A study to evaluate and improve the adult farmer program in the Morris Chapel community

The problem was to evaluate and improve the adult farmer program in vocational agriculture in the Morris Chapel Community.

The problem was divided into sub-problems in order that a more thorough study be made. The sub-problems were:

1. What the program should be

2. The program in 1952-1953

3. The revised program for 1953-1954

4. Revision of what the program should be

5. Plans for the revised program for 1954-1955

Surveys were made on thirty-three farms in the community in 1953. Information obtained from these surveys was used in determining the farming situation.¹

Many conversations were held with teachers who had an adult program in operation to get their ideas. Previous enrollees of the adult classes were interviewed to get their suggestions for improving the program. A great deal of reading was done in order to get the thinking of many people. The writer used all of this information and his own personal knowledge and experiences in formulating a construct of an adult farmer program which would be an approachable ideal for the farmers in his community.

The construct provided the teacher with a better understanding of an adult farmer program as well as a pattern for developing the 1953-1954 program.

The construct that was developed was presented to two small group conferences of vocational agriculture teachers in West Tennessee in the fall of 1953 for their constructive criticisms. Slight revisions were made based upon their suggestions.

The 1952-1953 adult program was carried out with little planning. No formal evaluation was made until the teacher realized that changes should be made in the program. The 1952-1953 program was then compared to the construct which had been developed. As a result of this comparison changes were made and included in the revised program for 1953-1954. Due to certain circumstances that arose the revised program did not correspond with the construct in every detail. The 1953-54 adult program was planned, conducted and evaluated very much as planned in the construct. As a result of the evaluation of the 1953-1954 program and further reading on adult education, the need for further changes in the program was seen. These changes were incorporated in a revised construct for 1954-1955. After the revised construct was developed plans for carrying it out were developed.