TYPES OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS

What types of adult education programs have been offered by teachers of agriculture? What programs might a teacher be expected to conduct? There traditionally have been several forms of adult education offered by teachers of agriculture.

Young Farmer Education

Young farmer education has developed as a distinct type of adult education in many states. The young farmer educational program is designed to help young men and women recognize and solve their problems in becoming established in farming and the community. The idea is to help young farmers advance in efficiency and status in agriculture. Those enrolled are usually out-of-school young farmers who are provided systematic instruction designed to be helpful in establishing them in farming. A student may be living at home with parents, working as a farm laborer, as a partner in a farm business, as a farm renter or owner, as a farm manager, as a part-time farmer, or in an agriculturally related occupation. Teachers provide on-farm instruction for the agricultural enterprises.

Adult Farmer Education

Adult farmer programs have traditionally been offered to help farmers and others increase their proficiency in agriculture through systematic instruction. Classes normally are held in the evenings, especially during nonpeak farming seasons, such as during the winter months. Complete programs include year-round individualized on-farm instruction by the agriculture teacher. Adult farmer instruction has evolved in different forms. A brief description of three of the forms follows.

Adult Farmer Seminars. Adult farmer seminars are provided as a series of classes (about fifteen to twenty), usually during the winter months. Some classes dealing with seasonal topics are held at other times. The topics that are studied are planned jointly by the enrollees and the teacher. The topics may appear to be somewhat unrelated to each other. The purpose of the class is to study current problems faced by the farmers. Examples of class topics might include techniques and equipment for improved pesticide application, value-added enterprises, genetic improvement in cattle, or hazard waste identification and disposal.

Adult Farmer Enterprise Classes. Enterprise classes usually involve a series of related sessions. Examples of agricultural enterprises are a corn production enterprise, a soybean production enterprise, a Christmas tree production enterprise, and a dairy herd enterprise. An enterprise class might consist of a series on cotton production or a series on beef herd management.

Even though agricultural mechanics topics are usually not considered enterprises, agricultural mechanics classes might be offered to adults to improve the proficiency of enrollees in a specific area of agriculture. In agricultural mechanics, a series might be offered in global positioning systems, agricultural waste management systems, or other similar areas.

Enrollees in enterprise classes include farmers and others interested in learning more about the enterprise. The specialized nature of these classes, with more time devoted to each topic, enables study in greater depth than is possible in seminar classes.

Adult Farm Business Management Instruction. Farm business management programs are more intensive than the other types of adult farmer instruction. Instructors of adult farm business management programs are usually either full-time or at least part-time adult instructors. These programs emphasize records analysis and management decision making. Instructors provide in-depth help to farmers with individualized on-farm instruction in record keeping and analysis. Formal classes are held year-round.

Adult Education for Agricultural Business

A type of adult instruction with potential for further development is programming for agribusiness professionals and their employees. Such instruction may take various forms but is generally designed to prepare individuals for entry or advancement, or to update employees in the technology of their specialization. Multiple-teacher departments having teachers with specialized expertise might offer courses on such topics as nursery plant propagation or turf management. The turf management course could be planned to serve the needs of golf course greenskeepers. Courses of this nature have more potential in urban areas because of the greater number of potential students interested in highly specialized topics.

Avocational Adult Education

Agriculture teachers in many communities offer adult instruction of an avocational nature. Such classes may deal with gardening, floriculture, home landscaping, beekeeping, garden tractor repair, or other topics of interest to participants. With many people living on a little land there is much interest in communities for these programs.

REASONS FOR ADULT EDUCATION

What is the case for adult education in agriculture? Why should it be offered in the public schools? The concept of continuous or lifelong learning is generally accepted in U.S society. One must, however, have more than an intellectual acceptance of the importance of adult education. The teacher of agriculture should exhibit an operational commitment to the further development of continuing education in agriculture. Adult education is of benefit to those who enroll and to the community in which they reside. Teachers who instruct adults will find that even the instructor benefits.

Benefits to Adult Learners

Agricultural technology is rapidly changing. The education gained in one’s youth needs to be updated. Records analysis has switched from a paper-and-pencil operation to computers. Computer programs are used to balance rations, calculate the proper size of farm machinery, and apply fertilizer at varied rates in the same field. Energy conservation is now more important than in earlier years, and rural/urban interface issues are highly prevalent. These examples illustrate the rapid accumulation of new knowledge that is currently taking place. The adult who continues to study and learn in agriculture will continue to succeed.

Adults desire continuing education to make midcareer changes in occupations or to become more proficient in their current practices. Farmers may attend classes to learn how to better control weeds in their crops. Fertilizer salespersons may attend classes so they can better advise their clients on a broader range of agricultural problems. A basic need of young adults is getting started in an occupation; a basic need of middle-age adults is establishing and maintaining an economic standard of living. Adult classes can be a means of adults achieving their goals.

Adult education fills a social need for the participants. Adults desire to interact with others about their problems and successes. They desire to jointly seek solutions to common problems. Adult education in agriculture can meet social needs. Some adults may form car pools to travel to and from class. Some instructors have an informal dinner to conclude a class and award certificates to participants. These activities fill a social need for some individuals.

Benefits to the Community

The community benefits when its citizens achieve higher levels of education, income, and social consciousness. Adult education has led to early adoption of many agricultural practices. These practices have improved the efficiency of the agricultural enterprise, allowing a small percentage of the population to produce the necessary food and fiber. The remaining portion of the population has been released to produce products and services that have improved the standard of living of the community at large.

Some adult education programs have had a direct impact on the social needs of a community by studying about and acting on such topics as community health, zoning regulations, school financing, and wildlife conservation.

Benefits to the Teacher

The teacher usually finds adult classes to be stimulating and rewarding. Adults attend classes and participate in programs because they want to rather than because they are required to. Motivation is easier.

Teachers who have adult classes often indicate that such classes improve their high school or postsecondary instructional program. They find that the planning required to provide relevant instruction for adults helps also in providing more practical instruction in classes for youth. The wealth of agricultural knowledge learned by a teacher in classes where information is shared among adults can be effectively used at other levels of instruction.

Effective adult instruction builds the reputation of the teacher in the community. This reputation pays off in relationships with other teachers, administrators, and students.

The teacher develops with the adult student a feeling of mutual respect. The teacher needs to respect the adult for the practical experience he or she has gained from years of practice. The adult learner develops respect for the teacher as he or she can relate information to practice. As the teacher visits the adult class members in their places of work, the instructor can share information learned from observing the workplaces of others and from reading literature.

A beginning teacher should consider taking advantage of opportunities to teach adult classes. Adults are supportive of their instructors and will help a class succeed in accomplishing its purposes. The teacher will find adults willing to share the knowledge they possess. The beginning teacher must avoid appearing as a know-it-all and should instead treat the adult students as fellow learners.

CHARACTERISTICS OF ADULT LEARNERS

Do adults learn differently from youth? What are the unique characteristics of adult learners? How should a teacher make use of adult learning characteristics in planning for instruction? It should be emphasized that the principles of learning presented in Chapter 2 are applicable for teaching both youth and adults. The basic ability to learn changes little, if at all, with age. Studies of the same individuals over long periods of time have shown they continue to learn and improve in intellectual ability, at least until they approach the age of sixty. The changes that do occur are changes in health and physical condition, attention, motivation, and ways of viewing experiences.

Physical Characteristics

The speed of performance and reaction time tends to decline with age for adult learners. If one were potting bedding plants in the greenhouse, for example, one should not expect older adults to work at the same speed as younger adults.

Adults also experience physical changes with aging. Some of these changes important in teaching include failing eyesight, loss of hearing, and more frequent illness. Health affects performance on intelligence tests. Therefore, the adult in ill health could be expected to be somewhat impaired in his or her ability to learn. Older adults become increasingly less interested in learning physical skills but often become more interested in intellectual pursuits.

Psychological Characteristics

Adults are a less captive audience than are youth. Adults may elect to remain in or leave a class or program based on their perception of whether it meets their interests. The teacher needs to develop skills in gaining an understanding of what each adult wants and needs, and in creating opportunities for satisfying those desires. Adults may be goal oriented, activity oriented, or learning oriented.

Goal Oriented. A goal-oriented person might be motivated to enroll in adult education because he or she perceives the class as helping to meet a goal. The instruction might help in solving a problem the person wants to solve, or it might help him or her learn to do something needed to accomplish a goal. For example, an adult may have a goal of repairing personal farm machinery. An adult class in welding may be a necessary step in accomplishing the goal. A goal of improving farm income might stimulate participation in a farm business management course. A desire for a promotion at work may lead one to seek additional skills through adult education.

Awards can be motivating factors. They may be given for achievement, attendance, participation in planning committees, and participation in field trials or demonstration plots. The Young Farmer Association (YFA) has many awards that encourage goal-oriented individuals to participate and achieve. A goal-oriented adult usually has the ability and desire to use what is learned by immediately applying the knowledge in practice.

Activity Oriented. An activity-oriented person wants to participate. He or she enjoys working on activities, often with others. This type of person would be motivated to participate in a floral design course primarily to enjoy the activity. A winter swine show might be planned as a part of a series of classes. The show provides opportunity for competition, sociable activity, and additional knowledge.

Learning Oriented. A learning-oriented person would be motivated to participate in adult education because of the desire to learn. More highly educated individuals desire to continue to learn. As more people obtain higher levels of education, the desire of the population to participate in adult education classes will increase. This type of motivation will cause adults to seek avocational and enrichment courses.

Different adults may attend the same class for different reasons. A grain farmer might attend a course on hedging of grain futures to increase income.

Others, however, might attend for the social interaction and still others because they simply want to learn about the topic. An awareness of these motivating forces can help a teacher meet the needs of enrollees.

Attitudinal Characteristics

The older the adult, the more stable are social skills, values, and attitudes. Years of experience may make it more difficult for a person to learn a new skill related to a familiar job. Old habits and attitudes may interfere with new learning. It is easier for an experienced person to learn a completely new task than to learn to do a familiar task in a new way.

Previous opinions or biases can affect the conclusions adults reach. An adult may have great difficulty accepting logical conclusions from evidence if the conclusions seem to be incongruent with a deeply held value or belief. If one believes in organic gardening, the value of using chemicals may be rejected, even though their worth may have been proven in given situations.

Adults bring greater maturity of judgment to learning situations than do youth. It has been shown that adults age forty or older have an advantage in learning information that is related to experience and that calls for sound judgment. Because of more experiences, adults can relate theory to practice more effectively than high school learners. They can evaluate the potential of improved practices and make judgments concerning feasibility in specific situations. Because of the maturity of adults, they are more likely to be discerning and are more likely to reject the irrelevant.

PLANNING FOR ADULT COURSES

The principles discussed in Chapter 3 relating to selection and sequencing of course content also apply to adult instruction. The hours of class time available to teach adults is often less. Adults often like to be involved in course planning decisions. Adults want to study problem areas they perceive as practical and related to their needs. These problem areas may be identified in various ways. The teacher should involve the learners and also research other sources in planning the program of study.

Observing Adult Learning Needs

The best information concerning the needs of adult learners can be obtained by visiting their farms or places of employment. The teacher must visit adult farmers and businesspersons in their specialized areas of teaching in order to keep abreast of developments and plan relevant instruction.

A teacher, through visits to farmers in the community, discovered several who were planning to build swine confinement facilities. The teacher then worked with the farmers to plan a series of classes on the topic. His series enabled mistakes to be avoided by those developing the facilities. Other farmers also participated, and some decided to also develop confinement facilities, whereas others determined that they should not build that type of facility at that time.

Involving Adult Learners

Participants need to share in diagnosing needs, in formulating objectives, and in planning. There can be a sense of shared responsibility for planning and learning.

A teacher in a community with many glass greenhouses observed the inefficient use of energy to heat them. She organized an adult course for the growers relating to energy conservation in glass greenhouses. As a result of the course, many growers installed insulating plastic layers over their greenhouses.

Using Adult Education Planning Committees. Adult education planning committees are useful in identifying topics and planning a program of study. Committee members serve as eyes and ears for the teacher as they observe and listen to others. They can then relate the observed needs of potential participants to the teacher as a program of study is being developed. The teacher can also test with the committee topics and ideas that have been identified through conversation with other agricultural experts or by researching literature.

One teacher has a nine-member adult education planning committee. Class members elect three members of the committee each year for three-year terms. An effort is made to include committee members representative of the various types of agricultural enterprises and the various geographic areas of the community. This committee meets once each year to evaluate the adult education program. It also meets once to plan the program of study for the next year.

Using the Class in Planning. A committee of the whole class can be used in much the same way as an adult planning committee. During a final class session for the year, a discussion can be held concerning problem areas of study for the next year. The teacher can further study the identified topics during the period the class is in recess. Problems relating to the topics can be identified and observed. Information dealing with the problem areas can be accumulated. Then, during the first class session of the new school year, the entire class can review a tentative program of study. A committee of the whole class is normally more effective for relatively small classes. The teacher may come to the class with a tentative course outline and have the class review and make suggestions for improving the course during the first session. This approach can be used with all types of adult classes in agriculture.

The teacher must involve more than current class members in planning an adult education program. There may be adults with unmet needs who have not participated because nothing had been planned for them. By involving such individuals in planning, the community is better served.

Involving Others

Indirect input concerning potential problem areas can be obtained from community leaders and those who do business with the adult learners. Community leaders can identify problem areas related to political decisions. Example problem areas that might be identified by them include:

• Effects of rural zoning
• Impact of industrial plant closing
• Development of an industrial park
• Development of a community recreational area
• Taxation for community services

Those who do business with adult learners often observe problem areas for potential study. They have the opportunity to observe when improved practices are needed. They also hear quickly from their clients when one of their products has failed to solve a problem.

Estimating Future Needs

Research and development information may indicate problem areas that should be discussed in adult classes. The information might identify either an emerging problem or a potential solution to an existing problem.

New laws and regulations often influence what should be taught in adult classes. For example, the law requiring certification of chemical applicators resulted in many adults participating in classes to prepare them to take the certifying examination. Regulations of the Environmental Protection Agency have resulted in adult classes being held to discuss ways of handling agricultural waste products. Permitting regulations for large-scale animal agriculture require adults to continue to further their knowledge.

Census data can be used to detect shifts in agricultural enterprises in a community, or trends in age of farmers and farm workers. These data can serve as a topic of study, or the data might target related topics in need of study. For example, rapid increases in rural/urban interface problems might indicate a need to work with farmers and nonfarmers on topics of mutual concern.

Societal problems and trends can also be important problem areas for study. The plight of migrant farm workers, youth unemployment in the community, or the lack of skilled agricultural workers can serve as the basis of a class for seeking possible solutions to one or more specific problems.

Inform Potential Students of Course Plans

Adults need to be made aware of instructional programs available to them. The teacher will find it frustrating to have a well-planned class arranged and few students in attendance. Good attendance is ensured when a sizeable number of potential students are involved in planning and when there is adequate publicity. Radio, television, newspapers, e-mail listservers, and community bulletin boards should be used to inform potential members of classes. Advisory committee members could commit to each inviting five participants. Some teachers have a telephone network to inform students of classes. Information sheets can be sent home with high school students. Teaching adults involves planning the program of study, informing potential class members, visiting farms and businesses of likely enrollees, lesson planning, conducting the class, and follow-up instruction.

TECHNIQUES FOR ADULT INSTRUCTION

The teacher of agriculture is in a unique position in the community. He or she can be an expert concerning the subject matter of the course to be offered. The teacher also can be thoroughly acquainted with the problems and needs of class members related to the course. In addition, he or she is versed in the use of teaching techniques. All of this information can be orchestrated to provide exemplary programs in local communities.

All adult instruction should be thoroughly planned. Teachers will find they want to be even more ready to teach adult classes than they are for younger students. Preparation may involve preparing visual aids, reading, visits to farms and businesses, securing information, and developing lesson plans. Community resources should be used to the extent possible on each topic of study. The time is well spent as the teacher becomes something of an expert in the area. He or she will be able to use much of the same information prepared for adults in teaching high school or postsecondary classes. The preparation of lesson plans is discussed in Chapter 5. The same planning procedures are recommended for adult classes.

Group Techniques for Teacher Use

Group techniques are presented in Chapter 6. Some, however, are especially suited for use with adults and receive additional emphasis here. Those especially suited for adult instruction include the discussion and panel discussion.

Discussion. The discussion method is highly recommended for use with adults. Discussion provides an opportunity for participation. It involves class members mentally. It brings together the knowledge of the students, with each contribution adding to the total information. Discussion must be kept focused and within the planned time frame. It is the responsibility of the discussion leader to:

1. Encourage the expression of ideas by members of the group.
2. Ensure that facts are available as needed.
3. Ask questions from time to time to give direction to the discussion.
4. Make occasional summaries without injecting personal ideas.
5. Serve as an efficiency expert to smooth out rough spots without using autocratic tactics.^[1]

Discussion involves a general interaction among students and the teacher. In discussions, all students should be seated so they can be seen and heard by all other students. Informality is essential. The leader must keep the class on the subject with focusing comments and questions. The discussion technique is limited in that the information must be already known by discussion members. It needs to be used with other techniques when new information is needed.

Panel Discussion. A panel is usually composed of three to five members. The members should have different expertise, experience, or viewpoints on the topic being presented. A discussion of the topic is usually held among panel members. Participation may also be invited from the class members. The members of the panel should be oriented to the teaching objectives for the class and the problems and concerns of class members.

A variation of panel discussion is the symposium. In the symposium, short presentations are made by each member of the panel. Following the presentations either a panel or general discussion is held.

These techniques are best suited for local experts, especially those with limited teaching ability but with the ability to respond well to questions and interact in an informal way.

Use of Resource People

The use of resource people is common in adult education classes in agriculture. Resource people bring special expertise to the topic of study. In this way, the class can learn information above and beyond that held within the group.

Generally, a teacher who knows the students and their home situations and who has worked with a class is preferred by the students when the teacher has the competence to teach the class. However, there are times when the use of resource people is recommended because of the new insights they can bring to the group.

Resource people should be spaced properly throughout the course. They should not be used as a substitute for the teacher. When resource people are overused, the teacher loses the leadership of the class. One must be especially careful to properly use resource people who represent commercial companies desiring to sell products or services to class members. Teachers must protect the integrity of the school and the class. Classes may fail to accomplish their objectives when a resource person takes over the class and presents a canned program that does not meet the needs of the students.

How then should resource people be properly used? The teacher, and perhaps the planning committee, should review the course of study months ahead of the classes and decide for which sessions resource persons might appropriately be used. A list of possible resource people for each chosen session should be prepared. Other professionals in agriculture may be helpful in making suggestions. At least three months ahead of the class, appropriate arrangements should be made to secure the resource people. A confirming letter should be immediately sent. A reminder letter should follow three to four weeks prior to the session. The teacher should know the exact costs that are involved, including whether there is a fee and who will pay expenses such as meals and travel.

Resource people should have the necessary information to properly prepare for the class. They should know the start and end times, the place of meeting, the expected number of students, the teaching objectives, the questions to be answered, and they should have some information about class members.

Prior to the session, the class should be prepared for the resource person. The topic might be introduced and questions and concerns identified. The class then is prepared to effectively use the resource person. During the session, the resource person should be properly presented to the class. The teacher then has the responsibility of keeping the discussion on topic and either stimulating or discouraging participation, whichever is needed. The teacher also has responsibility for the time schedule. At the end of the session, the resource person should be thanked for participating. The teacher should summarize the discussion, perhaps through use of skillful questioning of class members. Class members should be challenged to think about possible application of what was learned. This summary is sometimes more effective when the beginning of the next class session is devoted to this purpose. The important principle to keep in mind is that the responsibility for the class rests with the teacher, regardless of whether a resource person is used.

Use of Individual Instruction

Individual instruction encourages behavior change by students and speeds adoption of recommended practices. Individual instruction can occur before or after class meetings, at the place of business, on farms, or in the agriculture classroom. Adults desire the advice of the teacher and generally appreciate his or her interest in their problems.

Visits to class members can be used to gain information for later adult class sessions. Visits also develop rapport and open up communications so class members will be more willing to share problems and concerns with the teacher.

The instructor should teach on these visits. A procedure should be adopted to diagnose needs, specify problems, discuss alternative solutions, seek additional information, and make tentative choices concerning the proper procedure to follow. A friendly but businesslike approach should be adopted as the mode of operation. A schedule for visits to enrollees and potential enrollees should be developed and followed. Without such a schedule, these important teaching situations will not occur

EVALUATING ADULT INSTRUCTION

Evaluation of adult learning is usually more informal than for high school students. Grades need not be given. It is desirable to evaluate adult courses in order to assess whether the course was worthwhile and to gain information that would be helpful in making future improvements.

Student Reaction

A good informal method of getting student input for class improvement is simply to have students write on a sheet of paper two or three things they like about the course and two or three things they would like to see improved. The results can be discussed with the class if appropriate, and changes made, when feasible.

Outcome Measures

For each class session, teachers can develop with students a list of practices that might be adopted so that the instruction is applied. These lists can be duplicated. Students can be asked to indicate those they already were using before the session, those they plan to adopt, and those that are not feasible for them. This is a good test of the relevance of the instruction. It also provides information helpful to the teacher for individual instruction in future visits.

Applying Instruction

The payoff from adult instruction results when approved practices are applied on the farms, in the homes, and in the businesses of enrollees. One also desires that students use their new-found knowledge and skills in creative ways to improve their lives. The teacher should, therefore, emphasize the use by students of knowledge gained in adult education in agriculture. There are several effective ways to encourage application of learning. One effective method is to have the adult class plan demonstration plots or field trials of approved practices. Various rates of fertilization, types of weed control, varieties of seed, or types of insecticide control can be evaluated for the situations that exist in the community. Often high school classes can cooperate with adult classes in managing and caring for demonstration plots or field trials. Care must be used in ensuring proper research procedures are followed. The plots provide opportunity for photographs to be taken and used in high school and adult instruction the ensuing year. Adults are more willing to adopt practices that can be demonstrated as being effective.

Follow-up visits by the teacher of agriculture to the farms, homes, or businesses of adult class students are effective in securing adoption of improved practices. Problems related to a specific situation of an individual person can be discussed. In many cases, obstacles that seem to be preventing adoption can be overcome when the teacher discusses possibilities with the adult student.

Follow-up meetings may be important to discuss problems and evaluate progress related to implementing approved practices. Such meetings provide opportunities for adult students with similar problems to share experiences and work out solutions.

The adult education program is evaluated according to the relevance of the topics discussed, the effectiveness of instruction, and the extent to which instruction is useful in the lives of the students.

SUMMARY

Teachers will find working with adults to be stimulating, challenging, and rewarding. Types of programs include young farmer education, adult farmer education, adult education for agricultural business, and avocational adult education. Adult students, the agriculture teacher, and the community benefit from adult education. Adult students are somewhat different from youth in physical, psychological, and attitudinal characteristics. Planning for adult courses involves observing learner needs, involving the learners and others, estimating future needs, and informing potential students of course plans. With adults, discussion, panel discussion, resource people, and individual instruction may be more heavily used than with youth. Evaluation of learning may be more informal but should be oriented to application of learning in the lives and workplaces of the students.

FOR FURTHER STUDY

1. Interview one or more teachers of adult courses. Determine
   1. How course content is determined.
   2. What teaching methods are used.
   3. How adult students differ from high school students.
   4. How visits are conducted.
2. Develop a list of the major characteristics of adult learners.
3. Develop a list of benefits enjoyed by a teacher who teaches adults.
4. Using the information in Chapters 5, 6, and 13, prepare a daily plan to teach an adult class.
5. Accompany an agriculture teacher on an adult visit. List the instructional content discussed and explain the teaching technique used by the instructor.
6. Observe an adult class. Describe the teaching methods used. Contrast how this class differs from secondary classes.
7. Interview three adults. Probe their interests in continuing education. Write a case study based on each interview.