In the United States there is a need to educate young children in science, technology, and agriculture. Through collaboration with many agricultural groups, the Southern Piedmont Agricultural Research and Education Center has set up a program that works with 3rd grade students and teachers to reinforce the science that has been taught in the…

Extension educators have new computer-assisted tools as audience response systems (clickers) for increasing educational effectiveness and improving assessment by facilitating client input. From 2010-2012, 26 sessions involving 1093 participants in six diverse client categories demonstrated wide audience acceptance and suitability of clickers in…

This article discusses High School Harvest (HSH), an Extension educator-led project in five Vermont schools to provide students with job training and food system education and to provide lightly processed produce to school lunch programs. One hundred and twenty-one students participated, logging 8,752 hours growing, harvesting, and processing…

Partnering with private industry can empower Extension educators to enhance their educational outreach efforts. Since 2011, UF/IFAS has cooperated with the Florida Turfgrass Association in conducting a 1-day statewide Polycom® event for providing continuing education to licensed pesticide applicators employed primarily in the ornamental and…

With an increasing number of consumers using smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices to find and interact with local businesses, Ohio State University Extension developed a new curriculum aimed at improving market access for food and farm entrepreneurs. The literature review, curriculum framework, and lessons learned shared in this article…

Globalization and diversifying communities in the United States mandate internationally minded Extension professionals and programming. The knowledge necessary for successfully working in international agricultural and Extension education is vast and takes time to acquire. A catalyst for this learning process is participation in university- or…

The study reported here examined Extension professionals' involvement in farm-to-school program activities. Results of an online survey distributed to eight state Extension systems indicate that on average, Extension professionals are involved with one farm to school program activity, with most supporting school or community garden programs.…

In the digital age, face-to-face meetings combining didactic and experiential learning are valuable. Beef cattle nutrition graduate students (n = 33) from 11 universities attended a 5-day feedlot nutrition and management short-course. Topics included nutrition, veterinary medicine, feedmill maintenance, and management of the financial and human…

Television is a widely adopted source for viewing educational information. Unfortunately, producing a television show on network television can be costly and time consuming. Internet TV offers Extension video content producers the opportunity to create a niche topic channel quickly and at low cost. Internet TV offers viewers a low-cost and…

A needs assessment survey was developed to assess the knowledge and attitudes of poultry vendors at farmers' markets in Pennsylvania, on food safety, regulation, and poultry production. Vendors were administered a 32-question paper survey, in person, during market hours. The results revealed critical vendor practices and identified important…

While young students are more capable of scientific inquiry than previously believed, elementary school teachers are often inexperienced in and lack confidence with teaching science. ChickQuest is a 4-H-created embryology curriculum for third-graders that meets Ohio state science standards, teaches STEM skills, and promotes ongoing interaction…

Interest in cover crops by agricultural producers has increased the need for information regarding the suitability of crops for addressing different production and natural resource goals. To help address this need, staff at the USDA-ARS Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory developed a decision aid called the Cover Crop Chart (CCC). Visually…

Agricultural education programs such as AgVenture have been established to educate youth about the importance of agriculture. The study reported here examined the direct impact that one agricultural education program, specifically AgVenture, had on youth perceptions and knowledge of agriculture. Youth's perceptions and knowledge of…

Demand for professional development training in the early childhood field has grown substantially in recent years. To meet the demand, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service's Family Development and Resource Management unit developed the Early Childhood Educator Online Training Program, a professional development system that currently…

A training video was produced and evaluated to assess its impact on the food safety knowledge of agricultural workers. Increasing food safety knowledge on the farm may help to improve the safety of fresh produce. Surveys were used to measure workers' food safety knowledge before and after viewing the video. Focus groups were used to determine…