JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION ADMINISTRATION RESEARCH
Year:2010 | Volume:- | Issue:12|Papers Count:7

The purpose of this survey research was to investigate the relationship between teaching competencies and job satisfaction of the academic staff of faculty of agriculture and natural resources, University of Tehran. The academic staff of the faculty were N=157; from which 60 faculty members were selected through proportional stratified-randomization method (n=60). Cronach's alpha was computed to measure the reliability of the items of teaching competencies and job satisfaction and was 0.792. The research instrument was given to the academic staff of the department of agricultural extension and education, University of Tehran to test its content validity. The findings revealed positive and significant correlation between teaching competencies (class management, class communication, evaluation - assessment and effective education) and job satisfaction.

The present study has been conducted to determine the employment status and employment rate of graduates of the higher education center of Jahad-e-Keshavarzi, Khorasan Razavi. Graduate employment and its related factors (including gender, age, marital status, type of diploma, academic achievement, and employment) are the basic variables of this study. The whole research population is studied including all graduates (section associate and bachelor) of scientific-applied center of higher education, agriculture, Khorasan Razavi. The sample includes 167 members. The current study is an applied and descriptive research, because we want to evaluate the present status of graduates. Data collection has been conducted based on a questionnaire. Using SPSS software, data analysis was performed. The findings of this study show that 59 percent of the respondents are male and 41 percent are female.54 percent were married and the mean age of the graduates is 28 years old.24 percent of the respondents were working prior to employment, which has become 30 percent at the time of the study, and one year after graduation has increased to 49 percent. Unemployment rate for women (70 percent) is more than men (35 percent) and is statistically significant (P=0/000). Married people are more employed compared to singles, and this is statistically significant with more than 95 percent (P=0/023) confidence. All we can say is that the courses of scientific application affects job creation in the Education Center of Jihad Khorasan Agriculture with a rate of 20 percent.

The main objective of this research is to investigate professional competencies needed by evaluation experts in the Ministry of Jahad-eKeshavarzi in Iran. This study was conducted by survey method. Data was collected through the questionnaire that its reliability was approved by Cronbach's coefficient alpha (a=0.97). Validity of the research instrument was achieved through consulting with professors of Tarbiat Modares, Tehran and Shiraz universities. Statistical population for this study consisted of evaluation specialists involved in program evaluation in the Ministry of Jihad-e-Keshavarzi in Iran (N=140). A stratified random sampling technique was used. Morgan's table was utilized to select sample (n=107). All evaluation competencies were investigated in six categories of systematic inquiry, managerial skills, situational analysis, reflective practice, professional practice, and interpersonal competencies. According to results "systematic inquiry", "professional practice", and "reflective practice" were the most important factors and "interpersonal competencies" was the least important competence needed by evaluation experts. Hence improving determined competencies causes promotion of knowledge, skills, and professional development of evaluators.

Science and technology towns can decrease some of the deficiencies and problems on the way of manufacturing science and technology with providing facilities for innovators in different sectors. Agriculture sector is one of the sectors that have changed with the emergence of new technology. The current study is an applied research and has been done through survey method. Target population of the study was all of the experts and faculty members of Isfahan Science and Technology Town (staff group) with 50 members, and also 136 experts of technology incubator (line group). Both groups filled in the questionnaires. The research tool was a questionnaire which its validity was confirmed by a panel of experts and faculty members of Isfahan Science and Technology Town. To confirm the reliability of the instrument Cronbach's Alpha was calculated. The value of the coefficient was 0.87. Finally 40 questionnaires from the staff group and 100 questionnaires from the line group were collected and analyzed with SPSS15/WIN. The result of the research showed that among the inhibiting factors, social, geographical, international laws, infrastructure and economical factor, and among the promoting factors, agricultural infrastructure, managerial, cultural and geographical, technological, economical-political, educational- professional, science infrastructure factor, have the most influence on developing new agricultural technologies in Isfahan Science and Technology Town.

The main purpose of this experimental study was to investigate the effect of educational equipments and materials on farmers’ learning. The population of the research consisted two distinctive parts. The first group included 24 learners who participated in a five days extension-education course about the date palm’s prevalent diseases and pests which held by the use of various educational equipments and materials in Arvandkenar County in Abadan. The second part of the population consisted of 21 learners who were educated in the same issues but without the use of educational equipments in Minoobar County in Abadan. Because of their small number, both groups of the population were gone under census. Data was gathered before and after the educational courses trough four written examinations consisting of 30 three-point closed questions in six sections. WINSPSS Ver.11.5 software was used for data analysis. According to the findings, the difference between farmers’ knowledge in two independent studied groups was significant in five cases after the education. Furthermore, the difference between total knowledge of the two studied groups was significant after the education. So, the main hypothesis of the research or the positive effect of educational equipments and materials on farmers learning was confirmed.

Skilled and educated manpower as a social treasure is one of the most important factors in socio-economic development. Today, with the rapid growth of globalization and revolution in the field of communication and information, scientific applied education plays an important role in the education process of every country. There has been significant attention towards such education in our country during the last two decades. Promotion of the level of the general and specific knowledge, providing job opportunities, active participation in the marketing, supplying skilled manpower needed in the administration and management system, and correcting the manpower pyramid are the main goals of scientific-applied education system. The main goal of this paper was to study the graduates’ status of such educational system, specially the graduates of modular courses. In the modular system of the scientific applied educational system, the students have to pass an exam (professional evaluation exam) at the end of their two-year course. Data of the graduates who passed the last seven professional evaluation exams (80090 graduates) were used in this study. Data were studied descriptively. From the gender points of view, the results showed that the girls showed more interest towards modular education system than boys and their education status was much better than boys.Among four specific groups of agriculture, art, social services, and management and industry, the graduates of industry group were more (quantitatively) when compared with other four groups.

Applied-scientific education is one of the most fundamental transformations of Iran's higher education system in the last two decades. Applied-Scientific Education Centers (ASEC) pave the ground for creative and entrepreneur students. Students are considered as the essential part of this educational system. The objective of this study is to investigate factors and obstacles affecting entrepreneurial characteristics of student who are studying agricultural science at (ASEC). In this study, a descriptive-survey research is used considering the nature of the research questions. The population under study includes all freshmen and senior students at (ASEC), N=3300. A sample of 1050 members was achieved by a cluster sampling technique on the basis of Morgan Table. Two open questionnaires were used as data collection tool and the result was 89% on the basis of Cronbach's Alpha. Results indicate that students themselves, faculty, facilities and equipments of ASEC, family, content of courses, laboratories and community are among the factors that create and nurture entrepreneurial characteristic of students who are studying agricultural sciences. Lack of knowledge of the students, unskilled and uncreative teachers, government support and inappropriate content of courses are the most effective barriers affecting entrepreneurial characteristics.