Researching Professional Development Learning Activity #4 What Are My Co-workers Seeking? Nathan Johnson

I conducted my survey/interview at a one-day conference where I serve as a member of the planning committee. For nine years now, members of the University of Minnesota Extension service, North Dakota State University Extension service, and Manitoba Agriculture (this is equivalent to our extension service) have put on a joint meeting focusing on concerns of producers from both sides of the border. The committee is made up of agents whose county borders the national line. We alternate host sites. This years program was held in Morden, Manitoba.

I thought it would be interesting to conduct the survey/interview at this site because it would allow me to find out what the development needs are of my colleagues from ND and Manitoba. Would they be similar to the ones I hear in the NW District of MN?

My conclusion from the survey/interviews is that my colleagues from ND and Manitoba have many of the same concerns. Some of the most common similarities are:

1. More Access to resources and specialists. 2. More training in various educational methods. 3. Want to make better use of communication technology available such as email, ITV, and conference calls to avoid time spent away from the work site. 4. Want more training on all the programs that are available with a computer. I would say something similarly to what took place in computer class 5412. 5. Specialization training and cross training in areas that are commonly worked with.

Notable Differences:

One of the things I found interesting in visiting with the agents from Manitoba is that they are not directly linked to a university like we are at MN and ND. If they want to bring a specialist in from the university, they use what they called grant money to pay for it. Or they relied on the system of its who you know to get the speaker they wanted.

After interviewing the ND agents, I would say it was easier for them to get a specialist into their county than it is for me. It has to do with the amount of travel time. They can get a specialist out of Fargo with a travel time of 2= hrs. and for one to come from St. Paul to my county involves a travel time of 6= hrs. So distance can become a limiting factor.

-- Anonymous, February 15, 2000