall Davis, Williamvan Melle, Carli Scott, and others at Stanford. Expert systems were among the first truly successful forms of AI software. In the 1980s, expert systems proliferated as they were recognized as a practical tool for solving real- world problems. Universities offered expert system courses and two thirds of the Fortune 1000 companies applied the technology in daily business activities.

Agri portals

• Website that serves as a gateway or a main entry point (‘cyber door’) on the internet to a specific field of interest or an industry.
• A portal provides at least four essential services.
  1. Search engine(s).
  2. Email.
  3. Links to other related sites and.
  4. Personalized content.
  5. It may also provide other facilities such as chat, members list, free downloads, etc.