Evaluation of adult education in vocational agriculture during 1952-53

General Introduction The Smith-Hughes Act that originally introduced vocational agriculture in 1917 contains the statement that the controlling purpose of such education shall be to fit for useful employment; that such education shall be of less than college grade be designated to meet the needs of persons ever fourteen years of age have entered upon or who are preparing to enter upon the work the fans or of the farm home. This provides the basis for acceptance by any teachers of vocational agriculture that teaching adults is part of their jobs. In Tennessee, interest has increased greatly in recent years but no study has been made to determine either the practices used in carrying out this part of the program or in establishing practices to be used. Statement of the Problem It was the purpose of this study to determine what practices are followed by Tennessee teachers of vocational agriculture in planning, conducting and evaluating educational programs for adult farmers in Tennessee and to evaluate those practices in light of criteria selected by the investigator from writings on the subject, discussion with people intimately acquainted with the work and his own judgment. Importance of the Study Since the study determined the practices teachers of vocational agriculture are presently using in their adult program, it willl emphasize the situation to supervisors of agricultural education. It also provides supervisors with a tool for improving adult education in vocational agriculture in Tennessee. Teacher educators will find material assistance in organizing courses in adult education both on the graduate and undergraduate levels for those who are preparing to teach vocational agriculture. Present teachers of vocational agriculture will be provided with a basis for setting up new adult programs or improving existing ones. Teachers in other fields will be able to use some of the same practices for organizing programs of adult education in their own field. Finally, study has value to the investigator in establishing a pattern for organizing future programs of adult education in vocational agriculture