Using Digital Technology in Extension Education

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Attribution .............................................................................................................................................. 2 Table of Contents..................................................................................................................................... 3 Meet The Authors.................................................................................................................................... 5 Acknowledgments ................................................................................................................................. 10 Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................... 10 Purpose of the Guide. ............................................................................................................................................... 10 TECHNOLOGY FUTURING WORK AND RATIONALE................................................................................... 11 Publication Overview............................................................................................................................. 12 What’s Here ...................................................................................................................................................................... 12 How to Use Connect Extension ........................................................................................................................................ 13 Part One: Perspectives ................................................................................................................. 14 Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 14 Linking Communication and Information Technology to Agricultural Knowledge Networks ..................... 16 Introduction ...................................................................................................................................................................... 16 Background ....................................................................................................................................................................... 16 The Future of ICT and Agriculture Networks .................................................................................................................... 17 Transforming Cooperative Extension’s Digital Ecosystem ........................................................................ 19 What’s Different ............................................................................................................................................................... 20 Things to Consider ............................................................................................................................................................ 20 When Circumstances Call for Innovation, the Status Quo May be the Biggest Risk........................................................ 20 Extension as a Service (EaaS).................................................................................................................. 23 Introduction ...................................................................................................................................................................... 23 What Innovation is Not..................................................................................................................................................... 23 Are We Asking the Right Questions? Setting the Right Goals? ........................................................................................ 23 How Do We Proceed with Transformation?..................................................................................................................... 24 Examples of Note .............................................................................................................................................................. 25 Part Two: Featured Technologies.................................................................................................. 26 Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 26 Social Media ...................................................................................................................................................................... 26 COVID-19 Affirms Our Choice ........................................................................................................................................... 27 Building a Peer-to-Peer National Network: Connect Extension ................................................................ 28 Introduction ...................................................................................................................................................................... 28 Learning from Success and Failure ................................................................................................................................... 28 The Technology................................................................................................................................................................. 29 Enlisting Individuals Willing to Make It Successful ........................................................................................................... 30 Instagram: Platform Basics, Case Studies and Resources ......................................................................... 32 Platform Overview ............................................................................................................................................................ 32 Case Study: A Photo is Worth a Thousand Words: Using Instagram for Extension Education .................... 35 Introduction ...................................................................................................................................................................... 35