Feldpausch-Parker, Andrea M. (author), Ragland, Chara J. (author), Melnick, Leah L. (author), Chaudhry, Rumika (author), Hall, Damon M. (author), Peterson, Tarla R. (author), Stephens, Jennie C. (author), and Wilson, Elizabeth J. (author)
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
2013-06-20
Published:
USA: Taylor & Francis Group Ltd., 2 Park Square Oxford OX14 4RN United Kingdom
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 168 Document Number: D08564
22pgs, In nine of the last 10 years, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has reported that the average funds generated on-farm for farm operators to meet living expenses and debt obligations have been negative. This paper pieces together disparate data to understand why farm operators in the most productive agricultural systems on the planet are systematically losing money. The data-driven narrative we present highlights some troubling trends in US farm operator livelihoods. Though US farms are more productive than ever before, rising input costs, volatile production values, and rising land rents have left farmers with unprecedented levels of farm debt, low on-farm incomes, and high reliance on federal programs. For many US farm operators, the indicators of a “good livelihood”—stability, security, equitable rewards for work—are largely absent. We conclude by proposing three axes of intervention that would help US agriculture better sustain all farmers' livelihoods, a crucial step toward improving overall agricultural sustainability: (1) increase the diversity of people, crops, and cropping systems, (2) improve equity in access to land, support, and capital, and (3) improve the quality, accessibility, and content of data to facilitate monitoring of multiple indicators of agricultural “success.”.
Glenn, B.P. (author), Randel, L. (author), Zimbelman, R.G. (author), Culp, A. (author), and National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, Arlington, VA
The Randel Group, Alexandria, VA
Georgetown, TX
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
2015-07-16
Published:
USA: Glenn, Randel, Zimbelman and Culp
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 164 Document Number: D08218
10 pages, United States science scores have remained stable over the past 12 years, and as a result secondary school students have been deemed less proficient than international peers. Additionally, there has been increased pressure for accountability from both teachers and students. This highly competitive performance-based classroom environment has threatened student motivation. Due to this, many have moved away from an emphasis on rote memorization and lessened the threat of performance testing by using inquiry and problem solving strategies as a way to provide more autonomy in the classroom. Agricultural education has joined the movement in providing autonomy in the classroom through inquiry-based teaching methods. This study investigates the perceptions of school-based agriscience students toward agriscience and inquiry-based instruction when taught through inquiry-based instruction. The perceptions of 170 secondary agriscience students who responded to the questionnaire indicated more favorable attitudes toward agriscience. Participants also had positive responses to items regarding agriculture’s importance to society, and influence in their daily lives. It is recommended that inquiry-based instruction be utilized in the agriscience classroom to promote student learning and motivation. Further investigations on the impacts of student motivation in the classroom when inquiry-based instruction is utilized in school-based agriscience education should be investigated.
13 pages., While work on agricultural messaging is abundant, the way that audiences form perceptions of messages is not well understood and little research has examined the cognitive effects of image and word associations in an agricultural context. Previous knowledge gap research has shown that socioeconomic status and access to information could be one contributor of perception formation. We propose that these variables could also impact cognitive processing. Therefore, the purpose of this exploratory study was to examine how components of cognitive dissonance and knowledge gap theory apply in the context of a contentious agricultural issue. Data were collected from 1,049 United States’ residents through an online survey with an embedded experimental design. Respondents randomly received one of two image and word association pairings. After viewing the treatment, measures of cognitive conflict, demographics, and desire to learn more were collected. The results showed that the cognitive conflict instrument performed differently in the context of a complex agricultural issue than in prior research. Additionally, the message pairings had a stronger influence on cognitive conflict components than demographic characteristics. Finally, the desire to learn more was impacted by the message treatments. Future research on cognitive conflict and advanced modeling is recommended.
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 207 Document Number: D12979
Notes:
Part IV: Journalistic Recovery Post-Trump: Lessons Learned -- "Stop Overlooking Us": missed intersections of Trump, media, and rural America, This book examines the disruptive nature of Trump news - both the news his administration makes and the coverage of it - related to dominant paradigms and ideologies of U.S. journalism. By relying on conceptualizations of media memory and "othering" through news coverage that enhances socio-conservative positions on issues such as immigration, the book positions this moment in a time of contestation. Contributors ranging from scholars, professionals, and media critics operate in unison to analyze today's interconnected challenges to traditional practices within media spheres posed by Trump news. The outcomes should resonate with citizens who rely on journalism for civic engagement and who are active in social change
19 pages, In today’s globalized world, educators and employers generally agree on the necessity for undergraduate agricultural [ag] students to develop a sound understanding of global ag issues and policy. Because of this, many U.S. universities have promoted internationalizing curriculum and increased international study abroad experiences. However, few studies have examined the impact of international experiences on students’ knowledge and attitudes about international ag issues and policies. This study bridges this gap by identifying the relationship between student knowledge and attitude toward international ag issues and U.S. ag policy, and how international experience and demographic variables play a role in that relationship. Adapted from previous literature, an online survey was developed in 2019 among 196 undergraduate students in ag and non-ag fields to measure student knowledge (global aptitude assessment) and student attitude (attitude index score) towards the importance of global agricultural issues and policy. Results concluded that undergraduate students held a low level of knowledge about global ag issues and policy; in fact, ag students held lower average knowledge scores than non-agricultural students. This emphasizes the urgency for administrators to intentionally design and reevaluate our current curriculum to meet these knowledge gaps. Additionally, study abroad experiences did not contribute to students’ knowledge nor attitudes. The authors discuss several possibilities for such results and highlight the call to similarly reevaluate our study abroad curriculum to be more intentional in impacting student knowledge in global ag food systems and acknowledge differences in policy, getting students excited and interested in the global market.
15 pages., This study sought to explore the informational themes and information sources cited by the media to cover stories of cultured meat in both the United States and the European Union. The results indicated that cultured meat news articles in both the United States and the European Union commonly discuss cultured meat in terms of benefits, history, process, time, livestock production problems, and skepticism. Additionally, the information sources commonly cited in the articles included cultured meat researchers, sources from academia, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), New Harvest, Winston Churchill, restaurant owners/chefs, and sources from the opposing countries (e.g. US use some EU sources and vice versa). The implications of this study will allow meat scientists to understand how the media is influencing consumers' perceptions about the topic, and also allow them to strategize how to shape future communication about cultured meat.
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 148 Document Number: D11593
Journal Title Details:
37(Supp2) : S107-S112
Notes:
7 pages., Author compares attitudes and responses of French and American consumers to emergence of very accessible, inexpensive food, with accompanying differences in food selection, eating style, physical activity, and other aspects of living.
Marasteanu, I. Julia (author), Jaenicke, Edward C. (author), and Food and Drug Administration (formerly the Pennsylvania State University), 5100 Paint Branch Parkway # 1B056, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
2016-06
Published:
USA: CAB International, Wallingford Oxon OX10 8DE United Kingdom
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 164 Document Number: D08213
