Strengthening agricultural extension training: Process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate agricultural extension curriculum in South Africa

Assessment of process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate (UG) agricultural extension curriculum can assist in developing competency-based curricula which in turn could enhance the efficiency of agricultural extension and advisory services (AEAS) in South Africa. The Michigan State Universit...

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Autores principales: von Maltitz, Lindie, Davis, Kristin E., Suvedi, Murari, Chanza, Charity, Agwu, Ekwe Agwu, Sasidhar, P. V. K., Ukamaka, Mabel Dimelu, Liverpool-Tasie, Lenis Saweda, Anugwa, Ifeoma Quinette, Tchuwa, Frank
Formato: Informe técnico
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: Michigan State University Press 2023
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/140055
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author von Maltitz, Lindie
Davis, Kristin E.
Suvedi, Murari
Chanza, Charity
Agwu, Ekwe Agwu
Sasidhar, P. V. K.
Ukamaka, Mabel Dimelu
Liverpool-Tasie, Lenis Saweda
Anugwa, Ifeoma Quinette
Tchuwa, Frank
author_browse Agwu, Ekwe Agwu
Anugwa, Ifeoma Quinette
Chanza, Charity
Davis, Kristin E.
Liverpool-Tasie, Lenis Saweda
Sasidhar, P. V. K.
Suvedi, Murari
Tchuwa, Frank
Ukamaka, Mabel Dimelu
von Maltitz, Lindie
author_facet von Maltitz, Lindie
Davis, Kristin E.
Suvedi, Murari
Chanza, Charity
Agwu, Ekwe Agwu
Sasidhar, P. V. K.
Ukamaka, Mabel Dimelu
Liverpool-Tasie, Lenis Saweda
Anugwa, Ifeoma Quinette
Tchuwa, Frank
author_sort von Maltitz, Lindie
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Assessment of process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate (UG) agricultural extension curriculum can assist in developing competency-based curricula which in turn could enhance the efficiency of agricultural extension and advisory services (AEAS) in South Africa. The Michigan State University Alliance for African Partnership (AAP) launched a multi-country study to contribute to upgrading and tailoring the agricultural extension curricula at participating institutions. The research aims to identify skills and competency gaps in undergraduate agricultural extension curricula in the participating countries – Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, South Africa and Uganda - and use the results to contribute to formulating appropriate curricula. The research questions are: 1. Do extension programs effectively address the needs of current food and agricultural systems? 2. What are the critical job skills and core competencies required of extension workers to effectively plan, implement, and evaluate extension work in today’s changing context? 3. Does the undergraduate curriculum in extension education include education and/or training on these job skills or core competencies? 4. What are the barriers to effectively training extension workers with required core competencies, and how can these barriers be removed? The study undertaken in the above participating countries assessed 11 process skills and competencies: program planning, program implementation, communication and public relations, information and communication technologies (ICTs), program evaluation, personal and professional development, diversity and gender, technical subject matter expertise, marketing, brokering and value chain development, soft skills and nutrition skills and competencies. These were assessed qualitatively using focus group discussions (FGDs) and quantitatively using an online questionnaire with two Likert scale based questions: “How important is this skill or competency for an extension worker?” and “How well does the undergraduate extension curriculum cover this competency?”.
format Informe técnico
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language Inglés
publishDate 2023
publishDateRange 2023
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publisher Michigan State University Press
publisherStr Michigan State University Press
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spelling CGSpace1400552025-02-24T06:49:11Z Strengthening agricultural extension training: Process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate agricultural extension curriculum in South Africa von Maltitz, Lindie Davis, Kristin E. Suvedi, Murari Chanza, Charity Agwu, Ekwe Agwu Sasidhar, P. V. K. Ukamaka, Mabel Dimelu Liverpool-Tasie, Lenis Saweda Anugwa, Ifeoma Quinette Tchuwa, Frank agricultural extension systems education data agricultural extension curriculum data collection public relations agriculture information and communication technologies communication Assessment of process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate (UG) agricultural extension curriculum can assist in developing competency-based curricula which in turn could enhance the efficiency of agricultural extension and advisory services (AEAS) in South Africa. The Michigan State University Alliance for African Partnership (AAP) launched a multi-country study to contribute to upgrading and tailoring the agricultural extension curricula at participating institutions. The research aims to identify skills and competency gaps in undergraduate agricultural extension curricula in the participating countries – Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, South Africa and Uganda - and use the results to contribute to formulating appropriate curricula. The research questions are: 1. Do extension programs effectively address the needs of current food and agricultural systems? 2. What are the critical job skills and core competencies required of extension workers to effectively plan, implement, and evaluate extension work in today’s changing context? 3. Does the undergraduate curriculum in extension education include education and/or training on these job skills or core competencies? 4. What are the barriers to effectively training extension workers with required core competencies, and how can these barriers be removed? The study undertaken in the above participating countries assessed 11 process skills and competencies: program planning, program implementation, communication and public relations, information and communication technologies (ICTs), program evaluation, personal and professional development, diversity and gender, technical subject matter expertise, marketing, brokering and value chain development, soft skills and nutrition skills and competencies. These were assessed qualitatively using focus group discussions (FGDs) and quantitatively using an online questionnaire with two Likert scale based questions: “How important is this skill or competency for an extension worker?” and “How well does the undergraduate extension curriculum cover this competency?”. 2023-04-01 2024-03-14T12:08:51Z 2024-03-14T12:08:51Z Report https://hdl.handle.net/10568/140055 en https://hdl.handle.net/10568/138281 https://hdl.handle.net/10568/140047 https://hdl.handle.net/10568/140054 Open Access Michigan State University Press von Maltitz, Lindie; Davis, Kristin; Suvedi, Murari; Chanza, Charity; et al. 2023. Strengthening agricultural extension training: Process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate agricultural extension curriculum in South Africa. Partnerships for Innovative Research in Africa (PIRA) Research Report April 2023. East Lansing, MI: Alliance for African Partnership, Michigan State University. https://www.canr.msu.edu/csus/uploads/9.%20Agricultural%20Extension%20Services%20Report_South%20Africa.pdf
spellingShingle agricultural extension systems
education
data
agricultural extension
curriculum
data collection
public relations
agriculture
information and communication technologies
communication
von Maltitz, Lindie
Davis, Kristin E.
Suvedi, Murari
Chanza, Charity
Agwu, Ekwe Agwu
Sasidhar, P. V. K.
Ukamaka, Mabel Dimelu
Liverpool-Tasie, Lenis Saweda
Anugwa, Ifeoma Quinette
Tchuwa, Frank
Strengthening agricultural extension training: Process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate agricultural extension curriculum in South Africa
title Strengthening agricultural extension training: Process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate agricultural extension curriculum in South Africa
title_full Strengthening agricultural extension training: Process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate agricultural extension curriculum in South Africa
title_fullStr Strengthening agricultural extension training: Process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate agricultural extension curriculum in South Africa
title_full_unstemmed Strengthening agricultural extension training: Process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate agricultural extension curriculum in South Africa
title_short Strengthening agricultural extension training: Process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate agricultural extension curriculum in South Africa
title_sort strengthening agricultural extension training process skills and competency gaps in undergraduate agricultural extension curriculum in south africa
topic agricultural extension systems
education
data
agricultural extension
curriculum
data collection
public relations
agriculture
information and communication technologies
communication
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/140055
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