Department Of Agricultural Education Research Articles

Fundamentals of an Extension Education Doctoral Specialization: The University of Florida Framework

Academic departments need to periodically assess their programs to ensure that students are developing the competencies needed for successful careers. Consistent with this goal, a new framework for guiding the doctoral specialization in extension education was developed by the Department of Agricultural Education and Communication at the University of Florida. A modified Delphi method was used to guide the project with a goal of achieving consensus regarding fundamentally important theories, knowledge, literature, and experiences for graduate students pursuing doctoral degrees specialized in extension education. The resulting framework can be used as a guide for recruiting, advising, and communicating job qualifications.

The Savvy Survey #9: Gaining Institutional Review Board Approval for Surveys

Getting IRB approval for your survey can seem like a daunting task to many people in academia and Extension. This new 4-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication discusses what the IRB is, when and how to get IRB approval for a survey, getting informed consent, and where to get help for Extension professionals wanting to perform research or publish findings from surveys they have completed. Written by Colleen E. Gariton and Glenn D. Israel.

Grammar and Punctuation

This 4-page publication covering proper grammar and punctuation for news media writing is the third of a five-part series on news media writing. This series also covers an introduction to news media writing, news writing for print, news writing for television and radio, and interviews for news stories. Minor revision by Ricky Telg and Ashley McLeod-Morin; published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication.

Don’t Fake It, Make It! Technology and Tools for Virtual Hosts

The “Don’t Fake it, Make it!” series assists virtual conference and meeting hosts in creating an engaging program to benefit their participants. This new 6-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication gives an overview of common features hosts look for in virtual conference software platforms before committing to one. Written by Jarred A. Shellhouse, Lauri M. Baker, Anissa Zagonel, Phillip Stokes, and Cheryl R. Boyer.

Am I Ready? Competencies and Skill Sets Needed for Virtual Conference Hosts

This new 3-page article is the third publication in the Don't Fake It, Make It! series. Implementing a virtual conference or meeting can be a challenging task. Whether hiring staff or recruiting colleagues to assemble a team, it is necessary to ensure your team is built based on the specific competency needs for hosting a virtual conference or meeting. Written by Lauri M. Baker and Matt Benge, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication.

Setting Transparent Expectations for Successful Group Work

Regardless of workspace or class setting, group work has gotten a reputation for being less than pleasant. However, when individuals have the opportunity to prepare for group work via understanding their personal strengths, expectations, and perspectives, the not-so-popular group work can often turn into pleasant, productive, and collaborative engagement. Because group dynamics shift and vary from group to group, there is a constant learning opportunity to understand how to work in groups successfully. This new 2-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication will identify simple yet effective strategies that can serve as foundational building blocks whenever preparing oneself or others for group work. Written by Cecilia E. Suarez and Jarred A. Shellhouse.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc389

The Road to Recovery #5: Self-Assessment of Virtual Facilitation to Build Trust

This fifth publication in the Road to Recovery series discusses how Extension professionals can evaluate techniques to build trust when facilitating virtual programming. Specific recommendations are provided addressing concerns about short- and long-term virtual trust, inclusion techniques, Zoom fatigue, and cybersecurity. This new 5-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication was written by Colby Silvert, Cody Gusto, John Diaz, and Glenn Israel.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc388

The Road to Recovery #4: Evaluating Virtual Techniques to Reach Clientele and Promote Equity

This fourth publication in the Road to Recovery series explores the challenges Extension professionals may encounter in reaching clientele virtually during a pandemic. This new 4-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication discusses the concept of digital equity and provides recommendations to evaluate efforts to access and connect with key audiences. Written by Colby Silvert, Cody Gusto, John Diaz, and Glenn Israel.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc387

The Road to Recovery #6: Evaluating Virtual Strategies to Build Community Capacity and Resilience

This sixth publication in the Road to Recovery series provides tips and strategies for Extension professionals interested in evaluating efforts to promote community capacity building and community resilience using virtual platforms. This new 5-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication was written by Cody Gusto, Colby Silvert, John Diaz, and Glenn Israel.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc385

Conducting the Needs Assessment #3: Educator Motivations, Barriers, and Objections

This third publication in the Conducting the Needs Assessment series outlines a range of motivations, barriers, and common objections Extension educators and other service providers may have pertaining to needs assessments. It is not an easy task to conduct a needs assessment, yet there are many motives for implementing one. This new 4-page publication of the Department of Agricultural Education and Communication discusses strategies for increasing educator motivation and removing barriers and objections to conducting a needs assessment. Written by Matt Benge.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc386

Leading Difficult Conversations Series #3: Creating a Safe Conversation Environment

This publication series is intended for leaders who bear the responsibility of having difficult conversations as part of their professional responsibilities. Earlier in this publication series, the foundational principles of preparing for difficult conversations were established: (1) defining the issue and (2) determining your motive for the conversation. Once those principles are put into practice, the next phase of having a difficult conversation is creating a safe environment for the conversation. Components of creating a safe environment include recognizing a conversation’s content and conditions, understanding the threats to a safe environment, and utilizing skills to overcome threats to restore safety. This new 3-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication was written by Christy Chiarelli.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc384

An Introduction to Utilizing Community Leaders to Expand Resiliency Efforts Following a Disaster

In the southeastern United States, many agricultural, vulnerable, and rural communities (AVRCs) must cope with natural disasters regularly. These natural disasters not only harm communities, crops, and livelihoods, but also can negatively impact the mental health of affected individuals, including those living in AVRCs. The purposes of this new 3-page article are to (1) provide tips on identifying specific individuals who could qualify as community leaders and (2) provide details on how partnering with community leaders can be beneficial for mental health communication and outreach. Written by Lisa Lundy, Jacqueline Aenlle, Ricky Telg, Tracy Irani, Angie Lindsey, Ashley Mcleod-Morin, Michaela Kandzer, and Phillip Stokes, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc383

Foundations of Effective Classroom Management

Classroom management can be challenging for teachers. While managing a classroom requires flexible approach, there are some basic strategies than can be used to make the classroom safe and engaging. This new 3-page article provides recommendations to teachers to manage student behavior in the agriculture classroom. Written by Kelsey M. Thornton, R. G. (Tre) Easterly III, and Ed Osborne, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc381

The Savvy Survey #6e: Understanding How Question Type Impacts Future Analysis

This publication will briefly look at how the intent of a survey affects which types of questions should be asked and how the data can be analyzed to help address this intent. It is intended to provide guidance to Extension professionals, as well as persons in community organizations, who conduct surveys for program planning, improvement, and evaluation. Written by Colleen E. Gariton and Glenn D. Israel, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pd083

Leading Difficult Conversations Series #2: Preparing for the Conversation

This publication series is designed to equip leaders with strategies and tactics to use when they are tasked with having a difficult conversation. When approaching difficult conversations, leaders are encouraged to examine themselves prior to engaging in a hard conversation, because ultimately, a person can only change themself. In this series, the first topic to explore is preparing for the conversation. The components of proper preparation include clearly defining the issue and considering the motive behind the conversation. This new 3-page publication of the Department of Agricultural Education and Communication was written by Christy Chiarelli.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc378

The Road to Recovery #1: Introduction

This first publication in the Road to Recovery series provides a brief introduction to some core concerns and considerations for Extension professionals as they adapt their outreach, education, and evaluation efforts during a pandemic and recovery. This new 3-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication also includes an overview of the subsequent articles in the Road to Recovery series. Written by Cody Gusto, Colby Silvert, and John Diaz.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc379

The Road to Recovery #3: Facilitating Community Resilience for Effective Pandemic Response

This third publication in the Road to Recovery series provides information and recommendations to support Extension professionals' ability to facilitate capacity building and resilience development for communities during COVID-19 and potential future pandemic situations. This new 5-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication was written by Cody Gusto, Colby Silvert, and John Diaz.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc380

Developing Extension Programming to Help Low-Income Families Save Money and Energy: The Community Weatherization Coalition Model

This new 3-page publication of the Department of Agricultural Education and Communication is the first in a series that will help Extension agents, nonprofits, agency personnel, and other promoters of community development better understand both the issue of high utility bills among low-income residents and what they can do to help. This first publication provides an overview of one program approach taken by a group of volunteers in Alachua County, the Community Weatherization Coalition, which uses a model of trained “energy coaches.” Written by Paul Monaghan, Sarah Blucher, Marianne Schmink, Alane Humrich, Jennison Kipp, and Wendell Porter.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc368

Exemplary Youth Leadership Series: Encourage the Heart

This publication series is designed to outline strategies and experiences to expose youth to and engage them with leadership concepts. In this publication, students will try on aspects of the final practice of exemplary leaders: encouraging the heart. Two quick, low-cost activities are included for implementation with youth and adults working with youth. These activities are best suited for students ages 10–18. However, modifications are included for each of the activities to allow for different group sizes, ages, and abilities of the youth participating. This new 2-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication was written by Megan Stein.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc377

Proximate qualities and lycopene contents of three watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) fruit varieties grown with climate-smart integrated fertilizer management in sandy loam soil

The objective of the study was to determine the effect of climate-smart integrated fertilizer management on proximate qualities and lycopene contents of three watermelon (Citrullus lanatus)varieties grown in sandy loam soil. The experiment was conducted at the experimental farm of the Department of Agricultural Education, University of Nigeria, Nsukka between the months of Augustto October 2017cropping season. The experiment was laid out in a split-plot design, with three replications, three main plots (Citrullus lanatus varieties (Sugar baby, Koalack and Charleston grey))and six sub-plots (fertilization treatments). Climate-smart integrated fertilizer considered was combination of Goat manure (GM) and Nitrogen Phosphorus PotassiumNPK15: 15: 15 fertilizer which is regarded as most nutrient-rich fertilizer with climate change mitigation and adaptation potential. The study found that the pH of the watermelon varieties were statistically similar and that Charleston grey treated with 50 kg ha-1NPK + 15 t ha-1GM had the highest interactive effect on pH value which was statistically similar with 100 kg ha-1NPK + 10 t ha-1GM treatment. It was discovered that Koalack variety had the highest moisture contents when treated with 100 kg ha-1NPK + 10 t ha-1GM, crude protein content when treated with 150 kg ha-1NPK + 5 t ha-1GM, crude fibre content when treated with 20 t ha-1GM, ether extract and total soluble solid contents when treated with 50 kg ha-1NPK + 15 t ha-1GM. For the lycopene content, it was found that Sugar baby variety had the highest mean value (0.61g/100g) when compared with Charleston grey and Koalack varieties. Sugar baby variety treated with 20t/ha-1GM had highest (0.89g/100g) interactive effect when compared with other varieties and fertilizer treatments. In conclusion, the proximate qualities and lycopene contents of the three varieties increased with the increase in the amount of GM contents of the fertilizer combinations in sandy loam soil. Climate-smart integrated fertilizer improves the proximate qualities of Koalack variety and the lycopene contents of Sugar baby variety more than in other varieties grown in the same sandy loam soil. Therefore, climate-smart integrated fertilizer is recommended for the production of the identified Citrullus lanatus varieties as a nutrition sensitive production strategy in sandy loam soils by farmers in study area.