The document outlines the principles of extension education, emphasizing the importance of starting with the interests and needs of the community while also considering cultural differences. It highlights various principles such as grassroots organization, cooperation, participation, and the role of trained specialists in ensuring effective extension work. Success in extension programs depends on local leadership, continuous evaluation, and ultimately achieving satisfaction among participants.

1. Principles of Extension Education
Dr. Debashis Dash
Ph.D. (Agricultural Extension and Communication)
e-Content Developer
IDP-NAHEP, GBPUA&T, PANTNAGAR

2. Why to study principles of Extension?
• Principles underlie the conduct
of agricultural extension work.
• Principles differ in different
communities in which extension
education is a means to an end.
• Principles serve as basic guidelines
for the conduct of extension work.
• Principles are relative and not
necessarily fixed in sequence or
order.

3. Principles of Extension
Education
Principle of Interest and Needs
• Interests and Needs of people are the starting
points of Extension Work.
• Basic needs of people conceptualized as FELT
and UNFELT needs.
Challenge: To identify the unfelt needs and
interests of the people as they perceive them.
• Extension worker can succeed only when
he/she is confident and persuasive in nature.

4. Principles of Extension
Education
Principle of grass root
organization
• Extension work or program should
start from the scratch.
• It should focus on local problems.
• Most importantly, the extension
principle should start with the people
where they are and what they have.

5. Principles of Extension
Education
Principle of cultural change
REF:
http://ecoursesonline.iasri.res.in/m
od/resource/view.php?id=4360
• Extension education always starts from
grassroots keeping in mind about the unfelt
needs of the people.
• The extension professionals with an attitude
of respect towards clients, seek to discover
and understand the limitations, taboo and the
cultural values related to each phase of
programme so that an acceptable approach
could be selected in the locality

6. Principles of Extension
Education
• Extension work is based on the cultural
background of the people.
• A blue print of plan of action designed for one
region cannot be applied effectively to
another region due to cultural difference.
• Change is supposed to be made only when the
extension worker is completely aware of the
customs, traditions, beliefs, values etc. of the
people living in different parts of the country.
Principle of cultural difference

7. Principles of Extension
Education
• The family is the basic unit of the society.
• The whole family approach is far better
than piecemeal approach for any
extension work to occur successfully.
• This principle actually creates a mutual
understanding which influences the
members of the family in the process of
decision making.
Principle of whole family

8. Principles of Extension
Education
• Within rural areas, extension services and agents
should work closely with the other organizations that
provide essential services to farmers and their
families.
• Extension is a co-operative venture which helps
people to help themselves. Good extension work
readily absorbs this principle to provide help in
solving problems rather than providing ready-made
solutions.
• This principle seeks maximum participation from the
peoples’ end with increased confidence level.
Principle of Cooperation and
participation
REF:
http://www.fao.org/3/t0060e/T0060
E03.htm

9. Principles of Extension
Education
• Extension is an applied Science (J.P. Leagans). It is a
two way process of identification of problems at grass-
root level and thereafter with integrated research
works by the scientists and clients, the solutions are
designed.
• Being a democratic approach, it provides the means of
decision making.
Principle of applied science and
democratic approach

10. Principles of Extension
Education
• Learning refers to relatively permanent change in
behaviour of the individuals which appears as a result
of practice and experience.
• People hesitate to do the work unless they see it
getting performed well. The extension workers must
some how, bring this work to their personal attention.
This paves the path for receiving proper
information/feedback.
• This develops confidence as it involves maximum
number of sensory organs.
Principle of learning by doing

11. Principles of Extension
Education
• Trained specialists have a clear role to
provide in extension. These professionals
who keep themselves in touch with their
respective research institutes must extend
their information, knowledge and skills about
meaningful terms, the latest scientific
developments, etc., to the extension workers,
which have scope for adoption in particular
areas.
Principle of trained specialists

12. Principles of Extension
Education
• The principle has its utility as the people in
different groups differ from each other in terms
of knowledge and skills.
• Extension professionals should have knowledge
of extension methods so that they can select
proper method according to the situation.
• Flexibility in selection of extension methods must
be made according to the age groups, educational
background, economic standard and gender of
people.
Principle of adoptability of
extension teaching methods

13. Principles of Extension
Education
• The success and failure of any extension
programme depends on the strength of local
leadership.
• People have more faith in local leaders as
they are literally the guardians of local
thoughts and actions.
• They can be trained and developed to best
serve as interpreter of new ideas to the
villagers for easy adoption.
Principle of leadership

14. Principles of Extension
Education
• Evaluation is based upon the achievement of
the pre-decided objectives of any programme.
• A successful extension programme is
completely dependent on continuous
evaluation.
• The effectiveness of any work not only be
assessed with the accomplishment of the
desired target but also with the desirable
change in the behavioral components.
Principle of Evaluation

15. Principles of Extension
Education
• The end product of any extension programme
is the satisfaction which is being achieved
through solving a pertinent problem or
through need fulfillment.
• A satisfied person from the extension
programme holds the key for further effective
communication of success to other people.
Principle of Satisfaction

16. Thank You