Title: Where do new scientific agricultural trends stand? An investigation into the perceived educational needs of Iranian agriculture students

Authors: Soroush Marzban; Mohammad Sadegh Allahyari; Saeed Firouzi; Mojdeh Maleki; Jhalukpreya Surujlal; Sarina Mirejini

Addresses: Department of Agricultural Extension and Education, School of Agriculture, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran ' Department of Agricultural Management, Islamic Azad University, Rasht Branch, Rasht, Iran; Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, North-West University, South Africa ' Department of Agronomy, Islamic Azad University, Rasht Branch, Rasht, Iran ' Department of Agricultural Extension and Education, School of Agriculture, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran ' Faculty of Economic and Management Science, North-West University, South Africa ' Department of Fisheries, Faculty of Natural Resources, Guilan University, Iran

Abstract: Newer agricultural methods, and concepts are growingly provided for agricultural production and development, but use of them needs the development of their education of them. The first step of educational planning is the assessment of the educational needs. Students are the target group for fostering qualified workforces and experts. This research aimed to measure students' knowledge of pioneering scientific topics and trends in the agricultural sector. The statistical population was composed of agriculture students in selected universities in Iran, whose educational needs were measured by the Borich needs assessment method. Based on the results, students need education in the most modern agricultural concepts and methods. The lowest perceived educational need is related to the concept of 'family farming', and the highest was related to the concepts 'slow food' and 'cash crops'. The results indicated the need for planning and promoting most educational concepts among agriculture students and their importance.

Keywords: Borich educational needs assessment; educational need; modern scientific agricultural trends.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSAMI.2022.125759

International Journal of Sustainable Agricultural Management and Informatics, 2022 Vol.8 No.3, pp.300 - 325

Received: 19 Mar 2022
Accepted: 25 May 2022
Published online: 27 Sep 2022 *

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