AgExt222-Management of Extension Programs

Extension Program Planning

Juareyn O. Acosta, MS
Extension program

The word 'program' has several distinct meanings

in the dictionary.
It means a proclamation, a prospectus, a list of
events, a plan of procedure, a course of action
prepared or announced beforehand, a logical
sequence of operations to be performed in solving
a problem.
When used by an organization, it means a
prospectus, or a statement issued to promote
understanding and interest in an enterprise.
Extension program

an "extension program" is a statement of situation,

objectives, problems and solutions (Kelsey and
Hearne, 1949)

an "extension program" is a set of clearly defined,

consciously conceived objectives or ends, derived
from an adequate analysis of the situation, which is to
be achieved through extension teaching activity'
(Leagans, 1961)
Extension program

According to the USDA (1956), an "extension program" is arrived

at co-operatively by the local people and the extension staff and
includes a statement of:
The situation in which the people are located;
The problems that are a part of the local situation;
The objectives and goals of the local people in relation to
these problems; and
The recommendations or solutions to reach these objectives
on a long-time basis (may be several years) or on a short-
time basis (may be one year or less).
Extension program

Lawrence (1962) says that an "extension program" is the sum

total of all the activities and undertakings of a county extension
services. It includes:
(i) program planning process;
(ii) written program statement;
(iii) plan of work;
(iv) program execution;
(v) results; and
(vi) evaluation.
Extension program
From the above definitions, it is clear that an extension program:
Is a written statement;
Is the end product of extension program planning;
Includes a statement of situation, objectives, problems and
solutions;
Is relatively permanent but requires constant revision;
May include long-term as well as short-term program
objectives;
Forms the basis of extension teaching plans;
Has been drawn up in advance; and
Has been built on the basis of content.
Extension program

Extension program is a written statement of situation,

objectives, problems and solutions which has been prepared
on the basis of an adequate and systematic planning effort
and which forms the basis of extension teaching activities in a
specific area, for a given period.
 Definitions for a set of important terminologies

Program - is a written statement containing more pertinent factual data

used in decision-making, the problems agreed upon with priority
assignment and the possible solutions to the problems.

Plan or Plan of work - is an outline of activities so arranged as to enable

efficient execution of the entire program. It answers the questions of
what, why, how, when, where and by whom the work is to be done.

Project - is a single item of the annual plant containing the method of

solution of a single selected problem.
 Definitions for a set of important terminologies

Calendar of work - a plan of work arranged chronologically, according to

the time when a step of work is to be done. It is a time schedule of work.

Aim - is a broad objective. It is a generalized statement of direction and

may have several objectives. It is also said to be an end in view to give
direction to the creative process.

Objective - is a direction of movement. A well-stated objective is always

measurable. It is also said to be a goal of growth.

Goal - is a distance in any given direction, proposed to be covered in a

given time.
 Planning
It is regarded as an integral and important dimension of our culture's
rational value orientation.
Rational value orientation assumes a conscious systematic approach to problem-
solving, i.e., problem definition, data gathering and choosing between alternative ends
and means on the basis of predetermined criteria.

Almost everyone accepts the premise that planning is important and

necessary for individuals, for families and for business organizations.

The most effective planning effort would be that 'which achieves the
greatest degree of performance of the actions, motions or operations
implied by a set of planning concepts which depict the ideal process
(Boyle, 1965).
 Assumptions on Extension Planning
The concept of extension planning is based on a number of assumptions.
Boyle (1965) has listed the following assumptions in this regard:
Planning change is a necessary prerequisite to effective social progress
for people and communities.
The most desirable change is predetermined and democratically
achieved.
Extension education programs, if properly planned and implemented,
can make a significant contribution to planned change.
It is possible to select, organize and administer a program that will
contribute to the social and economic progress of people.
People and communities need the guidance, leadership and help of
extension educators to solve their problems in a planned and systematic
way.
Extension Program Planning
1. Extension program planning is a process
2. Extension program planning is a decision-making process
3. Extension program planning requires advanced thinking
4. Extension program planning requires skill and ability on the part of planners
5. Extension program planning is built around content
6. Extension program planning is a social action process
7. Extension program planning is a collaborative effort
8. Extension program planning is a system
9. The end-product of extension program planning is an extension program
 Extension Program Planning
1. Extension program planning is a process
The dictionary meaning of 'process' is 'any phenomenon which shows a
continuous change in time' or 'any continuous operation or treatment'.

If we accept this concept of process, we view events and relationships as

dynamic, ongoing, ever-changing, and continuous.

When we label something as a process, we also mean that it does not

have a beginning, an end, a fixed sequence of events. It is not static, at
rest.

The basis for the concept of process is the belief that man cannot
discover the structure of physical reality; man must create it.
 Extension Program Planning
1. Extension program planning is a process
The concept a person has of the extension program planning process will
affect actions and mode of researching the process.

Many program-planning processes take place at any particular time at

different levels of the extension organization. For example, program
planning occurs at the national level (five-year plans), at the state level
(state plans, annual plans of work) and at the block level. In fact, planning
at the block level is taking place when:
The long-time plan or projected plan is being developed;
The schematic budget is being planned;
The annual plan of work is being developed;
Detailed plans for individual learning experiences are developed with a
major project.
 Extension Program Planning

2. Extension program planning is a decision-making process

Planning is basically a decision-making process- and so is extension
program planning.

In extension program planning, scientific facts are put to value judgments

of the people through the implementation of a rational planning model to
decide on a program that will be carried out through the extension
teaching activities.
 Extension Program Planning
3. Extension program planning requires advanced thinking
If we could know 'where we are' and 'where we are to go' we could better judge
'what to do' and 'how to do'. This statement lies at the heart of the nature of
planning.
Planning does not take place in a vacuum or automatically. It has to be made
to happen. The most basic fact of planning is that effective rural development
results from choice, not from chance; it results from design, not from drift.
Good extension program planning is an intellectual activity since it usually
involves the study and use of facts and principles. It requires knowledge,
imagination and reasoning ability.
It is a complex exercise as it involves people their needs, their interests, useful
technology, educational process, analyzing a situation and making decisions
about what should be done, determining useful actions, projecting the desired
shape of things in the future and several other components, which are rarely
simple.
 Extension Program Planning

4. Extension program planning requires skill and ability on the part of

planners:
Planning effective extension education programs requires a number of
high-level professional skills. Needed abilities include understanding and
skill in the following broad areas:
Understanding the nature and role of extension education
organization.
Knowledge and understanding of the technology related to the subject
with which the program is concerned.
Ability to clarify the objectives of a program and to so state that they
are useful in guiding its execution.
Skill at seeing the relationship between principles and practice.
Skill at the inquiry and human relationships.
 Extension Program Planning
5. Extension program planning is built around content

A program regarding any extension activity can only be built

on the basis of content. Without some express purpose, there
can be no planning. Extension program planning is built
around available improved technology, the people, their
resources, problems, needs and interests.
 Extension Program Planning
6. Extension program planning is a social action process

Extension program planning involves interaction and the

decisions so taken in the form of a program affect others.
Interaction assumes some type of communication between
two or more people in the planning process.

So when the extension staff involving specialists and people's

representatives decides on the program content for extension
teaching for the coming year, it is involved in social planning.
 Extension Program Planning
7. Extension program planning is a collaborative effort

Extension program planning is a collaborative effort involving

the identification, assessment, evaluation of needs, problems,
resources, priorities and solutions

8. Extension program planning is a system

Extension program planning is a system as its procedures and
processes are interrelated, ordered and linked progressively to
form a collective whole. It includes several subprocesses, such
as planning, designing, implementing, evaluation etc.
 Extension Program Planning
9. The end-product of extension program planning is an extension program

The first consideration for anyone who is to concern himself with a

process or set of procedures for planning is to clearly identify the primary
purpose of the planning process to be developed.

Many have suggested that the purpose of planning is for educating

those who participate.

According to Vanderberg (1965), 'the primary purpose of any planning,

first and foremost is that of developing a sound, defensible and
progressive course of action or plan. In the process followed, many other
benefits might accrue, such as the education of participants, but we
want a plan which can and will be used'.
Extension program planning defined
Having said that extension program planning is a social action, decision-making,
interactional process in which advanced thinking is needed for identifying the
needs, interests and resources of the people through educational means to
prepare a blueprint for action we are now ready to formally define this concept.
However, it appears appropriate here to first list some of the definitions of
extension program planning as given in the literature.
Program planning is viewed as a process through which representatives of
the people are intensively involved with extension personnel and other
professional people in four activities (Boyle, 1965)
Studying facts and trends; problems and opportunities based on these facts
and trends;
Making decisions about problems and opportunities that should be given
priority; and
Establishing objectives or recommendations for future economic and social
development of a community through educational programs.
 Extension program planning defined
2. This is the process whereby the people in the country, through their leaders, plan their
extension program. Country and state professional extension staff members assist in this
process. The end result of this process is a written program statement (Lawrence, 1962).

3. Extension program planning is the process of determining, developing and executing

programs. It is a continuous process, whereby farm people, with the guidance and
leadership of extension personnel, attempt to determine, analyze and solve local problems
(Musgraw, 1962). In this, there are three characteristics:
What needs to be done?
When it should be done? and
How it should be done?

4. An organized and purposeful process initiated and guided by the agent, to involve a
particular group of people in the process of studying their interests, needs and problems,
deciding upon and planning education and other actions to change their situation in
desired ways and making commitments regarding the role and responsibilities of the
participants (Olson, 1962).
 Extension program planning defined
An analysis of these and other definitions of extension program planning implies that
it:
Is decision-making, a social process;
Involves advance thinking;
Is a progressive step-by-step process;
Uses educational means in defining the goals and situations;
Is built around improved technology, people, their needs, interests, resources,
values, attitudes and skills; and
The end-product is a written statement of the situation, problems, objectives and
solutions.

Thus extension program planning may be defined as:

Decision-making, social-action process in which extension educationists involve
people's representatives, to determine their needs, problems, resources and
priorities, in order to decide on an extension program consisting of situation
analysis, problems, objectives and solutions,
This will form the basis of extension teaching plans for a given period.
Rationale of program planning
Progress requires a design: Effective education is a result of design not drift; it
results from a plan, not from trial and error. The experience of workers in
education and in other educational agencies has been that progress is made most
effectively when a plan of action is set forth and followed. The pay-off for
educational efforts comes when people change their behavior to improve their
situation. These results come most rapidly when careful planning is done and
when effective teaching methods are used.
 Rationale of program planning
Planning gives direction: There are no tests for directing the people's learning in
extension. These arguments the difficulty of designing a plan and underscores the
fact that planning is one of the most important jobs of extension workers.

In planning or constructing a course of study, the teacher should be guided by five

major factors:
(1) the purpose for which the course is offered, its aims;
(2) the characteristics and needs of those who are to take the course;
(3) the educational environment of these persons;
(4) the sources of information available; and
(5) the requirements or demands of the vocation or other uses to which the learning
is to be put.

These factors apply to the development of extension programs as well as to the

curriculum of the public schools. The factors that apply to the study of a situation will be
considered more closely a little later.
Rationale of program planning
Effective learning requires a plan: There must be consciously directed effort on the part of
the teacher to give guidance to the learning process. The direction of this teaching effort
can best be stated in terms of objectives. They must be developed with the people to be
taught and must be capable of attainment by and with the people concerned.

Planning precedes action: The results of an action are dependent on the following:
adequacy of analysis of the problems, the situation of objectives and involvement of the
people.

Through the planning process, questions such as these are posed:

What information do farm men and women need most?
Which kind of information shall be extended?
What information shall be extended first?
How much time shall be devoted to this line of work?
How much effort shall be devoted to this line of work?

The answers to these questions lie in the program planning process.

Rationale of program planning
Kelsey and Hearne (1949) have given the following rationale for a planned
extension program. According to them, sound extension program planning:

1. Is based on an analysis of the facts in the situation

2. selects problems based on needs
3. determines objectives and solutions which offer satisfaction
4. reflects performance with flexibility
5. incorporate balance with an emphasis
6. envisages a definite plan of work
7. is a continuous process
8. is a teaching process
9. is a coordinating process
10. involves local people and their institutions; and
11. provides for evaluation of results
Thus, it could be said that planning programs is an
integral part of the development process and ensures
better and efficient utilization of resources,
accountability and human development.