Agricultural Education and Agricultural Development Overview.
For agriculture to contribute to food production, shelter, and development, the link between agriculture and education must be strengthened. Agricultural Education is a form of education that occurs within the four walls of the school system to train individuals in agriculture and as well as in education.
The subjects deal with the acquisition of skills, knowledge, and ability to be effective in crops and animal production as well as the skills and the knowledge to teach these acquired skills to students.
This acquisition of skills, and knowledge is essential for farmers to stay focused on farming and be able to appreciate the role of stakeholders in assisting farmers to boost agricultural production.
Across the globe, government and non-governmental organizations have devised various initiatives to improve the National Gross Domestic Product through Agriculture.
This improvement can only be made possible if farmers have adequate knowledge and skills to implement these programs initiated by these critical stakeholders. These account for the Contributions of Agricultural Education to Agricultural Development.
Agricultural education is offered in some countries as agricultural science in elementary school and Agricultural Education in higher and tertiary institutions (globalacademicgroup.com)
Read Also: Agricultural Education: Definition and Career Opportunity in Agricultural Education
Contributions of Agricultural Education to Agricultural Development
The Contributions of Agricultural Education to agricultural development in building nations’ agriculture through the effective acquisition of knowledge, skill, and value cannot be overemphasized.
Agricultural education has made a significant contribution to advancing the global agricultural sector. It has facilitated a shift from traditional subsistence farming to modern commercial agriculture.
This has been achieved through effective training on modern farming practices, the acquisition of skills, as well as the development of competencies necessary for implementing the knowledge acquired in agricultural production.
Some of the Contributions of Agricultural Education to agricultural development are:
Produce Agricultural Professional
Agricultural Education has helped to boost Agricultural Development across the globe through the training of professionals in the field of agriculture.
Professionals in agriculture such as plant and animal breeders, Veterinary Experts, Agro-business experts, Extension agents, Agronomists, Animal husbandries, and agricultural engineers received their training from Agricultural Education.
The teaching of Agriculture equips individuals in every branch of agriculture with the proficiency and competency skills to excel in Agricultural Production.
Agricultural Education institutes across the globe received Millions of applications from individuals seeking specialization in one area of agricultural education or the other.
Motivate Youths to Take Farming as a Profession
Since Agricultural Education is a profession that exists from elementary school to tertiary education of any level, the Agricultural Education teacher inculcates in students and youths the importance of agriculture to man, industries, and nations’ Gross Domestic Product ( GDP).
They also inculcated in the students and youths the ability to take up agriculture as a career. the subjects have contributed to the development of agriculture across the globe by the training of students through school-based laboratories and practical agriculture to enable youths to acquire practical abilities and skills to succeed in agriculture.
Through practical and laboratory experiments in Agriculture students and youths develop an interest and ability to take up agriculture as a profession.
Since Agricultural Education is a foundational subject to increase agricultural development across the globe research is carried out on how to mobilize youths through formal and informal certain to participate in agriculture production.
Help Farmers Adopt Modern Farming Techniques
Sensitization of the youths on the need for better farming techniques that will increase productivity and a better standard of living for the farmers has led to the adoption of modern farming techniques.
The awareness students received in the practical farms by using modern innovative techniques of farming by the agricultural science teacher is translated into a real-life experience that enables farmers to adopt better farming techniques.
The rates of positive adoption of agricultural innovations have changed over the years, this is due to the awareness created by the agricultural science teachers through Agricultural Education.
Since the teaching of Agriculture is a foundational subject and a core subject in elementary schools in some countries, students have the privilege of learning the rudiments of farming through practical farms.
Improve Better Farm Management Decision Making
The knowledge, value, altitudes, and ability acquired in agriculture experience from elementary and higher institutions will help farmers to improve farm management decisions that will increase farmers’ productivity.
Agricultural Education through a school-based leadership program known as the Young Farmers Association or FFA equips youths with better farm management skills that will help farmers manage their farms effectively.
More so, this program has helped youths in better decision-making on what, when, and how to plant crops and rear animals to marketable size.
Keep Accurate Records
The skills, knowledge, and understanding acquired from the classroom agriculture experience on various farm records will help the farmer Improve farm management through accurate record keeping.
Agricultural Education Has Contributed to Agricultural Development by helping farmers acquire knowledge and understanding of better farm records that will help farmers determine their profits or losses.
These better farm record-keeping skills acquired via agricultural education help farmers secure loans from commercial banks which they use to expand their farms to increase farmers’ productivity.
Agricultural Education through school-based learning experiences equips youths with the mindset that farming as an agro-business and the Knowledge of accounting principles must applied to farm management to make profits.
Improve Farmer’s Social Disposition
Agricultural Education through a school-based leadership program known as the Young Farmers Association equips Farmers with Social skills that enable them to relate with others in their communities.
Agricultural Education Has Contributed to Agricultural Development by helping farmers bond with others in the communities and outside the communities which enables them to accept modern farming innovation to boost productivity.
Some farmers in rural areas have unbounded behaviors that make them skeptical of accepting people or being friendly, this attitude makes them continue in the usage of old methods of farming.
But Agricultural Education has broken this barrier by social disposition that will help bond farmers with friends and families.
Access Market Information and Strategies
The understanding and knowledge acquired from classroom agriculture will help farmers understand customers’ needs, and how the customers’ needs are been met through the production of crops and animals.
Agricultural Education Has Contributed to Agricultural Development by helping farmers decide on what to produce, when to produce, and how to produce to satisfy customers’ needs.
Farmers have also developed an understanding of when to produce and sell at a very high price that will help farmers make a profit.
Agricultural Education through school-based learning experience equips youths with the strategies required to satisfy consumer demand.
Procurement of Improved Farm Inputs
The knowledge of Agricultural Education has helped farmers in the procurement of improved farm inputs that will increase yields.
Agricultural Education has helped Farmers procure farm inputs such as improving maize, rice, groundnut, cowpea, and the breed of animal that increases productivity.
Procurement of better herbicides, insecticides, and drugs to improve Agricultural production. Agricultural education has also helped farmers with knowledge of the procurement of farm inputs that will increase productivity.
Carry Out Research
Agricultural Education Has Contributed to Agricultural Development by conducting research on better methods of farming and how to motivate youths toward taking agriculture as a career.
They have researched soil fertilities, food analysis, and better ways of cultivating crops and rearing farm animals and so on in the University or Polytechnic laboratory, and report to farmers the best farm practices to adopt in their local community to increase farm productivity.
Frequently Ask Questions
What are the contributions of agricultural education?
About 75% of the populace is gainfully employed by the agricultural sector, which means that only a few percentages are involved in non-agriculture sectors.
Large numbers of these farmers reside in rural areas and are mostly peasant farmers operating small areas of land with crude farm implements, inadequate skills, and technology to improve agricultural productivity.
The agricultural education program is therefore saddled with the responsibility to train farmers with modern skills, competency, and ability to improve agriculture productivity.
Some of the contributions of agricultural education to agricultural or national development are the reduction of poverty, reduction of overdependency on government, aid in rural development, empowerment, self-sufficiency, and inculcation of entrepreneurship competency in individuals.
What is the importance of education in agricultural development?
Education entails the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and values that enable individuals to participate actively and effectively in society.
Sequel to this, the government introduced an agricultural education program to help learners acquire knowledge, skills, and competency in agricultural production as well as the techniques of teaching agriculture.
Agricultural education occurs in schools, colleges, and universities to help farmers acquire skills in modern agriculture.
The concept is to inculcate skills in the youth or would-be farmers because they constitute the majority of the farming population as well as to educate Adult farmers and women as extension agents.
Some of the importance of education in agricultural development are:
- Inculcate permanent literary skills in the youths to excel in agricultural production
- and equip learners with modern agricultural skills to increase agricultural productivity
- It brings about changes in agricultural methods
- It teaches modern farming practices to the youth.
- It facilitates the adoption of agricultural innovations.
- It improves farmers’ standard of living.
- It helps farmers develop competency, and skills to handle their problems individually
- It enlightens farmers about the support services available.
what are the effects of Lack of education in agriculture?
The level of education possessed by farmers is necessary for carrying out their farming practices with the required methods and techniques in agriculture.
Education plays a crucial role in helping farmers stay up-to-date with the latest developments and innovations in their fields.
When farmers lack education, they tend to be more ignorant about modern farming technology.
This can result in a lower level of adoption of modern farming techniques, which makes the work of extension services ineffective. some of the effects of Lack of education in agriculture are:
- It will be difficult to educate farmers about land laws and reforms
- Lack of education in agriculture will breed ignorance among rural farmers
- It led to low adoption of modern methods of farming and the application of new technologies and techniques in farming.
- poor information about the sources of farming inputs, organization of cooperative societies, and harvesting.
- increase in post losses in harvesting and processing due to the lack of adoption of modern techniques
- poor farm record, accounting, and book-keeping
- poor decision-making, and profitable marketing
In conclusion
The need for modern agriculture cannot be possible without Agricultural Education. The teaching of agriculture has youths and adult farmers adopt modern farming techniques, carry out research, procurement of Improved farm Inputs, access market Information and Strategies, Improve farm management decision-making, and keep accurate records.