Vol. 51 No. 01 (2001)

The manuscripts in Volume 51, Issue 1 (2001) of the Journal of Southern Agricultural Education Research (JSAER) present a broad examination of the agricultural education profession at the turn of the century, addressing technology integration, curriculum development, FFA relevance and ethics, land-grant accountability, distance education, and workforce preparation.

FFA Programs, Leadership, and Ethics

• FFA Programs and Services as Perceived by Members and Non-Members: A quantitative study of 404 North Carolina students in agriscience courses finds that students' decisions to join FFA are influenced by their perceptions of its programs, with social belonging being the primary motivating factor, and that gender, ethnicity, grade level, and other demographic variables do not significantly influence those perceptions, recommending that FFA prioritize inclusive personal growth activities.
• Unethical Practices in FFA Competitions: A survey of 399 agricultural education students finds widespread awareness of unethical practices in FFA competitive events — including physical abuse of show animals, ghostwritten speeches, and sharing judging results — recommending comprehensive ethics education for FFA members to reinforce the values of character and fair play.
• Historical Antecedents of the FFA: A historical study traces the roots of the National FFA Organization to agricultural societies, the Grange, boys' and girls' clubs, and the Future Farmers of Virginia, documenting how early organizations directly influenced the FFA's symbols, colors, rituals, and organizational structure.
• Self-Perceived Impact of Texas 4-H Council Participation: A study of former Texas 4-H Council members finds that state-level youth leadership participation is associated with higher educational attainment, career achievement, and community involvement, recommending that Extension use these outcomes to demonstrate program value and improve 4-H programming.

Curriculum Development and Communication

• High School Agricultural Communications Competencies: A three-round national Delphi study identifies 11 topic areas and 76 grade-level-appropriate competencies for high school agricultural communications curricula — including writing, computer technology, ethics, leadership, and legislative issues — providing a national framework for curriculum development in an underresearched area of agricultural education.
• Texas High School Agricultural Communications Curriculum Analysis: A survey of 145 Texas agriscience teachers finds that 67% have little to no experience in agricultural communications but broadly support incorporating communication techniques and procedures in the curriculum, with self-rated teaching skill ranging from fair to good, recommending targeted professional development for teachers assigned to these courses.
• Biotechnology Curriculum Adoption by North Carolina Agriculture Educators: A descriptive and correlational study finds that most agricultural educators lack the knowledge and training to teach the integrated Biotechnology and Agriscience Research course, cite funding, equipment, and content knowledge as the greatest barriers, but support its inclusion in the program of studies, with newer teachers and those with prior biotechnology training most likely to adopt the course.
• Teacher Attitudes Toward Georgia Agricultural Education Standards: A study of 85% of Georgia agricultural education personnel finds that most use the State Board-approved standards but primarily as shared evaluation instruments, with attitudes influenced by job description, years of experience, age, and gender, recommending clearer guidance on standards implementation and more individual program use.

Teacher Preparation and Inservice

• Preservice and Inservice Needs of Beginning Teachers Supervising Livestock SAEs: A descriptive survey of 145 beginning Texas agriscience teachers finds that they feel least prepared to work with rabbits and poultry and most prepared with beef cattle and goats, and that the greatest program challenges involve parents and logistics around travel and transportation to shows, recommending targeted preservice instruction in less familiar livestock species.
• Employer Perceptions of Agricultural and Extension Education Graduate Preparation: A survey of employers of University of Arkansas agricultural and extension education graduates finds that while graduates are generally prepared for entry-level positions, interpersonal skills — especially teamwork, decision-making, leadership, and initiative — are the areas most needing improvement, with internet skills and presentation abilities also identified as development priorities.
• Computer Experiences, Self-Efficacy, and Knowledge of Agriculture Students: A comparative study of Arkansas freshmen and senior agriculture students finds that seniors outperform freshmen in computer self-efficacy, knowledge, and breadth of experience across all areas, though overall scores remain low, recommending that agricultural programs systematically assess and strengthen computer literacy throughout the undergraduate experience.

Distance Education and Technology

• Attrition Rate in an Asynchronous Swine Continuing Education Course: A study of a National Pork Producers Council web-based farrowing management course finds completion rates rising from 27% in the spring offering to 58% in the fall, examining how instructional design, adult learner characteristics, and technological barriers affect course completion, recommending design strategies to reduce attrition in self-paced asynchronous formats.
• Using Visuals Effectively in Distance Education: A survey study identifies best practices for visual design in distance education classrooms, finding that contrasting color combinations — especially violet background with white text — san-serif fonts, and larger font sizes (54 pt) are most preferred, with visual or distance impairment having no significant relationship with preferences, providing practical guidance for instructors designing materials for television-based distance delivery.

Land-Grant Accountability and Extension

• Forestry Professors and Stakeholder Service Ten Years after Boyer: A qualitative study of Oklahoma State University forestry faculty finds that faculty roles have shifted from teaching to research over their careers, that faculty perceive knowledge generation as their primary role while viewing stakeholder service as Extension's responsibility, and that peer-reviewed journal articles dominate how scholarship is communicated, recommending a cultural revolution in promotion and tenure that genuinely values service alongside research.
• Gathering Stakeholder Input for Research Priorities: A pilot study advances a model grounded in fourth-generation evaluation theory for collecting and implementing stakeholder input to set land-grant research priorities as required by the 1998 Farm Bill, recommending broad testing and refinement of the model at other institutions to increase accountability and community participation.
• Qualitative Evaluation of an Agricultural Center of Excellence: A qualitative evaluation of an Oklahoma value-added agricultural products center finds customers highly satisfied with services but identifies communication gaps, limited public profile, and difficulty bridging service and research cultures within the academic unit, recommending improvements in stakeholder communication, outreach to new client groups, and institutional recognition of industry-responsive service.
• Florida Extension Volunteers — Learning Styles and Professional Development: A study of 274 Florida Association for Family and Community Education volunteers finds their mean age is 71 years, that only 42% have received formal professional development as volunteers, and that the group is predominantly field-dependent learners, recommending that Extension agents use varied instructional strategies to match the preferred learning needs of older volunteer populations.
• Florida State Fair Youth Livestock Achievement Program: An evaluation of the first two years of a youth livestock achievement program finds that participants most value the opportunity to earn money and points and the educational aspects of the program, with first-time participants more motivated by learning opportunities and repeat participants more motivated by financial incentives, recommending the program as a model for rewarding individual effort and equitable participation in livestock exhibitions.
• HR Competency Assessment of County Extension Chairs: A descriptive and correlational study of Ohio State University Extension county chairs finds that the highest perceived HR competencies include written and oral comprehension and problem sensitivity, that a strong significant correlation exists between competency and performance of HR activities, and that chairs receive little formal HR training, recommending professional development targeting human resource management for Extension managers.

Higher Education Quality and Creativity

• Peer Evaluation of Teaching in the University of Florida's College of Agricultural and Life Sciences: A five-year follow-up qualitative study finds that while time demands and reluctance to include critical feedback are weaknesses of the peer review process, all three stakeholder groups — evaluated faculty, committee chairs, and administrators — agree that peer evaluation has improved teaching quality and should continue.
• Tapping into Creative Potential in Higher Education: A theoretical article reviews the literature on creativity and proposes a model of the creative thinking process as a cognitive map for agricultural faculty, recommending that higher education create learning environments that actively foster divergent and creative thinking alongside analytical skills.
• Relationships Between Critical and Creative Thinking: A correlational study examines whether critical and creative thinking are related constructs among agricultural students, providing foundational empirical data to inform the profession's efforts to develop both dimensions of student thinking simultaneously.
• Quality of Life of Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Scholarship Recipients: An evaluation of HLS&R scholarship recipients examines the impact of scholarship support on graduates' quality of life across the domains of being, belonging, and becoming, providing benchmark data on career outcomes, community engagement, and overall well-being for a major agricultural scholarship program.