Abstract
ABSTRACT Technological skills transfer approach from extension practitioners to the emerging farmers plays a significant role in the educational developments of the emerging farmers. These approaches have to take into account the methods of teaching that are in line with what is acceptable and underpinned by the adult teaching and learning approaches. Agricultural extension as an educational development programme for the emerging farmers needs to borrow from these approaches. Emerging farmers and extension practitioners in South Africa are mostly a group of diverse adults from different backgrounds and varying political, economic and social statuses. The formal education status of the emerging farmers might play a role in the ability to consume and apply presented information on the farm. However, the manner or approach that the information is presented could determine whether the emerging farmer become resistant to the information or not. The study employed the Participatory Action Research methodology with the philosophical framing of Bricolage to generate data that was analysed using Critical Discourse Analysis. The emerging farmers and extension practitioners volunterily engaged in the emancipatory discourse to outline the learning challenges using agricultural extension methods. Presenting agricultural information to the emerging farmers in the form of the Basic Education pedagogy, undermine the adult education prerequisites for the emerging farmers during training and farm visits. The emerging farmers, as adults exposed to agricultural extension, has to be conducted so guided by the trialled and tested adult education principles. By law, every individual over 15 years of age are entitled to adult education. The extension practitioners need to be acquainted with the adult education perspective. Keywords: Technological skills transfer, Emerging farmers, Extension, Pedagogic praxis
Highlights
Agricultural extension services in South Africa is an informal education process which emerging farmers are provided with information by extensionists/extension practitioners with intentions to improve their farming techniques and approaches (Dube, 1993:18)
This study investigated the patterns in the extension approaches that extensionists/extension practitioners use to disseminate information and transfer technological skills to the emerging farmers
It became clear that the technologies and information that the extension practitioners bring to the emerging farmers, there were no engagements during planning between the emerging farmers and the extension practitioners as well as between extension practitioners and their seniors
Summary
Agricultural extension services in South Africa is an informal education process which emerging farmers are provided with information by extensionists/extension practitioners with intentions to improve their farming techniques and approaches (Dube, 1993:18). Extension educational activities include the dissemination of information to emerging farmers through newsletters, newspaper articles, television and radio broadcasts, and the utilisation of other media (Tiraieyari et al, 2010:5380). Printed materials such as magazines, bulletins, fact sheets, and books, all contribute to the educational process (Johnson et al, 2008:3). Extension plays a vital role in the farming progress of emerging farmers
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