A dynamic and diverse workforce of agricultural professionals and scientists is needed to develop sustainable and innovative solutions for the challenges of food production for a growing population under the threat of climate extremes. One path to developing workforce talent is through summer research and extension experiences. The Applied Plant…

Cooperative Extension professionals are using webinar technologies to accommodate time constraints, travel distances, and limited budgets as well as to reach a broader audience. Although checklists and planning worksheets are readily available, there is a lack of resources to intentionally utilize reflective teaching practice and measure…

Super Parents is a group-based, Extension-led parenting program developed to enhance the parent-child relationship. Implemented by trained Head Start staff using the train-the-trainer model, this effort is achieved by teaching positive parenting practices, increasing parents' knowledge of child development, instructing parents in activities and…

The authors analyze consistency between supervisors' and interns' self-evaluations based on interns' gender, time of completion (summer or academic year), and sponsor (on-campus department or off campus). Students, in general, tended to have lower ratings for computer skills, relative to supervisors, suggesting that they do not appreciate the…

Purpose: To explain how training and education events (TEEs) can be designed to increase the likelihood of achieving behavioural objectives. Approach: The approach combined both a quantitative review of evaluation surveys undertaken at the time of the TEE, and qualitative telephone interviews with selected attendees (2025% of the total population…

In recent years much attention has focused on the role of enhancing a teacher's professional knowledge and skills in helping to improve the quality of early care experiences for young children birth-5. In the study reported here, an environmental scan of the early childhood professional development programs offered within the Extension system…

Designed to present instructors, moderators, and program coordinators with techniques for better planning, presentation, and evaluation of teleconferencing programs, this manual is based on research and practice findings in the areas of adult education, communications, and learning and listening skills. The characteristics of two-way…

Substantial emphasis has been placed on Florida Extension faculty evaluating their educational programs for impact and the utilization of these data for program accountability, yet little is known of the extent to which the faculty have accepted this responsibility. In order to assess the stage of adoption of impact evaluation as a practice, and…

Volunteers can serve as a means to educate the public about environmental issues and increase stewardship ethic. This booklet is designed to provide much of the key information about designing and managing environmental volunteer programs to educate the general public. The booklet is based on the experiences of a volunteer program called Island…

This report tells the story of the inception and growth of the Gender Project of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension (UMCE) (Sanford, Maine) and shares the results of an evaluation study of program impacts on the lives of individuals, families, and communities over the past six years. Information in the report can guide the growth and…

Distance education at Riverina-Murray Institute of Higher Education (RMIHE) in Australia is addressed in two papers by David Roberts. The first paper, "Approaches to Learning: An Institutional Study," discusses the results of 1984 questionnaires and diaries completed by RMIHE distance education students. Information was sought on how…

A program that sponsored eight visiting U.S. professors to teach science and conduct applied research in two Nicaraguan universities was evaluated. The program, which was funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development, was conducted at the Universidad Centroamericana (UCA) in Managua and the Leon campus of Universidad Nacional Autonoma de…

A pilot project aimed at providing extension training to early childhood educators was initiated in 1985 by Holland College (HC). Thirty students who were employed in the field of early childhood education on Prince Edward Island, were recruited. Eight evening courses were provided in three counties over a 21-month period. Training focused on…

An examination of the degrees of diversity in off-campus education in California is presented. An off-campus inventory, detailed questions, and questionnaires were sent to the public segments and central offices of the University and State University on a variety of topics including: curriculum; administrative mechanisms; procedures for hiring…

Demand for accountability and effective programming by the Ohio Cooperative Extension Service (OCES) led to identification of the need for a set of skills and knowledge for extension faculty related to program development through evaluation. This paper describes the training of OCES field faculty in program evaluation skills to be used within a…