JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION ADMINISTRATION RESEARCH
Year:2015 | Volume:- | Issue:32|Papers Count:7

The purpose of this descriptive-analytical study was to assess the educational needs of Guilan agricultural experts on applying precision agriculture. The statistical population consisted of all experts in different field of agriculture (Agronomy, Horticulture, Extension, Mechanization and Engineering) in Guilan (N=234). The sample size (n=133) was determined by using Bartlett Minimum Sample Size Table for the given population and cluster sampling method was applied to select them. In order to assess these educational needs, a questionnaire based on Borich Needs Model was provided. Data analysis was performed using SPSS21. These educational needs were analyzed and ranked using Mean Weighted Descriptive Scores (MWDS). Results showed that competencies such as geographic information system and variable rate technology were noticed as the most important priorities for education, respectively.However, information technology was in the last rank in the educational needs list. Findings indicated that all competencies were placed at the high level of importance. Findings of Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests revealed that there was no significant difference between men and women, level of education, attending the prior education program, age, experience and organizational position at 0.05 significant level. Then, there was a contingency on education needs.

agricultural higher education in our country is not enough productivity and students will not prepare for adapt to changing circumstances world, it could be due to lack of sufficient attention to be experience-based learning because experiential learning can be a source of stability learning and crystallization of human talents. The aim of this study was the investigate students' viewpoint about the situation experiential learning Status in agriculture higher education at faculty of agriculture and natural resources, razi university, design for this study was a descriptive research. The Statistical research consisted of all undergraduate and graduate students at their last semester of their education in the fields of agriculture, razi university (N=373) that Appling systematic classified random sampling method and using Krejcie and Morgan table, 185 students were selected. Based on the findings the situation experiential learning status in the faculty of Agriculture was assessed moderate. Among the status, attention supervised agricultural Experience, the rate of utilization of existing laboratories in the faculty of agriculture and establish an atmosphere twain with criticism, Thinking, discussing and challenging educational lessons, were assessed at the better level. there was no significance difference between undergraduate and graduate students viewpoint about experiential learning status and satisfaction levels.

Entrepreneurship is one of the major building blocks of sustainable development. Accordingly, this study sought to model the influencing factors affecting the development of entrepreneurial skills among students at Two-year agricultural colleges in Iran. This research is a cause-correlational and the statistical population comprised of 9, 907 agricultural students at 13 agriculture Colleges mation unites. Sample size was determined using Cochran formula (n=228). The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire the content validity of which was approved by agricultural extension experts and its reliability was estimated to be q=0.94 using ordinal theta. Data analysis was done by applying SPSSWin21 and LISREL (8.5). Results showed that, approximately 37.1% of respondents ranked their entrepreneurial skills at an intermediate level and 29.7% considered it at high level. Applying Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) indicated that the most important factor influencing the development of entrepreneurial skills among students in agricultural colleges in Iran is the entrepreneurial spirit with the path coefficient of 0.56. Personal factors with path coefficient of 0.42 had an impact on the development of entrepreneurial skills. Environmental factors and educational factors with 0.19 and 0.42 were effective on the development of entrepreneurial skills, respectively. The educational factors, with path coefficient of 0.42, had an impact on the entrepreneurial skills development; also, it has an impact on the environmental factors with path coefficient of 1.07. In establishing the latent variable of the entrepreneurial skills, planning and setting the goals were the most effective.

Organizations need to continuously improve their performance for their survival and development among which the crucial factor is improving their experts’ and agents’ job performance. Accordingly, the current study aimed at evaluating the relationship between agricultural extension agents’ job performance with environmental, motivational, educational, organizational and managerial factors and professional characteristics, the nature of work and job satisfaction using structural equation modeling. The study adopted a causal- correlational approach. The statistical population of this research consisted of 46 tobacco extension agents in Mazandaran and Golestan Provinces being selected through census. The data collection tool was a questionnaire whose validity was confirmed by a panel of experts, and its reliability was measured through Composite reliability ranging from 0.83 to 0.94. in order to analyze the data for both descriptive ad inferential statistics the SPSSWin21 and Smart PLS were used. The findings results showed that 13% of the agricultural extension agents’ job performance was excellent, 43.5% was good, 30.5% ranked average and 13.5% was weak and the most effective factor on extension agents ‘job performance was job satisfaction with path coefficient of 0.638 explaining 0.604 % of changes related to extension agents’ job performance.Therefore, to increase the tobacco extension agents’ job performance, it is necessary that the organization in charge improve their job satisfaction through appointing a suitable supervisor in the office, granting appropriate incentive and establishing the promotion system.

Entrepreneurship seem as the main force to enhance socio-economic and cultural development.Higher education system can contribute to entrepreneurship and enterprise development in agriculture sector both indirectly, through entrepreneurial education of agricultural students (teaching entrepreneurship to students), and directly, by academic entrepreneurship and commercialization of university agricultural research (commercial utilization of university knowledge and technology and mobilizing university resources to enterprise development). This research aimed to identify and prioritize components and related indicators of entrepreneurship education in higher agricultural education system. In the first phase, a combination of systematic review and Delphi technique was conducted to extract and categorize indicators of entrepreneurial higher agricultural education. Using purposive sampling technique and regarding the research purpose, criteria for selection of participants as key experts were identified, as professional expert, lecturer or researcher in entrepreneurship. A total of 21 experts participated in the research. In the second phase, using AHP and TOPSIS, five categories of indicators of academic entrepreneurship were ranked, including: entrepreneurship education methods (20 items), curriculum development for entrepreneurship education (15 items), capacity-based content of entrepreneurship education (20 items), research in entrepreneurship education (20 items), professional development for entrepreneurship education (12 items), stakeholders and target groups of entrepreneurship education (9 items), promotion of entrepreneurial culture (in-formal entrepreneurship education) (23 items) and capacity and institutional development for entrepreneurship education (40 items).

Since self- esteem is one the most effect factors affecting educational improvement. The aim of this survey was to study the effects of self-esteem and personal characteristics on educational improvement of students studying Agriculture at Razi University. Copper Smith standard questionnaire was used to measure student’s self-esteem. The design of the study was descriptive- survey. The subjects of the study were 245 students selected randomly among 950 day and night students studying at B.C level. The method of sampling was Morgan’s Table. The result of regression analysis showed that: sex, family self –steem, social self- esteem, educational improvement. These 5 variables have affected the dependant variable (educational improvement) about 0.79, and there was a significant difference between the girls and boys, self- esteem. There was no significant relationship between parent’s education, parent’s jobs, their place of living and their educational improvement. Measuring indices of self –esteem showed that the average’s of student’s family social and educational self-esteem were respectively 4.51, 4.36 and 4.27. All these indices were above the average level (The standard level is 8). Student’s general self-esteem was 16.31 (maximum equals 26) and overall self- esteem was 29.3 (maximum equals 50). These two indices measures were above the average level

Despite increasing trend of unemployment among graduates of agriculture and the importance of working in rural areas as one of the most important agricultural policies in higher education, a large number of agricultural graduates do not have willingness to work in village. Considering the importance of the issue, the aim of this study was to investigate the effects of individual and contextual factors on the willingness of Agricultural Students of Zanjan University towards Employment in Rural Areas.The statistical population of this study was including 390 senior graduate students in the academic year 2014-2015, which based on Krejcie and Morgan Table, 200 of them were selected through simple random sampling method. A questionnaire was utilized in order to collect the data. Validity of the questionnaire was approved based on the guidance of faculty members at Zanjan University. A pilot study was conducted to determine the reliability of the research instrument, and calculated ordinal coefficient thetas were at the appropriate level (ranges between 0.83 to 0.956). The collected data were analyzed by using structural equation modeling and the application of Bayesian estimation method according to the ordinal measured variables. Obtained results based on Bayesian estimation direct structural model showed that there was a positive significant relationship between the contextual variables such as; sex, age, work experience in rural area, family income and years of residence in the village with the dependent variable of employment willingness in rural area. Also, based on the mediation structural model, it was specified that entrepreneurial capability variable had only a partial mediation role on the relationship between family income and employment willingness in rural area whereas other variables did not have a mediation role.