DEVELOPING AND FIELD TESTING DESIGN PARAMETERS FOR CUSTOMIZING AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION EDUCATION SYSTEMS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

This developmental research project offers country developers, extension educators, and evaluators a design strategy for custom designing an appropriate extension education system through the use of evaluative instruments which analyze a developing country’s situation. The research involved (a) a search of relevant literature to identify country-specific problems and components of extant extension education approaches resulting in the development of two instruments, “Country Analysis” and “Model Correlation”, (b) a modified Delphi review to refine the instruments, and (c) field tests of the instruments in the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Cambodia, and Turkmenistan. Delphi panelists reinforced the core analytical categories and items of the original instruments while suggesting enhancements in format, clarity, and efficient usage. Field tests in the PRC and Cambodia confirmed the suitability of the instruments for evaluating existing extension education systems. The Turkmenistan field test substantiated the validity of the instruments for designing a new system.