Participatory Curriculum Development in Agricultural Extension Education

Reorienting and refining curriculum of the extension education is very important in this period of highly vibrant and fast changing society particularly in farming sector. Participatory Curriculum Development (PCD) in Agricultural extension education is an evolving approach to enrich the quality of education in the farm universities. The main steps of the PCD approach adopted here have high practical utility in refining formal course contents for the Undergraduate and Postgraduate courses in Agricultural Extension. A great deal of judgment is essential while determining on how much participation is required from which stakeholders at what levels. However, while developing this toolkit we have taken the insights through Focus Group Discussions and Field level Workshops with farmers, field extension workers, teachers in extension education, both UG PG students perusing graduation in agriculture and para extension workers by considering stakeholders as a pivotal factor for the success of extension education.

The adopted Participatory Curriculum Development (PCD) approach, outlined in this toolkit, holds significant practical utility for shaping formal course contents in Agricultural Extension at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. The toolkit highlights the importance of thoughtful consideration regarding the extent and type of stakeholder participation at various levels. The emphasis was primarily on enhancing practical utility and elucidating the concept of participatory curriculum development. We explored the reasons behind advocating participatory methods in teaching and learning, along with the advantages obtained through the adoption of participatory approaches. It is hoped that this toolkit serves as an stimulation for individuals undertaking curriculum restructuring efforts, aiming to enhance the quality and efficiency of agricultural education. We anticipate that the toolkit developed will assist to adopt participatory methods in developing curricula for emerging subjects in agricultural science. Finally, we hope it supports in reorienting existing curricula to align to meet the demands of current job market by producing a skilled workforce capable of addressing contemporary challenges in agriculture.

M. Shivamurthy is an Emeritus Scientist-ICAR, Department of Agricultural Extension, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, Bengaluru. He is also serving as Member, Board of Management, University of Horticultural Sciences, Bagalkot. Prior to this he was a Professor (HAG) and Head of the Department. He has 35 years of experience in teaching, research and extension activities and has guided eight Ph.D and twenty four M.Sc research scholars. He has also served as Fellow of Indian Society of Extension Education and Visiting Professor (Ghent University, Belgium and Humboldt University, Berlin). As PI and Co-PI of several national and international research projects funded by ICAR, Coconut Development Board, Department of Biotechnology GOI, DIS & Wageningen Agricultural University, The Netherlands and Japanese Bank of International Cooperation; he has visited many countries viz., France, South Korea, Germany, Iran, Belgium, Isreal, United Kingdom, Australia and Egypt as part of research activities. He has organized many training programs, winter and summer schools. He is an active member of editorial and executive committees for professional societies and has published more than hundred research articles in national and international journals and thirteen books. His contribution in the field of extension was honored with several awards like Dr.O.P. Dhama Memorial Award, ISEE National Fellow Award, Dr. G.S. Vidyarthi Memorial National Award, Best paper presentation award and state level award for best agricultural book publication.

A. Madhushree is working as Research Associate in Emeritus Scientist Project, Department of Agricultural Extension, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, Bengaluru. Prior to this she has worked as Senior Research Fellow in Integrated Farming System Demonstration Project and Zero Budget Natural Farming Project. She also served as Assistant Professor on contractual basis in the Department of Agricultural Extension, UAS, GKVK, Bengaluru. She was a recipient of Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship and has cleared ASRB-NET and UGC-NET. She has attended international conference at Singapore and conferred with Young Scientist award. She is a recipient of Best thesis and Best oral presentation award. She has developed folders and training modules, authored and co-authored several research papers, review papers, book chapters for national and international journals.