Source: TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY submitted to
EFFECTIVENESS AND EFFICIENCY OF TECHNOLOGY-ASSISTED EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
TERMINATED
Funding Source
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
0225691
Grant No.
(N/A)
Project No.
TEX09473
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Program Code
(N/A)
Project Start Date
May 24, 2011
Project End Date
Nov 1, 2013
Grant Year
(N/A)
Project Director
Murphy, T.
Recipient Organization
TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY
750 AGRONOMY RD STE 2701
COLLEGE STATION,TX 77843-0001
Performing Department
Agricultural Leadership, Education & Communication
Non Technical Summary
In the beginning of my career, Distance Education was primarily about access; extending educational opportunity to new clientele. As access problems were solved, the central questions in the field quickly shifted to concerns about the effectiveness or quality of these programs. As concerns about quality continue to be addressed, it is becoming clear that the next set of questions will address efficiency; an assessment of the cost per unit of effective educational programming. We discover delivery strategies by optimizing teaching methods in the context of technological delivery systems. Decisions about the appropriateness of the teaching methods and the technologies employed are a balance among the desired educational outcomes, the learners, the learning environment, and the kinds of curriculum materials that are available or can be developed. I look forward to optimizing these principles of effective distance education to achieve efficiencies in the delivery of accessible educational programs.
Animal Health Component
0%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
9036010302090%
8036099302010%
Goals / Objectives
Purpose: The purpose of this project is to develop and publish a model for the design, delivery, administration, and assessment of technology-mediated and distance education programs that will enable decision-makers in agriculture to monitor and report accomplishments of educational programs, initiatives, and projects in terms of educational effectiveness and efficiency. Objectives: 1. Develop, test, validate, and maintain a collection of best-practices for the design, delivery, administration, and assessment of technology-mediated learning and teaching in agricultural contexts. 2. Develop a model to assess technology-mediated learning and teaching in agricultural contexts. This model will utilize appropriate computing and communications technologies to facilitate the collection, storage, manipulation, and retrieval of data to facilitate the communication of timely and focused information to accomplish three evaluation purposes: a) Program Assessment (Accountability) b) Evaluation Research (Impact Assessment). c) Efficiency of the Delivery System (Efficiency).
Project Methods
Objective #1 Following a through and continuous review of the available literature, qualitative and quantitative designs employing survey research methods, descriptive and causal-comparative research designs using a combination of Internet-based and US Mail questionnaires, telephone surveys, on-site visits, and interviews, will be used to identify best practices in design, delivery, administration, and assessment of technology-mediated learning and teaching. Objective #2 Expert evaluation research methods will be employed to determine optimal data models for the assessment of these programs. Qualitative research designs will be used to analyze competency frameworks and outcomes for alignment with stakeholder values.

Progress 05/24/11 to 11/01/13

Outputs
Target Audience: Secondary teachers in agricultural education. University professors of agricultural education, agronomy and soil science. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Session at the state-wide meeting 2013 VATAT Professional Development ConferenceIn (Vocatioal Agriculture Teachers Association of Texas. Demonstrating the resources developed in IMS Online. July 29-August 2, 2013,Corpus Christi, TX How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Secured funding from the Texas Education Agency. Developed online curriculum in agriculture for secondary teachers in several curiculum area aligned with the USDA Pathways. Maintained online professional development for teacher in Advanced Plant and Soil Science. The Advanced Plant and Soil Science inservice coursewas divided into modules as negotiated with the TEA. Modules were maintained in Project Share (a State-Adopted Content Management System). Teachers required assistance with avariety of issues completing the Modules.

Publications

  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Sprouse, Ian; Murphy, Tim; and Hague, Steve. (2013). Status of Plant Biotechnology in Texas Secondary Agricultural Curriculum. Poster presented at the ASA, CSA, and SSSA 2013 International Annual Meetings, "Water, Food, Energy & Innovation for a Sustainable World." November 4, 2013, Tampa, FL.


Progress 01/01/12 to 12/31/12

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Secured funding from the Texas Education Agency. Developed student materials in support of an online professional development curriculum for Agriculture Science Teachers, consisting of ninety (90) contact hours. This curriculum was based on the career and technical education gap analysis for Advanced Plant and Soil Science (APSS). The curriculum was divided into modules as negotiated with the TEA. Modules were designed for deployment in Project Share (a State-Adopted Content Management System). The APSS professional development course was supported throughout the year, providing technical and instructional support for teachers. PARTICIPANTS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. TARGET AUDIENCES: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
Eighty-two teachers completed the Advanced Plant and Soil Science professional development course. Sixty-five have currently met the minimum requirements to receive the certificate; a 79% success rate. Student materials have been downloaded and utilized in courses across the state.

Publications

  • Rayfield, J., Murphy, T., Briers, G. & Lewis, L.J. (2012). Identifying innovative agricultural education programs. Journal of Career and Technical Education. 27(2), 38-50.
  • Hanagriff, R., Briers, G., Rayfield, J., Murphy, T. & Kingman, D. (2012). Economic impact of agricultural mechanics competition projects in Texas and factors that predict chapter investment value. Journal of Agricultural Education. 53(4), 71-81. DOI: 10.5032/jae.2010.04071


Progress 01/01/11 to 12/31/11

Outputs
OUTPUTS: 1) Delivered the final report to The National Council for Agricultural Education for 2010 project entitled, "Extreme Agricultural Education: Identifying Innovative Agricultural Education Programs That Address New Markets." 2) Secured funding from the Texas Education Agency (TEA). Developed online professional development curriculum, consisting of ninety (90) contact hours, and based on the career and technical education gap analysis, for Advanced Plant and Soil Science. The curriculum was divided into modules as negotiated with the TEA. Modules were designed for deployment in Project Share (a State-Adopted Content Management System), including uploading of the materials into this platform. All professional development was based on the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for the course, using the applicable gap analysis. Modules were field tested with revisions based on results. Congruency test will be conducted on each module and each pre-assessment tool with revisions based on the results of such testing. Modules included a variety of learning experiences. 3) In collaboration with Tennessee State University, developed a Letter of Intent with the Centre for Food and Agribusiness Management, Indian Institute of Management (IIM), entitled, "Exploring Integrated One-Stop Solutions for Agriculture: An Information and Communication Technologies Enabled Model." This project used SWOT analysis of existing ICT based models in India and USA and suggested integrated solutions to the farming community in India. The proposed ICT based integrated model can be implemented by public and private agencies in a profitable and sustainable manner to address learning needs. The proposal was not short-listed for approval. PARTICIPANTS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. TARGET AUDIENCES: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
1) The Extreme Agricultural Education project provided insight into the future direction of secondary curriculum in agricultural education, and the current type, and level of integration, of educational technologies adopted by programs "on the fringe." 2) The Advanced Plant and Soil Science project generated interest from teachers, and secured additional funding from TEA to develop experiential learning materials for students in the Advanced Plant and Soil Science class across Texas. The Epsilen Content Management System, adopted by the TEA for all teachers across the State (http://projectsharetexas.org/), and proposed for use by all secondary students in the State, was used. This resulted in two outcomes; 1) there are some serious flaws with Epsilen, it it still very much in the beta software phase. It is not at all ready for a million secondary student accounts. 2) the adoption of iTunes University as an alternate delivery platform for TEA in-service curriculum.

Publications

  • No publications reported this period