Extension Education

If there’s anything that can be done to make your first year with the NDSU Extension Service better, please contact your supervisor (district director, assistant director or department chair) or Deb Gebeke, Assistant Director, Staff Development.
debra.gebeke@ndsu.edu

Extension education is usually informal. Rather than in a classroom for a grade, the educational programs offered may take place in a field, in an adult education workshop, over the phone, on the Web or from a publication. The delivery method and target audience varies. But we're still educating people - helping them learn information they can use to make decisions in their lives.

Even though the various media used have changed, the guiding values of Extension education have rung true for years. You might want to print this page to keep on your desk or in your orientation notebook.

Educational design is a process. Program planning is a process. Extension staff frequently refer to the State Plan of Work (POW) which states our educational plans. You will be asked for ideas and input. Your program planning team will prioritize and create a list of educational materials and programs to be developed for all staff to use.

Designing Educational Programs and Materials

As you become more familiar with Extension and your subject area, you will be expected to teach at your local level. Resources are all around you - but now it's your turn to deliver. Design for Learning course is suggested. A general overview includes:

1. Define the target audience.

Are you trying to reach Midwestern canola producers, parents of kindergartners nationwide, North Dakota community leaders or junior-high youth in your county? The general public is not a targeted audience. Clearly define who you’re trying to reach. What are their demographics and psychographics?

2. Justify a program for this audience.

What do these people want or need to learn? How will the audience benefit from this educational program?

3. Think about what the target audience should learn from your program.

Develop learner outcomes based on wants and needs. Outcomes are simply statements that identify what the learners will be able to do, think or feel after completing the educational experience. Keep focused on what you need to do. Remember, these are not outcomes for you as the teacher but rather for the learners.

Clear outcomes help with impact evaluation. If the audience define the hopeful impact, it’s easier to evaluate whether that impact happened.

4. Think about your target audience and their characteristics.

Consider the audience:

Personal histories. Your target audience brings many personal experiences to the learning situation.
Preferred learning styles. Very few adults will put up with sitting through a 50-minute lecture. The more diverse we can be in our teaching methods, the more effective the learning experience will be.
Family, work and social responsibilities. Where does a learning experience fit in their daily priorities? How can the program be made most available to them? Where can they meet most conveniently if face-to-face is required? At what pace would they like to learn? Is one time of day better than another? Is your target audience already gathered through another group? What are their demographic profiles?
Motivation to learn. Your target audience needs to see practical applications for what they learn, and they need to be able to use their new ideas and practices immediately.
Psychology of learning. Adults may lack confidence because of their age, past learning experiences, the content itself or something else. Educators must create climates that minimize anxiety, where learners are accepted and free to disagree and take risks. Are the learners biased for or against any particular teaching methods?

The educational program must be marketed to your target audience based on their characteristics. Develop this marketing strategy early in the planning process.

5. Organize and sequence content.

You might want to freewheel, mind map or brainstorm with others to think about the content to include to meet your learner objectives.

Organize the ideas into an outline of a logical sequence, maybe from simple concepts to more complex ones. Allow the outline to be flexible since adult learners may want to emphasize certain concepts over others.

Avoid information overload. Too often we want to teach adults everything about a topic. Instead, review your audience’s characteristics and focus on priorities. Plan to allow time for them to process what they’re learning.

Finally it may be time to think of a motivating title for your program. Just remember, no clever title will overcome a poor program.

6. Select appropriate teaching tools.

Finally it’s time to think about how to teach this content and reach your learner outcomes.

Think about what a particular tool will and will not do and under what conditions it will work best. The latest technology may not always be the best for the content, the learners and your learning outcomes.

How can adults best learn this information?

Independently through self-study
In a group setting at a meeting
Through the print or broadcast media
As a comprehensive educational package
As a quick to-the-point answer to a specific question

Consider how these teaching tools can work alone and together to carry out your program.

Videotape
Publication/handout/brochure
Computerized presentation
Overhead transparencies
Audiocassette
Newsletter
News release
Web site

Tie the teaching tools together for an educational package. Design the various teaching tools to reinforce concepts and fit together visually.

Develop an evaluation tool too.

If this is a train-the-trainer program, decide who will train the program deliverers and how they will be trained.

7. Estimate the budget.

What is the budget to carry out this educational program for the teaching tools selected? Include time required from various people. Do you need to rethink the program because of the time or money required?

8. Develop a plan to market this program to the targeted audiences.

How will the target audience be made aware of and be encouraged to take part in this program? Think about outlets specific to the target audience. Where do these people already gather or what do they read? A news release in the local paper usually isn’t enough.

9. If the educational experience is face to face, create an effective learning environment.

Consider:

Physical environment. Lighting, acoustics, temperature, distractions, writing space, seating arrangements, signage, parking, convenient access.
Psychological environment. Welcome learners personally as they arrive, have beverages and/or snacks, help learners feel confident about themselves and their learning ability.
Social environment. Help learners get acquainted with each other and with you, the instructor, and provide opportunities for interaction throughout the learning experience.
Cultural environment. Be respectful or and sensitive to the cultural/ethnic diversity of learners and the values and experiences they bring to the learning situation.

10. Assess the learning outcomes.

Steps in quality evaluation include:

Identify learning objectives. This was done in Step 1.
Specify evaluation standards. What constitutes a successful program?
Design evaluation tools and methods.
Analyze the data.
Determine if your outcomes were met.
Report the results.

No longer is the number of participants or their "happiness" with the program enough. We need to show how their actions or behavior changes are linked to our educational programs. We want to measure behavior change, adaptation of skills, economic effect in communities. When you need to design an evaluation you might want to talk to your supervisor, state specialists, or the Evaluation Coordinator, Deb Gebeke, to get more ideas.

You'll learn more about assessing learning outcomes in the Evaluation lesson.

Transformational Education

Organizationally, meeting the needs of Extension customers/clients falls into four categories - service, content transmission, facilitation and transformational education.

All staff must consider how they will contribute toward transformational education. The Role of Agents/Specialists document helps describe this shift and will be integrated into your performance appraisal process. All four types are important but increased emphasis is given to transformational education.

Click below to learn more about transformational education.

From Making a Living to Making a Difference (MS Word)
From Making a Living to Making a Difference (Powerpoint)
Transformational Education Evaluation (MS Word)
Transformational Education Article (MS Word)

A Cross-Generational Perspective on Work

Are you familiar with the unique characteristics of each generation in today's workplace? Have you thought about how these different perspectives impact your work as well as how you might want to approach program planning?

Fo more information go to www.nextgenerationworkplace.com

A variety of resources are available, includiing an email newsletter, to help you learn more.

Get Involved
Download the Designing Educational Programs and Materials worksheet. Use the above information and the worksheet to help you work through the educational design process of your next program.

Next Session
OK, so my project's done. Did it do anybody any good? Evaluation, one of the most important steps of any educational program, is the next step.